Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Wingy Manone was born Joseph Matthews Manone on February 13, 1900 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He lost an arm in a streetcar accident, which resulted in his nickname of “Wingy”. He used prosthesis so naturally and unnoticeably that his disability was not apparent to the public.
After playing trumpet and cornet professionally with various bands in his hometown, Manone began to travel across America in the 1920s, working in Chicago, New York City, Texas, Mobile, California, St. Louis and other locations; he continued to travel widely throughout the United States and Canada for decades.
Wingy’s was a frequently recruited musician for recording sessions. He played and recorded with Benny Goodman and recorded fronting various pickup groups under pseudonyms like “The Cellar Boys” and “Barbecue Joe and His Hot Dogs.” His hit records included “Tar Paper Stomp” was later used as the basis for Glenn Miller’s “In The Mood” and a hot 1934 version of a sweet ballad of the time “The Isle of Capri”.
In 1943 he recorded several tunes as “Wingy Manone and His Cats”, performed in Soundies movie musicals and his autobiography, Trumpet on the Wing, was published in 1948. From the 1950s he was based mostly in California and Las Vegas, although he also toured through North America and Europe appearing at jazz festivals. In 1957, he attempted to break into the teenage rock-and-roll market with his version of Party Doll but never rose higher than 56 on the Billboard pop charts.
He composed numerous songs and in 2008, “There’ll Come a Time (Wait and See)” was used in the soundtrack to the Academy Award-nominated movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Trumpeter, vocalist, composer and bandleader Wingy Manone remained active until his passing on July 9, 1982 in Las Vegas at the age of 82.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Brent Jensen was born on February 12, 1960 in Boise, Idaho. By 1986 on a grant from the Idaho Commission on the Arts he was studying in New York City with Lee Konitz.
Throughout his career Brent has performed with jazz artists including Gene Harris, Bobby Shew, Gary Foster, Dave Peck, Joe LaBarbera, John Clayton, Wycliffe Gordon, Warren Vache, Curtis Stigers, John Stowell, Kristin Korb, Jamie Findlay, Duck Baker, Dianne Schuur and many others.
Jensen has charted to #1 with his debut recording, The Sound of a Dry Martini: Remembering Paul Desmond, and Stay Cool, his sophomore release both on Origin Records. By his fifth CD for Origin, One More Mile he teamed up with Seattle musicians, pianist Bill Anschell, bassist Jeff Johnson and drummer John Bishop. This he followed in 2009 with the release of We Couldn’t Agree More is a collection of duets with Seattle pianist Bill Anschell.
He would go on to be a featured winner of the Woodwinds on Fire international talent search conducted by Jazziz magazine in 1996. Soprano saxophonist Brent Jensen is an Assistant Professor of Music at the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls, is the Artistic Director for the CSI Jazz Summit and the Jazz Saturdays workshop series.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Matt Dennis was born on February 11, 1914 in Seattle, Washington. His early exposure to music came from the family business of vaudeville, his mother who was a violinist and his father a singer. In 1933 he joined Horace Heidt’s orchestra as a vocalist and pianist. Later he would form his own band, with Dick Haymes as vocalist.
Dennis became a vocal coach, arranger, and accompanist for Martha Tilton and then worked with a new vocal group, The Stafford Sisters. Jo Stafford, one of the sisters, joined the Tommy Dorsey band in 1940 and persuaded Dorsey to hire him as arranger and composer. He would go on to wrote prolifically, with 14 of his songs recorded by the Dorsey band in one year alone, including “Everything Happens To Me”, an early hit for Frank Sinatra.
With four years in the U.S. Air Force in World War II behind him, Matt returned to music writing and arranging. He got a boost from his old friend Dick Haymes, who hired him to be the music director for his radio program, and with lyricist Tom Adair wrote songs for Haymes’ program.
Dennis made six albums, most of which are out of print; however, his 1953 song Angel Eyes that he composed with lyricist Earl Brent has become a frequently recorded jazz standard. Added to that list of standards are Will You Still Be Mine, The Night We Called It A Day and Violets For Your Furs.
Composer, pianist, arranger, singer and bandleader Matt Dennis passed away on June 21, 2002 in Riverside, California at the age of 88.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Zoltan Sagi was born in Hungary on February 10, 1956. He attended the Guildhall School of Music studying clarinet with Robert Earle and later Frank Allen at Warwick University. Self-taught on saxophone, he draw much of his inspiration from Johnny Hodges, Cannonball Adderley and Stan Getz.
His early career was spent playing in dance bands and in New Orleans jazz genre playing in festivals stateside and overseas. This was followed by a period as an educator as Director of Music and a country music service manager. He spent two and a half years extensively touring the world with Chris Barber.
Zoltan has recorded numerous CD’s and other recordings as a freelance session musician and has also appeared with such musicians as Earl Warren, Benny Waters, Kenny Davern, Bob Humphrey Lyttleton, Marty Grosz, Digby Fairweather, Duncan Swift, , Janusz Carmello, Bill Coleman, Greg Abate, Alan Barnes, Paul Degville and John Barnes among many others.
Has worked extensively both in this country and abroad. His experience spans from New Orleans jazz to jazz fusion. Sagi has been a part of several groups including Harlem, Swing Syndicate and The Charleston Chasers. Clarinetist Zoltan Sagi also plays all saxophones and currently performs with the Sticky Wicket Big Band, the Big Chris Barber Band, the Stars of British Jazz and with his own quartets and trios.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Bill Evans was born William D. Evans on February 9, 1958 in Claredon Hills, Illinois to a father who was a classical piano prodigy. Until junior high school he studied classical clarinet but early in his studies he was able to hear such artists perform live as Sonny Stitt and Stan Getz at the jaz Showcase in Chicago. He attended Hinsdale Central High School and studied with tenor saxophonist Vince Micko. His stylistic influences include Sonny Rollins, Joe Henderson, John Coltrane, Steve Grossman and Dave Liebman.
Evans attended the University of North Texas and William Patterson University where he studied with Miles Davis alum Dave Liebman. His move to New York City in 1979 saw him spending countless hours in lofts playing jazz standards and perfecting his improvisational style. By the age of 22 he joined Miles Davis and was part of his musical comeback in the early to mid-1980s, recording on The Man With The Horn, We Want Miles, Star People and Decoy.
During the 1980s and 1990s Bill was a member of the jazz fusion group Elements. Beginning in 1990 Evans has been touring with his own band playing close to 90 concerts a year worldwide. He has recorded over 17 solo CD’s, received two GrammyAward nominations for his albums Soul Inside and Soulgrass, and recorded an award-winning CD called Bill Evans – Vans Joint with the WDR Orchestra in 2009.
Tenor and soprano saxophonist Bill Evans has played a wide variety of music with his solo projects including bluegrass influenced jazz, funk and contemporary groove and has played, toured and recorded with Herbie Hancock, Michael Franks, Gil Evans, Willie Nelson, Mick Jagger, Les McCann, Mark Egan, Danny Gottlieb, Ian Anderson, Randy Brecker, The Allman Brothers and Medeski, Martin and Wood to name a few. He continues to perform, tour and record.
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