Clark Terry (pictured), Don Friedman, Hank Jones, Maynard Ferguson ....

At JazzWax this weekend, Clark Terry (pictured), Don Friedman, Hank Jones, Maynard Ferguson and more... https://t.co/KYZueno1Av pic.twitter.com/UabhRmUKpw

— Marc Myers (@JazzWax) January 21, 2017

My piano hero, Mr. Hank Jones

My piano hero, Mr. Hank Jones #jazz #BlackLivesMatter https://t.co/EcOEq77gfH

— Geoffrey Keezer (@88Keezer) July 31, 2016

Joe Lovano and Hank Jones - The Duo Made in Heaven

Tenor man Joe Lovano and Piano Master Hank Jones are the Duo Made in Heaven. Henry "Hank" Jones (July 31, 1918 -- May 16, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable.

In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts honored him with the NEA Jazz Masters Award, He was also honored in 2003 with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) Jazz Living Legend Award.

In 2008, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. On April 13, 2009, the University of Hartford presented Jones with a Doctorate Degree for his musical accomplishments.


Jones recorded over sixty albums under his own name, and countless others as a sideman

Joe Lovano and Hank Jones - The Duo Made in Heaven

Tenor man Joe Lovano and Piano Master Hank Jones are the Duo Made in Heaven. Henry "Hank" Jones (July 31, 1918 -- May 16, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable.

In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts honored him with the NEA Jazz Masters Award, He was also honored in 2003 with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) Jazz Living Legend Award. In 2008, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. On April 13, 2009, the University of Hartford presented Jones with a Doctorate Degree for his musical accomplishments.
Jones recorded over sixty albums under his own name, and countless others as a sideman.
From: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YebOyztBhwA

Lucky Thompson + Hank Jones

Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com

When jazz musicians are paired perfectly, the result sounds like a key sliding into a lock. To the listener, the combination is magic as their tones and ideas merge and each artist plays off the other. Made-for-each-other examples include Lester Young and Billie Holiday, Al Cohn and Zoot Sims, Red Garland and Miles Davis, and Jim Hall and Paul Desmond. Add saxophonist Lucky Thompson and pianist Hank Jones to the list. While their work together is limited, Lucky Thompson Plays Jerome Kern and No More remains the finest expression of these two giants together.

Recordings of Thompson and Jones [above] together date back to a Hot Lips Page session of November 1944. They were together again in November 1955 on a Jimmy Cleveland recording session and in '56 on recordings led by Milt Jackson, Quincy Jones (This Is How I Feel About Jazz)and Johnny Hartman (All of Me).

But it wasn't until 1963 when Thompson led a date for Prestige's Moodsville series of relaxed albums that he recorded just with Hank Jones (p) and Wendell Marshall (b) and Dave Bailey (d) behind him. With this album, you're able to hear the two artists play off each other without distraction, and the result is gorgeous—something producers should have picked up on previously and afterward but, sadly, never did. 

Thompson's slippery, smoky style is constantly trying to wriggle free from Jones's firm precision, and the two engage in a cat and mouse game throughout. Thompson blows each Kern song straight for the first run through and then launches into improvisation with extreme tenderness and caressing. He also leaves lots of space for Jones to surface between his lines, and the contrast is wonderful. Jones's solos are precious, often starting in the upper register and working their way down. We also get to hear Thompson on sopranos sax.

Thompson and Jones would record together in the quartet format only once more—on Thompson's Lucky Strikes(1964). That was it. Fed up with the music industry, Thompson, who had relocated to Paris between 1957 and '62, did so again by moving to Switzerland from '68 to '70. When he returned to the U.S., he taught at Dartmouth College in '73 and '74, but the re-adjustment was difficult. He soon dropped out of the music business and was reportedly homeless by the early 1990s. He died in 2005 in assisted living, which came as a shock to many unsuspecting jazz fans. 

This Kern album shows off Thompson and Jones at their very best and makes one wonder why they weren't recorded together again and again.

JazzWax tracks: You'll find the Kern album with Hank Jones along withHappy Days Are Here Again with Tommy Flanagan on piano onHappy Days(Prestige) here. I, for one, would welcome Prestige re-issuing the complete Moodsville series in a box set.

JazzWax clips:Fortunately, someone put up two tracks that were issued as singles...

Here's Lovely to Look At...

Here's Who?...

Used with permission by Marc Myers

Hank Jones on Bebop

Celebration of Life & Memorial for the legendary Hank Jones

DATE: Saturday June 26th 2010
PLACE: Abyssinian Baptist Church, West 138 street (between Lenox Ave.and Adam Clayton Blvd.)
TIME: 2:00 - 5:00 PM

Speakers and performers include: (Schedules subject to change)
To include: Jimmy Heath (Musical Director), Frank Wess, Mulgrew Miller, Frank Foster & the Loud Minority Big Band, Joe Wilder, Willie Jones III, George Mraz, Dr. Billy Taylor, Phil Schaap, Gil Noble, George Wein, Barry Harris, Davell Crawford, Lewis Nash, Jimmy Cobb, Eddie Gomez, Kenny Barron, Richard Sussman, Eric Reed and many more.

Donations:
Bruce Jones, Thedia Jones Smith and the Jones Family ask that donations be made to the Jazz Foundation of America to help cover the costs of this memorial. Please make your donation online and specify in memory of Hank Jones. Thank you so much.

For over 21 years the Jazz Foundation of America has been the first and only national organization dedicated to saving the homes and lives of elder jazz and blues musicians in crisis. Assisting over 1,600 emergency cases a year including hundreds of New Orleans musicians and their children still coping with the effects of Katrina.

Donations made to the Jazz Foundation will cover the cost of this memorial as well as rmergency care of our great jazz and blues musicians in need. http://www.jazzfoundation.org/ http://www.jazzfoundation.org/
The legendary Hank Jones To hear Hank Jones play is to understand why he is one of the rare individuals that the National Endowment for the Arts has inducted as a “Jazz Master”. A member of the famous Jazz family which included his brothers, the late drummer Elvin Jones and the late trumpeter Thad Jones, his playing style made him one of the most sought after and recorded Jazz pianists in Jazz history.

Born in Mississippi, Hank Jones grew up in Michigan, playing in territory bands as a teenager. In 1944, he moved to New York to play with Hot Lips Page and had stints with Coleman Hawkins, Billy Eckstine and Howard McGhee as well. Influenced by Teddy Wilson and Art Tatum, Jones' style also embraced bebop, and his broad range allowed him to fit into many different settings. He toured with Jazz at the Philharmonic starting in 1947, worked as Ella Fitzgerald's accompanist from 1948-53, and recorded with Charlie Parker.

In the ‘50s, he performed with Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Milt Jackson, and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley. He was staff pianist at CBS studios from 1959-1976 and accompanied Marilyn Monroe when she sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to John F. Kennedy in 1962. In the late '70s, he served as pianist and conductor for the Broadway musical Ain't Misbehavin' and played with the Great Jazz Trio, which included, at various times, Ron Carter, Tony Williams, Buster Williams and Ben Riley.

Of course, these words can never express all the influences Hank had on so many of us as well as on other artists, and they cannot measure the life of a man but only describe his musical contributions. But for those of us who knew Hank, we had the great honor of knowing a good, kind and fascinating human being. “In his eloquent poem of the same name, Robert Frost speaks of ‘the road less traveled’ – that journey where two paths diverge, where the author takes a path not clearly marked, seeking out adventure and the unknown.

Perhaps no verse ever encapsulates more the life of a jazz musician. Often times, cabs and coach, rather than limos and first class, is the road of one following the call of an inner voice, rather than the roar of an arena... Hank’s was a life dedicated to ‘The Road.’” - Bill Threlkeld

Special Acknowledgements:
The Jazz Foundation of America especially Wendy Oxenhorn, Kimberly Middleton, Marianne Pillsbury, Joseph Petrucelli, and Gina Robertson for all of the assistance; Reverend Calvin Butts III, Naomi Graham and the Abyssinian Baptist Church for their generosity; Laurel Gross for her devotion and caring for Hank this past year, Kiyoko Murata for her caring and management of Hank in Japan, Kevin Harewood for assisting the family in the production of the memorial, All the physicians and medical staff for their excellent care, and the following people for all that they have done for both Hank Jones and his family: Miles Morimoto, Vincent Davis, Esther Sansaurus, Geoffrey Menin, and Manny Ramirez.
Jazz Promo Services <jazzpromo@earthlink.net>

In Memoriam: Hank Jones On Piano Jazz

by Alfred Turner
In a career that spans seven decades, Hank Jones has worked with everyone who's anyone in jazz, including Benny Goodman, Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster and Billie Holiday. On Sunday night, Jones died after a brief illness. He was 91. We remember his long legacy with a Piano Jazz session from 2009.

In celebration of Piano Jazz's 30th anniversary, Marian McPartland asked a few of her favorite musicians to sit in as guest hosts. An obvious first choice was Bill Charlap, a pianist who, in many respects, mirrors McPartland's elegant pianistic style, as well as her ability to play just about any kind of jazz. His knowledge of the American songbook is nothing short of encyclopedic, and his reverence for jazz history is evident in every note he plays.

McPartland and Charlap decided that Hank Jones would be a great guest for this program. The legendary pianist was one of McPartland's first guests on Piano Jazz in 1979, so to bring him back 30 years later completes the circle. Like McPartland, Jones was one of the few performing jazz nonagenarians. Charlap, who has long considered Jones a jazz piano hero, was eager to uncover the influences that created this legendary pianist. Photo: Rafa Rivas/Getty Images

Here, Jones talks about his early years in Detroit and references arranger/composer and clarinetist Bill Stegmeyer as the man who early on provided him with "great insight into the kind of harmonies" he still uses today. Those trademark harmonies emerge with an easy grace on "Lonely Woman." Jones summed up his approach thusly: "Keep the melody intact," and "You're only at your best when you're relaxed." Those truths lie at the heart of all the music in this session, but especially so in their duets of "Oh, Look at Me Now" and Billy Strayhorn's "Lotus Blossom."

Strayhorn's songs and arrangements were, of course, a cornerstone of Duke Ellington's sound, and his name brings to Charlap's mind Ellington's "Sophisticated Lady." He plays the classic tune with a light, swinging touch, sometimes punctuating a phrase with abbreviated bass notes from the left hand. When Charlap finishes, the great Hank Jones said in unequivocal tones, "Superb! Superb! Superb!" That would be a great way to describe this special session.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111423493

Grammy-winning jazz pianist Hank Jones dies at 91 in New York hospital

Ula Ilnytzky, The Associated Press
NEW YORK, N.Y. - Jazz pianist and composer Hank Jones, whose 70-year career included a stint as Ella Fitzgerald's pianist and Marilyn Monroe's accompanist when she sang "Happy Birthday" to President John F. Kennedy, has died, his manager said Monday. He was 91. Jones, who won a Grammy lifetime achievement award last year and received the National Medal of Arts in 2008, died Sunday night at a New York hospital after a brief illness, Jean-Pierre Leduc said.

A tireless musician who performed his blend of swing and bebop until the end, Jones came from a family of jazz musicians who included brother Thad, a trumpeter, composer and arranger, and brother Elvin, a drummer known for the polyrhythmic beat that propelled John Coltrane's classic quartet. "The world has lost a true jazz icon, and his legacy leaves an indelible mark on the genre to which he contributed so much," Neil Portnow, president and CEO of The Recording Academy, said in a statement. "Our deepest sympathies go out to his family, friends, and fans who will forever appreciate his genius and skill." Saxophonist Joe Lovano, with whom Jones made several CDs when he was an octogenarian, including the Grammy-nominated "Kids: Live at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola" (2007), called Jones "one of the master musicians in the history of jazz."

"He was the consummate accompanist and played with a very free flowing approach . . . His sound, his touch, his ideas were all about feeling," Lovano said. Throughout his career, Jones made hundreds of recordings and played with some of the biggest names in jazz, including Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster, Lester Young, Charlie Parker and Coltrane. According to his website, Jones' one regret was that he didn't record more often with his late brothers. But he did manage to record "The Great Trio Collaboration" with Elvin before his brother died in 2004.

Jones "lived and breathed music and was never far from a keyboard, even at the end," Leduc said.

"His incredible burst of productivity — concerts, recordings, fundraisers, clinics — these last few years was unprecedented and truly remarkable. He had gigs planned through next year" and was scheduled to play at the Birdland jazz club in New York next week, he added. At last year's Jazz Awards, Jones was voted pianist of the year by the Jazz Journalists Association among a crowded field of nominees that included such distinguished veterans as Kenny Barron, Cecil Taylor, Ahmad Jamal and Keith Jarrett and newer faces like Jason Moran and Matthew Shipp. With characteristic modesty, Jones declared it "should be a group award."

"This to me is an honour and also it's a great incentive to me to do better," Jones said in accepting the honour. "It's not the end of things, it's the end of the beginning for me." Jazz pianist-turned-impresario George Wein, who founded the Newport Jazz Festival, called Jones "an inspiration to all of us. "Maybe by the time I'm his age, I'll know a few changes that he plays on the piano," joked the 83-year-old Wein. Saxophonist James Moody, who recorded "Our Delight" with Jones, said, "If someone threw ink at a piece of paper, Hank could play it."

In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts named Jones as a Jazz Master, the nation's highest honour in jazz. Jones "leaves behind an amazing legacy as both a leader and a sideman," NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman said. Born in Vicksburg, Miss., and raised in Pontiac, Mich., he was influenced by such legendary pianists as Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson and Nat King Cole. Lovano said Jones knew them all, as well as Thelonious Monk and Bud Powell. "He was on the scene with them in New York," he said. "He had his own touch and approach from those relationships."

He began performing at the age of 13, playing with territory bands that toured Michigan and Ohio. During those tours he met saxophonist Lucky Thompson, who helped him land a job in trumpeter Hot Lips Page's band in 1944. After moving to New York in 1943, Jones embraced bebop and toured with Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic from 1947-51. As part of the ensemble, he became Fitzgerald's pianist, touring with her from 1948-53. In 1962, he accompanied Monroe on the piano when she sang "Happy Birthday" to President Kennedy at Madison Square Garden.

In a 2005 interview on National Public Radio, he described that day. "She did 16 bars: eight bars of 'Happy Birthday to You' and eight bars of 'Thanks for the Memories,'" he said. "So in 16 bars, we rehearsed eight hours. ... She was very nervous and upset. She wasn't used to that kind of thing. And, I guess, who wouldn't be nervous singing "Happy Birthday" to the president?"

He also worked with such consummate musicians as Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Milt Jackson and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley. He joined CBS as studio pianist, a position he held for 17 years, performing on the Ed Sullivan Show and others.

His most recent recordings were "Pleased to Meet You," an album with pianist Oliver Jones and an as-yet untitled recording of spirituals with bassist Charlie Haden, due out next year, Leduc said. "Hank was a man of elegance and genius, yet remained so modest and full of humour throughout his life," said Haden, who recorded "Come Sunday" with Jones last February.
— With files from Charles Gans.
http://www.canadaeast.com/rss/article/1055825

The ever nimble Hank Jones performs solo at Carnegie Hall, 6 April, 1994 as part of the Verve 50th anniversary celebrations.

Hank Jones and Frank Wess

Hank Jones and Frank Wess - Hank and Frank II (Lineage)

Frank Wess Nonet - Once Is Not Enough (Elabeth)

By John Schu
Hank Jones and Frank Wess Hank and Frank II Lineage Records
Frank Wess Nonet Once Is Not Enough Labeth Music

The second meeting of Hank and Frank is built around a menu of “less than” standards and “too” standards and features performances by guitarist Ilya Lushtak and vocalist Marion Cowlings. I was not familiar with Cowlings’ previous work but will seek some of it out; he has good pitch, delivers lyrics well and uses pleasing phrasing, especially on medium- to-up tempo tunes. A time traveler from about 1968 would recognize everything in Lushtak’s musical vocabulary, which makes it simpatico with the rest of the proceedings. Nothing can be said to be amiss, but almost everything seems subdued, familiar, and predictable, including the playing of the excellent veteran drummer Mickey Roker and bassist/producer John Webber. Many records have paid homage to the Blue Note covers. This one seems to emulate the mockingly bad cover art of the early Prestige records.

The nonet recording features six Wess originals," Lush Life," "Fly Me to the Moon," and "Sweet and Lovely," which are arranged by Wess, Dennis Mackrel, or Scott Robinson. Wess’ playing here is more interesting than on Hank and Frank II and so are the arrangements. The variety of solo instruments and the timbral variety achieved from Wess, Robinson, and Ted Nash doubling various saxophones and flute creates a much more interesting palette. Wess is particularly strong on the slower tempo tunes; "Lush Life," where he constantly references the melody without adhering to it, and "Dementia, My Darling." It may be a cliché to state that ballad playing often improves with age but it is true in this case, and the quality of the arrangements and compositions seems to have inspired those involved.

Jones was 90 and Wess over 85 when these recordings were made. The quality of their performances and that of Roker , a mere 75 or 76 should serve to inspire any musician entering conventional retirement age and remind us that it is possible to age extremely well.
http://jazztimes.com/sections/albums/articles/25642-hank-and-frank-ii-hank-jones-and-frank-wess

Hank Jones Talks About Bebop

http://www.bebopblog.com/66/hank-jones-talks-about-bebop/

Pianist Hank Jones Plays With Vitality At 91

Jazz pianist and composer Hank Jones celebrated his 91st birthday this summer by performing a concert in Japan. But when you listen to him play, you don't hear age; you hear wisdom and vitality. Jones still keeps busy: His discography's newest addition, Pleased to Meet You, will be released this fall. In September, Jones and his late brothers — trumpeter Thad Jones and drummer Elvin Jones — will be honored at the 30th Detroit Jazz Festival, another in a long list of honors that include a Lifetime Achievement Grammy. He's also one of the few musicians that the National Endowment for the Arts has inducted as a Jazz Master. Hank Jones recently spoke to host Liane Hansen about his latest album and how, after all this time, he keeps his fingers nimble. "I just try to live a normal life," Jones says. "I try not to do anything that would be detrimental to my health. I've always stayed away from drugs, liquor and wild women."

Jones once joked to Fresh Air's Terry Gross about his musical longevity, saying that his fingers used to be two inches longer than they are now. "You know, it's almost true," Jones tells Hansen. "I used to do a lot of rock 'n' roll, and in rock 'n' roll you'd have to play triplets, like, 'dit-dit-dit, dit-dit-dit.' So gradually, you see, it wears down the tips of the fingers. Actually, it was four inches — it does have an effect."
Still, Jones says he's never had problems with his hands over the years, thanks in part to practicing three and four hours a day. "You have to keep your fingers active," Jones says. "If there's any secret, that's it." In his career, Jones has influenced countless musicians, but he credits pianists such as Earl Hines, Fats Waller, Teddy Wilson and the "great, immortal" Art Tatum for his own inspiration. "I should mention my late friend Oscar Peterson," Jones adds. "He also was a student and admirer of Tatum. I don't know of any pianists today who didn't consider Tatum like sort of a god."

While Jones has had the opportunity to play with nearly every name in jazz, he still finds himself looking for new opportunities to play. "You see, you never really accomplish everything you want to do," Jones says, "because I'm working on projects now that I'd like to complete, and when those are complete, there are others. So there's always something I want to do."
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112330985&ft=1&f=10002

Hank Jones On Piano Jazz With Bill Charlap

In celebration of Piano Jazz's 30th anniversary, Marian McPartland asked a few of her favorite musicians to sit in as guest hosts. An obvious first choice was Bill Charlap, a pianist who, in many respects, mirrors McPartland's elegant pianistic style, as well as her ability to play just about any kind of jazz. His knowledge of the American songbook is nothing short of encyclopedic, and his reverence for jazz history is evident in every note he plays.

McPartland and Charlap decided that Hank Jones would be a great guest for this program. The legendary pianist was one of McPartland's first guests on Piano Jazz in 1979, so to bring him back 30 years later completes the circle. Like McPartland, Jones is one of the few performing jazz nonagenarians. Charlap, who has long considered Jones a jazz piano hero, is eager to uncover the influences that created this legendary pianist.
Here, Jones talks about his early years in Detroit and references arranger/composer and clarinetist Bill Stegmeyer as the man who early on provided him with "great insight into the kind of harmonies" he still uses today. Those trademark harmonies emerge with an easy grace on "Lonely Woman."

Jones sums up his approach thusly: "Keep the melody intact," and "You're only at your best when you're relaxed." Those truths lie at the heart of all the music in this session, but especially so in their duets of "Oh, Look at Me Now" and Billy Strayhorn's "Lotus Blossom."
Strayhorn's songs and arrangements were, of course, a cornerstone of Duke Ellington's sound, and his name brings to Charlap's mind Ellington's "Sophisticated Lady." He plays the classic tune with a light, swinging touch, sometimes punctuating a phrase with abbreviated bass notes from the left hand. When Charlap finishes, the great Hank Jones says in unequivocal tones, "Superb! Superb! Superb!" That would be a great way to describe this special session.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=111423493&ft=1&f=24

Hank Jones on Bebop

A Chat with Jazz Pianist Hank Jones

By Jacob Teichroew, About.com
Pianist Hank Jones has been swinging since the dawn of modern jazz. When Charlie Parker and Ella Fitzgerald were at their peaks, Jones was right alongside them. He has played with virtually every jazz star one can think of, from Coleman Hawkins in the 1940s to Joe Lovano in the '90s. At 90 years old, he is still one of the top pianists in jazz, and he continues to perform and record. Not surprisingly, he has recently been awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
Mr. Jones was kind enough to answer some questions I emailed him, and the below interview was carried out and transcribed by his manager, Jean-Pierre Leduc, on January 7th, 2009.

Jacob Teichroew: How do you think it turned out that, with a father who thought jazz was evil, you and two of your brothers turned out to be world famous jazz musicians? Did you have to be sneaky about learning and performing the music?
Hank Jones: My father was a devout Christian, and it’s true he thought jazz was evil, but he did support the taking of lessons. My mother and father were both supportive of the learning process. My father liked that I played piano in church.

I had to be less open about playing jazz to my father, but Elvin and Thad were not so restricted as I, being the eldest, had already “broken the ice,” if you will. I had a lot of respect for my father and so did my brothers.

JT: You grew up in Pontiac, Michigan, close to Detroit. Detroit is, of course, known for Motown in the 1960s, and blues guitarist John Lee Hooker lived there in the '40s and '50s, but was there a thriving jazz scene there in the 1930s, when you were beginning to perform?
HJ: I wasn’t aware of Hooker. Although Detroit is 25 miles south, in those days that was a distance. I played in Flint and a few other towns in Michigan, but not the big city, so I wasn’t really that familiar with Detroit as a jazz centre. When Barry Harris, Tommy Flanagan and others were coming up, I was, of course, already in New York City.

JT: Were the seeds of Motown evident at that point?
HJ: No. But I do know that Barry Harris went to school with Berry Gordy!

JT: When you moved to New York, the focus was transitioning from swing to bebop. Were you attracted to bebop artistically, or did you feel pressure to learn the style in order to work?
HJ: I didn’t feel any pressure. I was attracted to it, as it embodied a sophisticated and inclusive harmonic approach. The lines were directly related to the harmony and often complicated.

JT: In the late '40s, you briefly played in Andy Kirk’s Orchestra, as well as Norman Granz’ Jazz at the Philharmonic (JATP). It seems that a common figure in your work with those bands was trumpeter Fats Navarro. Was that a coincidence, or was your career strongly tied to his? Which of those groups would you say did more to launch your career?
HJ: Actually Fats was not in Kirk’s band, to my knowledge. I played some gigs with Fats in New York. One time with Fats, at the new Cotton Club, I was there when Fats jumped down from the upper tier of the bandstand. He came down to play his solo, but fell through the floor! The audience was in stitches – and Fats never stopped playing!

My career was not tied to his, and our association was intermittent. I played with him in the Billy Eckstine band. With JATP, I started in 1947, and certainly that association helped my early career, and it continued up to 1951.

Note: according to www.jazzdisco.org, Hank Jones and Fats Navarro with Andy Kirk's orchestra on a 1946 Decca recording. The same website lists several more recordings of Andy Kirk’s orchestra that include Navarro.

JT: When you were performing with them, did you have a sense of how important Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker would be to jazz?
HJ: It would have been impossible for me to predict at the time, but I can say that I had heard of them in Pontiac, so it was certainly a thrill to be able to work with guys like that. Today, I, of course, consider them icons.

JT: Who were your major musical influences when you were first developing as a musician? Did the pre-bebop masters influence your bebop playing? Who did you listen to in order to learn bebop on the piano?
HJ: Long before bebop, there was Fats Waller, Teddy Wilson and Earl Hines. These players were a big influence. Art Tatum, who, of course, came up later, is my all-time favorite player. I don’t believe in the term bebop, I’d rather just call it modern music or contemporary jazz. Even the term “jazz” I think unnecessarily pigeonholes what we do. Having said this, regarding what they call bebop, I listened to Bird, Bud Powell & Monk. I think Bird influenced Bud.
http://jazz.about.com/od/interviews/a/HankJonesInterv.htm

Hank Jones Wins Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award

Pianist Hank Jones, who has played with virtually everyone from Coleman Hawkins to Joe Lovano, has been awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The prize will be presented on a February 7th, 2009 ceremony, and Jones will be recognized the following evening on the Grammy Awards broadcast.
Jones has been a top pianist since the days of swing and bebop. In the early fifties he played with both Ella Fitzgerald and Charlie Parker, and, at 90 years old, continues to record and perform with leading jazz artists.
http://jazz.about.com/b/2008/12/24/hank-jones-wins-grammy-lifetime-achievement-award.htm

Abbey Lincoln & Hank Jones

Abbey Lincoln & Hank Jones >
Imperdível.
Maravilhosa a parceria com Hank.

Destaque para "When There is love" e C'est Si Bon"

Abrazzzzzos