Jack Wilson (jazz pianist)
Jack Wilson ( born August 3, 1936 in Chicago, † 10 May, 2007 Sayville, New York) was an American pianist, arranger and composer of modern jazz.
Life and work
Jack Wilson's family moved to Fort Wayne when he was seven. From 1949 to 1954 he studied piano with Carl Atkinson at Fort Wayne College of Music. During this time he worked on the music of George Shearing. At that time, he also played tenor saxophone in a high school band and performed with small combos. With 17 years he played as a substitute pianist James Moody band. After finishing school, he studied and a half years at Indiana University, where he met Freddie Hubbard and Slide Hampton. He toured with a rock ' n roll band, lived in Columbus ( Ohio), where he worked with the then unknown singer Nancy Wilson and Rahsaan Roland Kirk.
After a year in Columbus Wilson moved to Atlantic City, where he was head of the house band at the local Cotton Club and also played the organ. The club also Dinah Washington occurred, with which he in 1957/58 worked, among others to listen to their Fats Waller Songbook 1957.
He then returned to Chicago where he played with Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt, Eddie Harris and Al Hibbler. His longest gig was at this stage with bassist Richard Evans, on his album Richard 's Almanac he played in 1959. He then joined the military service and was in Fort Stewart, Georgia, the first African-American musical leader of an army band. In 1961 he was diagnosed with diabetes, left the Army and returned to Dinah Washington's band, of which he was 1961/62. Buddy Collette finally invited him to move to Los Angeles. There he worked in the big band of Gerald Wilson, also with Lou Donaldson, Herbie Mann, Jackie McLean and Johnny Griffin. In most cases, however, Wilson was employed as a session musician in the studios for disk images as well as for film and television productions. He also accompanied artists like Sammy Davis Jr., Sarah Vaughan, Lou Rawls, Eartha Kitt, Julie London and Sonny & Cher.
In January 1963 Jack Wilson had the opportunity to communicate with their own formation; it was the album The Jack Wilson Quartet featuring Roy Ayers for Atlantic Records. Heard were also originals by the pianist as Jackleg. Fifteen months later found another session held for the sub label Vault, which led to the invitation to take on the Blue Note label; In 1967 there Album Easterly Winds that participated among other things, Lee Morgan, Garnett Brown, Jackie McLean, Bob Cranshaw and Billy Higgins. After his last Blue Note session 1968 Jack Wilson worked with the singer Esther Phillips until 1977; This year was also his album Innovations, the first of three recordings for the label Discovery. Finally Until the 1980s, he worked as a sideman for Lorez Alexandria, Tutti Camarata and Eddie Harris. In the 1980s he also worked with Clark Terry ( Memories of Duke).
Jack Wilson's last recordings were made for the Japanese DIW label, entitled In New York, in June 1993, was involved in the drummer Jimmy Cobb.
Disco Graphical Notes
- The Jack Wilson Quartet featuring Roy Ayers ( Atlantic Records, 1963)
- The Two Sides Of Jack Wilson ( Atlantic Records, 1964)
- The Jazz organ ( Vault, 1964)
- Jack Wilson Plays Brazilian Mancini ( Vault, 1965)
- Ramblin ' ( Vault, 1966)
- Something Personal ( Blue Note Records, 1966)
- Easterly Winds ( Blue Note Records, 1967)
- Song For My Daughter ( Blue Note Records, 1969)
- Autumn Sunset ( Discovery, 1977)
- Innovations ( Discovery, 1977)
- Margo 's Theme ( Discovery, 1979)
- In New York (DIW, 1993)