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American jazz trombonist
Al Grey
Birth name Albert Thornton Grey Born (1925-06-06 ) June 6, 1925
Aldie, Virginia , U.S.Died March 24, 2000(2000-03-24) (aged 74) Scottsdale, Arizona Genres Jazz Occupation(s) Musician Instrument(s) Trombone Years active 1946–1990 Labels
Argo ,
Black & Blue ,
Tangerine ,
Chiaroscuro ,
Arbors ,
Columbia
Musical artist
Al Grey (June 6, 1925
[1] – March 24, 2000)
[2] was an American
jazz trombonist who was a member of the
Count Basie orchestra. He was known for his
plunger mute technique and wrote an instructional book in 1987 called Plunger Techniques .
[2]
Career
Al Grey, the last great big time plunger by Gwendolyn Lanier-Gardner, 2015
Al Grey was born in
Aldie, Virginia , United States,
[1] and grew up in
Pottstown, Pennsylvania . He was introduced to the trombone at the age of four, playing in a band called the Goodwill Boys, which was led by his father.
[2] During
World War II he served in the U.S. Navy, where he continued to play the trombone.
[1] Soon after his discharge, he joined
Benny Carter 's band,
[1] then the bands of
Jimmie Lunceford ,
Lucky Millinder , and
Lionel Hampton .
[3] In the 1950s, he was a member of the big bands of
Dizzy Gillespie and
Count Basie .
[3] He led bands in the 1960s with
Billy Mitchell and
Jimmy Forrest .
[3] Later in life he recorded with
Clark Terry and
J. J. Johnson .
[3] He made thirty recordings under his own name and another seventy with bands.
[2]
Grey's early trombone style was inspired by
Trummy Young . He developed a wild, strong, and full sound. Solos often consisted of short, pronounced phrases with precisely timed
syncopation . However, when playing with the plunger, he would produce the most mellow fill-ins and shape melodic answers to the lead voice. This aspect of his playing can be heard to great effect in response to
Bing Crosby 's vocals on the 1972 album,
Bing 'n' Basie .[
citation needed ]
He died in
Scottsdale, Arizona at the age of 74 after suffering from several ailments, including diabetes.
[2]
Discography
As leader/co-leader
Dizzy Atmosphere (
Specialty , 1957)
The Last of the Big Plungers (
Argo 1960)
The Thinking Man's Trombone (Argo, 1961)
The Al Grey - Billy Mitchell Sextet (Argo, 1962)
Snap Your Fingers (Argo, 1962)
Having a Ball (Argo, 1963)
Boss Bone (Argo, 1964)
Night Song (Argo, 1963)
Shades of Grey (
Tangerine , 1965)
Grey's Mood (Black and Blue, 1979)
Get It Together (Pizza Express, 1979)
O.D. (Out 'Dere) with
Jimmy Forrest (Greyforrest, 1980)
Struttin' and Shoutin' (
Columbia , 1983)
Things Are Getting Better All the Time with
J. J. Johnson (Pablo, 1984)
Just Jazz with
Buddy Tate (Uptown, 1984)
Al Grey & Jesper Thilo Quintet (Storyville, 1986)
Al Grey Featuring Arnett Cobb and Jimmy Forrest (Black and Blue, 1987)
The New Al Grey Quintet (
Chiaroscuro , 1988)
Al Grey Fab (Capri, 1990)
Live at the Floating Jazz Festival (Chiaroscuro, 1991)
Christmas Stockin' Stuffer (Capri, 1992)
Truly Wonderful with Jimmy Forrest (Stash, 1992)
Centerpiece: Live at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1995)
Me 'n' Jack (Pullen Music, 1996)
Matzoh and Grits (
Arbors Records , 1998)
As sideman
With
Count Basie
The Atomic Mr. Basie (
Roulette , 1957)
Basie Plays Hefti (Roulette, 1958)
Basie (Roulette, 1958)
Breakfast Dance and Barbecue (Roulette, 1959)
Basie One More Time (Roulette, 1959)
Chairman of the Board (Roulette, 1959)
Strike Up the Band (Roulette, 1959)
Dance Along with Basie (Roulette, 1959)
Kansas City Suite (Roulette, 1961)
Count Basie/Sarah Vaughan (Roulette, 1961)
Easin' It (Roulette, 1963)
Basie Picks the Winners (Verve, 1965)
Pop Goes the Basie (
Reprise , 1965)
Big Band Scene '65 (Roulette, 1965)
Basie Swingin' Voices Singin' (
ABC-Paramount , 1966)
Basie Meets Bond (
United Artists , 1966)
Arthur Prysock/Count Basie (Verve, 1966)
Broadway Basie's...Way (Command, 1966)
Have a Nice Day (Daybreak, 1971)
Bing 'n' Basie (20th Century Fox, 1972)
Count Basie Plays Quincy Jones & Neal Hefti (Roulette, 1975)
Basie Big Band (Pablo, 1975)
I Told You So (Pablo, 1976)
Montreux '77 (Pablo, 1977)
Prime Time (Pablo, 1977)
Basie Jam #2 (Pablo, 1977)
Basie/Eckstine Incorporated (Roulette, 1979)
Basie Jam #3 (Pablo, 1979)
Count On the Coast (Phontastic, 1983)
Count On the Coast Vol. II (Phontastic, 1984)
Autumn in Paris (Magic, 1984)
Count On the Coast '58 (Polydor, 1985)
Live in Stockholm (Magic, 1985)
Loose Walk (Pablo, 1988)
Basie in Europe (LRC, 1985)
With
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown
San Antonio Ballbuster (Red Lightnin', 1974)
Atomic Energy (Blues Boy, 1983)
More Stuff (Black and Blue, 1985)
Pressure Cooker (Alligator, 1985)
With
Ray Charles
The Genius of Ray Charles (Atlantic, 1959)
Genius + Soul = Jazz (Impulse!, 1961)
At the Club (Philips, 1966)
With
Dizzy Gillespie
With
Lionel Hampton
Newport Uproar! (RCA Victor, 1968)
Hamp's Big Band Live! (Glad-Hamp, 1979)
Live at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1991)
With
Jon Hendricks
Fast Livin' Blues (Columbia, 1962)
Freddie Freeloader (Denon, 1990)
Boppin' at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1995)
With
Quincy Jones
Golden Boy (Mercury, 1964)
Gula Matari (A&M, 1970)
I Heard That!! (A&M, 1976)
Quincy Jones Talkin' Verve (Verve, 2001)
With
Oscar Pettiford
With
Clark Terry
Squeeze Me! (Chiaroscuro, 1989)
What a Wonderful World (Red Baron, 1993)
Shades of Blues (Challenge, 1994)
With others
Lorez Alexandria ,
Early in the Morning (Argo, 1960)
Ernestine Anderson , Moanin' (Mercury, 1960)
Louis Armstrong ,
Louis Armstrong and His Friends (Flying Dutchman, 1970)
Tony Bennett , Sings Ellington Hot & Cool, (Columbia, 1999)
Ray Brown , Don't Forget the Blues (Concord Jazz, 1986)
Ray Bryant ,
Madison Time (Columbia, 1960)
Dave Burns , Warming Up! (Vanguard, 1964)
Joe Bushkin , Play It Again Joe (United Artists, 1977)
Arnett Cobb ,
Keep On Pushin' (Bee Hive, 1984)
Nat King Cole , Welcome to the Club (Capitol, 1959)
Chris Connor , Sings Ballads of the Sad Cafe (Atlantic, 1959)
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis , Jazz at the Philharmonic 1983 (Pablo, 1983)
Sammy Davis Jr. , I Gotta Right to Swing (Brunswick, 1960)
Buddy DeFranco , Born to Swing! Star (Satelite, 1988)
Billy Eckstine , Mr. B (Audio Lab, 1960)
Duke Ellington , Digital Duke (GRP, 1987)
Ella Fitzgerald , Sweet and Hot (Decca, 1955)
Ella Fitzgerald, Newport Jazz Festival Live at Carnegie Hall July 5, 1973 (CBS, 1973)
Dexter Gordon , Settin' the Pace (Proper, 2001)
Dave Grusin , The Fabulous Baker Boys (GRP, 1989)
John Hicks ,
Friends Old and New (Novus, 1992)
Johnny Hodges ,
3 Shades of Blue (
Flying Dutchman , 1970)
Bobby Hutcherson , The Al Grey & Dave Burns Sessions (Lone Hill Jazz, 2004)
J. J. Johnson , Things Are Getting Better All the Time (Pablo, 1984)
Leiber-Stoller Big Band , Yakety Yak (Atlantic, 1960)
Melba Liston ,
Melba Liston and Her 'Bones (MetroJazz, 1959)
Jimmy McGriff ,
Blue to the 'Bone (Milestone, 1988)
Jay McShann ,
Some Blues (Chiaroscuro, 1993)
Lee Morgan /Thad Jones, Minor Strain (Roulette/Capitol, 1990)
Barbara Morrison , I Know How to Do It (Chartmaker, 1996)
Joe Newman ,
Counting Five in Sweden (
Metronome , 1958)
Johnny Pate , Outrageous (MGM, 1970)
Pony Poindexter ,
Gumbo! (Prestige, 1963)
Paul Quinichette ,
Like Basie! (United Artists, 1959)
Dianne Reeves , The Grand Encounter (Blue Note, 1996)
Annie Ross , Music Is Forever (DRG, 1996)
Buddy Tate , Al Grey, Just Jazz (Reservoir, 1989)
Leon Thomas , Facets (Flying Dutchman, 1973)
Mel Torme , Night at the Concord Pavilion (Concord, 1990)
Robert Trowers , Point of View (Concord, 1995)
Sarah Vaughan , No Count Sarah (Mercury, 1959)
Eddie Cleanhead Vinson , Kidney Stew (Black and Blue, 1996)
George Wein , Swing That Music (Columbia, 1993)
Frank Wess ,
Harry Edison , Dear Mr. Basie (Concord Jazz, 1990)
Randy Weston ',
Tanjah (
Polydor , 1973)
Ernie Wilkins , Here Comes the Swingin' Mr. Wilkins! (Everest, 1960)
Joe Williams ,
Everyday I Have the Blues (Roulette, 1959)
Joe Williams, Sing Along with Basie (Roulette, 1980)
References
External links
Media related to
Al Grey at Wikimedia Commons
Years given are for the recording(s), not first release, unless stated otherwise.
Studio albums Live albums Related articles
Members 1951–1960
Dance Session (1952–54, Clef)
Count Basie Swings, Joe Williams Sings (with
Joe Williams ) (1955, Clef)
April in Paris (1955–56, Verve)
The Greatest!! Count Basie Plays, Joe Williams Sings Standards (with
Joe Williams ) (1956, Verve)
Basie in London (live) (1956, Verve)
One O'Clock Jump (with
Joe Williams and
Ella Fitzgerald ) (1957, Verve)
Count Basie at Newport (live) (1957, Verve)
E = MC² (1958, Roulette)
Basie Plays Hefti (1958, Roulette)
No Count Sarah (with
Sarah Vaughan ) (1958, EmArcy)
Breakfast Dance and Barbecue (1959, Roulette)
Welcome to the Club (Uncredited) (
Nat King Cole ) (1959, Capitol)
In Person! (with
Tony Bennett ) (1959, Columbia)
Chairman of the Board (1959, Roulette)
Strike Up the Band (with
Tony Bennett ) (1959, Roulette)
Basie/Eckstine Incorporated (with
Billy Eckstine ) (1959, Roulette)
Everyday I Have the Blues (with
Joe Williams ) (1959, Roulette)
The Count Basie Story (1960, Roulette)
I Gotta Right to Swing (Uncredited) (
Sammy Davis Jr. ) (1960, Decca)
1961–1970
First Time! The Count Meets the Duke (with
Duke Ellington ) (1961, Columbia)
The Legend (1961, Roulette)
Count Basie/Sarah Vaughan (with
Sarah Vaughan ) (1961, Roulette)
Basie at Birdland (live) (1961, Roulette)
Easin' It (1962, Roulette)
Sinatra–Basie: An Historic Musical First (with
Frank Sinatra ) (1962, Reprise)
On My Way & Shoutin' Again! (1963, Verve)
Li'l Ol' Groovemaker...Basie! (1963, Verve)
This Time by Basie! (1963, Verve)
Ella and Basie! (with
Ella Fitzgerald ) (1963, Verve)
Basie Land (1964, Verve)
It Might as Well Be Swing (with
Frank Sinatra ) (1964, Reprise)
Basie Picks the Winners (1965, Verve)
Our Shining Hour (with
Sammy Davis Jr. ) (1965, Verve)
Arthur Prysock and Count Basie (with
Arthur Prysock ) (1965, Verve)
Basie's Beatle Bag (1965, Verve)
Broadway Basie's...Way (1966, Command)
Basie Meets Bond (1966, United Artists)
Hollywood...Basie's Way (1966, Command)
Sinatra at the Sands (live, with
Frank Sinatra ) (1966, Reprise)
Basie's Beat (1967, Verve)
Half a Sixpence (1967, Dot)
The Board of Directors (with
The Mills Brothers ) (1968, Dot)
The Board of Directors Annual Report (with
The Mills Brothers ) (1968, Dot)
Basie Straight Ahead (1969, Dot)
Standing Ovation (1969, Dot)
Afrique (1970, RCA Victor)
Basie on the Beatles (1970,
Happy Tiger )
1971–1980
Have A Nice Day (1971, Daybreak)
Bing 'n' Basie (with
Bing Crosby ) (1972, Daybreak)
Jazz at Santa Monica Civic '72 (live) (1972, Pablo)
The Bosses (with
Big Joe Turner ) (1973, Pablo)
Basie Big Band (1975, Pablo)
Fun Time (1975, Pablo)
I Told You So (1976, Pablo)
Prime Time (1977, Pablo)
Montreux '77 (live) (1977, Pablo)
Live in Japan '78 (live) (1978, Pablo)
On the Road (1979, Pablo)
Digital III at Montreux (live) (1979, Pablo)
A Classy Pair (with
Ella Fitzgerald ) (1979, Pablo)
A Perfect Match (live, with
Ella Fitzgerald ) (1979, Pablo)
Kansas City Shout (1980, Pablo)
1981–1990
Warm Breeze (1981, Pablo)
Send in the Clowns (
Sarah Vaughan ) (1981, Pablo)
Farmer's Market Barbecue (1982, Pablo)
88 Basie Street (1983, Pablo)
Me and You (1983, Pablo)
Fancy Pants (final album with
Count Basie ) (1983, Pablo)
Long Live the Chief (1987, Denon)
Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra (live, with
Diane Schuur ) (1987, GRP)
The Legend, the Legacy (1990, Denon)
1991–2000
The George Benson Big Boss Band featuring The Count Basie Orchestra (1991, Warner Bros.)
The Count Basie Orchestra Live at El Morocco (1992, Telarc)
Joe Williams and the Count Basie Orchestra (1993, Telarc)
Live at Manchester Craftsmen's Guild: The Count Basie Orchestra (1997, Blue Jackel)
At Long Last (with
Rosemary Clooney ) (1998, Concord)
Count Plays Duke (1998, MAMA)
Swing Shift (1999, MAMA)
2001–present Small-group sessions
Basie Jam (1973, Pablo)
For the First Time (1974, Pablo)
Basie & Zoot (with
Zoot Sims ) (1975, Pablo)
For the Second Time (1975, Pablo)
Basie Jam 2 (1976, Pablo)
Basie Jam 3 (1976, Pablo)
Kansas City 5 (1977, Pablo)
The Gifted Ones (with
Dizzy Gillespie ) (1977, Pablo)
Basie Jam: Montreux '77 (live) (1977, Pablo)
Satch and Josh...Again (with
Oscar Peterson ) (1977, Pablo)
Night Rider (with Oscar Peterson) (1978, Pablo)
Count Basie Meets Oscar Peterson – The Timekeepers (with Oscar Peterson) (1978, Pablo)
Yessir, That's My Baby (with Oscar Peterson) (1978, Pablo)
Kansas City 7 (1980, Pablo)
Kansas City 6 (1981, Pablo)
Mostly Blues...and Some Others (1983, Pablo)
International National Academics Artists Other