Lester young biography, albums, streaming links allmusic. The recordings were produced by norman granz and the first 4 tracks were released in 1951 on a mercury records 10 inch lp, the lester young trio. His father, a musician, taught him and his two brothers to play instruments. He played in the count basie orchestra and recorded with basie his first recordings in 1936. Occasionally, he was known to also play the clarinet. With his airy, vibratoless tone and sophisticated harmonic imagination, lester young 190959 was arguably the most influential tenor saxophonist after coleman hawkins. Blue note, prestige, riverside records the big three labels of modern jazz. Lady day and pres they bestowed the nicknames on each other recorded some 60 sides together between 1937 and 1946, many if not all of which have to be considered classics.
Lester young with the o lester young teddy wi the jazz giants 56. Complete billie holiday lester young 19371946 allmusic. Verve mgv8161 lester young and his orchestra lesters here verve ve22516 lester young lester swings verve mgv8308 the lester young story verve mgv8341 various artists special college jazz album. Lester willis young august 27, 1909 march 15, 1959, nicknamed pres or prez, was an american jazz tenor saxophonist and occasional clarinetist coming to prominence while a member of count basies orchestra, young was one of the most influential players on his instrument. Memory cd1 2009 jazz lester young download jazz music. Connect your spotify account to your account and scrobble everything you listen to, from any spotify app on any device or platform. Music profile for lester young, born 27 august 1909. The seminal tenorist who died in 1958 continued to excel during the last years of his life, and one of the great things about his 1950s output is the fact that lps gave him a. New album lester young pres 2020 flac available for download on site. The complete aladdin recordings some critics claim that lester young never sounded the same after his stint in the military in the.
This site were made with the intention of spreading the legacy of lester young. A tenor sax legend, known as pres, whose melodic, smoothflowing lines made him the most influential and inventive player of the prebop era. In accordance with the directives of government and health authorities, we have temporarily suspended operations. The bulk of the lester youngs studio recordings brought together by verve comes from the last decade of his life 194959 when he was declining physically he suffered from severe depression and was drinking heavily and musically although still capable of improvising impressively, playing beautiful solos exhibiting his worldweariness. Find the latest tracks, albums, and images from lester young. Lester young 19091959 was born in mississippi near new orleans in 1909. Lester young 1909 1959 was one of the greatest artists in jazz, the creator of completely new concepts on how the tenorsax was supposed to be played, and his works with teddy wilson, billie holiday and count basie will truly be immortal. Young, lester the prince of soul young, young a1861185. As the star in count basies big band and billie holidays favorite soloist, youngs breezy solos, along with his patented porkpie hat and unique hipster jargon, affected legions of musicians. Lester willis young august 27, 1909 march 15, 1959, nicknamed pres or prez, was an american jazz tenor saxophonist and sometime clarinetist. August 27, 2009 young, aka the president of jazz, was born 100 years ago thursday.
Lester young turns 100 billie holidays favorite musician, jazz great lester prez young brought a hip, freewheeling sensibility to his saxophone playing. His superb melodic gift and logical phrasing and smooth, flowing lines were the inspiration for most of the jazz musicians regardless of instruments born after 1920. Some jazz critics contend that lester the prez young went downhill after world war ii, but dont believe it for a minute. You will get 2 track for free after confirming your account. He was a close friend of singer billie holiday and recorded many songs with her and teddy wilson. Although it has often been written that cooltoned tenor saxophonist lester youngs experiences with racism in the military during 19441945 so scarred him that he never played at the same musical level as he had previously, the music on this essential twocd reissue disproves that theory. He got a fine and soft tone with his horn, and it became very famous in the late 1930s. He led a revolution on the tenor saxophone that influenced. Lester young with count basie and his orchestra a1.
Coming to prominence while a member of count basies orchestra, young was one of the most influential players on his instrument. Lester young was one of the most important saxophone players in jazz. A collectors guide to jazz music cdflac, itunesmp3 and vinyl records lpep4578, etc. You are always welcome to mail us for further information. Young, lester lester young collection 193647 amazon. Lester young live and private recordings in chronological order disc 3 19481949 december 4, 1948 lester young band royal roost, new york city. With standard notation, introductory text and discography.
Lester young pres 2020 flac lester young pres 2020 flac flac 16 bit jazz 10032020, 20. I really like lester young and the oscar peterson trio and pres and teddy, two albums he recorded for verve in the fifties too. Lester young born august 27, 1909, woodville, mississippi, usa died march 15, 1959, new york city, new york, usa. Discography lester young, young, basie, jazz, news and. Lester dream legendary recordings whith count basie combos lester young. Billie holiday often stated that she styled her vocal phrasing to echo the sound of a jazz horn, so it should be no surprise that she found the perfect duet partner in tenor sax player lester young. Jazz saxophone pork pie hat greatest presidents memoirs film heart music memories movie. Lester young greatest hits full album best of jazz. In contrast to many of his harddriving peers, young played with a relaxed, cool tone and used sophisticated harmonies, using what one critic called a freefloating style, wheeling and diving. Its always good to be a fan of count basie and lester young, but with the concurrent releases of mosaics 8cd box set classic 19361947 studio sessions and the national jazz museum in harlems second volume of bill savory recordings focused entirely on basie and young from 19381940, the artistry of these great musicians can be understood in greater detail than ever before. We have compiled a discography which contains every bit of music that lester young has been in. You cant overestimate lester youngs importance on the development of modern jazz. Lester young was one of the great tenor sax stylists, and had a huge influence on his peers and those who followed, his smooth, elegant, freeflowing phrases giving his music a relaxed and cool flavour.
Boston 1950 by lester young, released in 20 on uptown records. Laughin to keep from c jazz at the philharmoni see full discography. Youngs unique tenor saxophone style was magnificently laidback, and his feathery tone influenced the formation of bop and cool jazz. In contrast to many of his harddriving peers, young played with a relaxed, cool tone and used sophisticated.
When lester young joined count basies band in the 30s, he instantly attained star status. As the star in count basies big band and billie holidays favorite soloist, young s breezy solos, along with his patented porkpie hat and unique hipster jargon, affected legions of musicians. Album the complete aladdin recordings of lester young. Another 4 tracks were released in 1953 on norman granz clef records label as the lester young trio no.
View all albums and help us complete lester young discography. He ranks together with coleman hawkins and ben webster as one of the three great tenors of the the swing era. Young, lester the complete lester young studio sessions. The proper records 4 cd box set, the lester young story contains all his best from 19361949.