That Jazz - Monkey Max Music and File Download

104
Part II: Jazz Greats and Great Jazz: An Evolutionary Riff
Figure 6-2:
Count
Basie’s
swing band
was one of
the best
around.
Count Basie
One of the greatest of the swing bands belonged to Count Basie (1904–1984).
Born in New Jersey, Basie (see Figure 6-2) spent his teens touring and getting
a behind-the-scenes knowledge of the world of entertainment. He also served
as an accompanist for silent films.
Basie lived in Harlem during the 1920s, where he played a variety of venues
and heard pianists James P. Johnson, Lucky Roberts, and Willie “The Lion”
Smith. He also met Fats Waller, who accompanied a silent film on pipe organ
at the Lincoln Theatre, and eventually Waller let Basie join him at the organ.
Basie was traveling with a vaudeville company that broke up in Kansas City,
and he decided to stay there.
©William P. Gottlieb, www.jazzphotos.com
In swing music, Basie rose to stardom through territory bands: Walter Page’s
Blue Devils and The Kansas City Orchestra, led by Bennie Moten (he served
as both pianist and arranger). Members of Moten’s group formed the nucleus
of Basie’s first band, the 9-piece Barons of Rhythm. (I cover territory bands
earlier in this chapter.)