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Rifftides

Doug Ramsey on Jazz and other matters...

Archives for February 14, 2011

George Shearing, 1919-2011

George Shearing died early today at the age of 91. With his quintet, Shearing used a locked-hands technique at the piano, blending with vibes and guitar to develop a style that resonated with listeners and became one of the most recognizable sounds in an era when jazz was still at the core of popular music. He was already a success because of his hit version of “September in the Rain” when the record of his 1952 composition “Lullaby of Birdland” solidified his popularity. The song also provided Shearing a reliable annuity; dozens of instrumentalists and singers incorporated it into their repertoires and recorded it.

Shearing head.jpgShearing, born blind, had become widely known in his native England when he moved to the United States in 1947. He was an early admirer of Bud Powell and quickly adapted to the new strain of music that came to be known as bebop. He was a fleet and inventive improviser whose brilliance was sometimes taken for granted because of his band’s popular success.

Fellow musicians recognized his gift. Shearing’s contemporary Dave Brubeck, told the Associated Press today, “I consider him one of the greatest musical minds I’ve ever been around. In the ’50s, George paved the way for me and the (Modern Jazz Quartet), and even today jazz players, especially pianists, are indebted to him.”
To read all of the AP’s Shearing obituary, click here.
When vibraharpist Charlie Shoemake joined Shearing in 1967, the other members were guitarist Joe Pass, bassist Bob Whitlock and drummer Colin Bailey. Shoemake stayed for seven years.

“He was tough if somebody wasn’t up to par,” Shoemake told me today, “but if you met his standards, he couldn’t do enough for you. When you go to work six, seven nights a week with a great band like that, you’re going to really improve. I had great admiration for him. Harmonically, I don’t think that he had any peers; he was as brilliant as anybody I ever met. His touch and his voicings and his chord substitutions on songs were from the heavens. Bill Evans, of course, was very influenced by way he used block chords. Bill very openly admitted that he’d learned a lot of that from Shearing. With George, I went from being an anonymous studio musician to someone sort of well known as a jazz vibes player. All the guys who played for him loved him.”

Here is Shearing in the early 1950s with his composition “Conception,” which became a jazz standard. The quintet has Don Elliott, vibes; Chuck Wayne, guitar; Denzil Best, drums; and John Levy, bass.

George Shearing, RIP.

Shearing On How He Did It

I just came across this video clip of George Shearing answering fellow pianist Billy Taylor’s questions about how he developed the Shearing style. The clip has no date, but Taylor’s leisure suit says the 1970s. The interested onlooker is Marian McPartland.

Other Places: Bill Holman Lauded

On his Jazz Profiles website, Steve Cerra begins a tribute to Bill Holman with this passage:

In Japan, a select few of those who maintain the country’s artistic traditions or make a unique contribution to them are accorded the respect of the nation by being Holman conducting.jpgdesignated as a Living National Treasure [a considerable amount of schimolies also come with the title each year].
When it comes to composing and arranging for Jazz big bands, no one is more deserving of such consideration than Willis “Bill” Holman.
However, because this country does not have such an award, the editorial staff at JazzProfiles has decided to step up on behalf of grateful Jazz fans everywhere and to bestow upon Bill the distinction of being a Living International Treasure.

The Jazz Profiles post includes a brilliant piece of perception about Holman by André Previn and an embarrassingly large selection of prose from notes I’ve written for Holman albums. To read the tribute and see Steve’s photo montage accompanying one of Holman’s recordings, go here.
For even more on Holman, see this Rifftides archive post.

Esperanza Spalding Smashes Grammy Precedent

The young bassist, composer and vocalist Esperanza Spalding last night shattered decades of pop and rock dominance of the Grammys to become the first jazz musician Spalding 1.jpgever to be named best new artist. She edged out the teen idol Justin Bieber and three other pop performers. Spalding’s Chamber Music Society CD broke through several categories in 2010 and became a best seller for her label, Telarc. For a Rifftides review of the album, go here. Spalding made an impression in the jazz community for music with her own groups and with Joe Lovano’s band Us Five.
Less than three months after his death, James Moody’s 4B won in the best jazz instrumental category. Other jazz winners are Dee Dee Bridgewater for Eleanora Fagan, her tribute to Billie Holiday; Herbie Hancock for best improvised jazz solo; the Mingus Big Band and—in the overall Grammy category of best instrumental composition—Billy Childs for “The Path Among the Trees” from his album Autumn In Moving Pictures: Chamber Music Vol. 2.
For a complete list of the winners in all 109 Grammy categories, go here.

Doug Ramsey

Doug is a recipient of the lifetime achievement award of the Jazz Journalists Association. He lives in the Pacific Northwest, where he settled following a career in print and broadcast journalism in cities including New York, New Orleans, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, San Antonio, … [MORE]

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