Jon Hendricks

John Carl " Jon" Hendricks ( born September 16, 1921 in Newark, Ohio) is an American jazz singer, poet and drummer. The Times described him as the " James Joyce of Jive ." He was a founder of the vocal group Lambert, Hendricks & Ross.

Biography

In Toledo (Ohio ) Jon Hendricks was heard the first time in public radio programs as a singer. There he sang in the 1940s with the famous jazz pianist Art Tatum as a companion. In Toledo, he studied literature and law at the College. A short meeting with Charlie Parker, who encouraged him to work as a jazz singer ahead prompted Hendricks, to realize his musical plans professionally. In 1955 he developed in New York with Dave Lambert singing a version of Woody Herman's famous " Four Brother" saxophone lineup and created with Annie Ross, the vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross and is the lyricist. In the following six years, the trio sat down next to his wide tours to a lot of jazz pieces, where they sing underlaid with lyrics instrumental improvisations of other jazz musicians and three-part choruses. The album Sing a song of Basie from 1957, which was created under the plan, to make the horns of pieces of the Count Basie big band of singers sing, was a great success. As Hendricks and Lambert (along with working as a vocal coach Annie Ross) did not find any matching singers, they tried it themselves - the birth of her trio, which consisted 1958-1964. Annie Ross retired in 1962 from health reasons and was replaced by Yolande Bavan.

Then sang Hendricks as soloist until Jon Hendricks in 1968 with his newly formed group " Jon Hendricks and Company ," to which is now next to Annie Ross and Georgie Fame was one, occurred in Europe and Africa. Hendricks lived from 1968 to 1973 in London and was often seen as a guest on British television. He starred in the British film "Jazz is our religion " and in the French film " Homage to Cole Porter" ( Cole Porter).

After his time in Europe, he moved back to the United States to San Francisco and worked for the San Francisco Chronicle as a jazz critic, as well as an instructor at California State University at Sonoma and the University of California, Berkeley. Also at this time Hendricks took on additional plates, some alone, some with his wife Judith and daughters Michele and Aria Hendricks. In 1999 he also joined again with Annie Ross. His collaboration with Manhattan Transfer 1985 album vocalese led to five Grammys. In 2003 he went with the " Four Brothers " on tour, a vocal quartet consisting next to him from Kurt Elling, Mark Murphy and Kevin Mahogany.

The " New Grove Dictionary of Jazz" Hendricks writes: "He is such a good scat singer and so experienced in imitating sounds instrumentalischen that it exceeds the solos played his colleagues with his vocal improvisations. "

Jazz greats

Throughout his career, Jon Hendricks has worked with many jazz greats: Cannonball Adderley, Count Basie, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Buck Clayton, Henry Grimes, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Wes Montgomery, Wynton Marsalis, Bobby McFerrin.

Awards

Film

• 2010 - Blues March, directed by Malte Rauch