Gerald Wilson
Gerald Wilson | |
---|---|
Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
Genres | Jazz, pop |
Occupation(s) | Musician, composer, bandleader |
Instrument(s) | Trumpet |
Years active | 1938–2012 |
Labels | Capitol, Pacific Jazz, Discovery, Mack Avenue |
Gerald Stanley Wilson (September 4, 1918 – September 8, 2014) was an American jazz trumpeter, big band bandleader, composer, arranger, and educator. Born in Mississippi, he was based in Los Angeles from the early 1940s.[2] He arranged music for Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Julie London, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Carter, Lionel Hampton, Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, and Nancy Wilson.[1]
Early life
Wilson was born in
During
Career
Wilson formed his own band, with some success in the mid-1940s. Wilson and His 20-Pc. Recording Orchestra performed at the famed twelfth
In 1960, he formed a Los Angeles-based band that began a series of critically acclaimed recordings for the
Wilson's wife of more than 50 years, Josefina Villasenor Wilson, is Mexican-American, and a number of his compositions showed his love of Spanish/Mexican themes, especially "Viva Tirado", which later became a hit for the rock band El Chicano. With his wife, Wilson had three daughters (Jeri, Lillian (Teri) and Nancy Jo), his son Anthony (who is guitarist for Diana Krall), and a number of grandchildren, all of whom have songs composed for them—his compositions were often inspired by his family members.[1]
Wilson continued leading bands and recording in later decades for the Discovery and MAMA labels. Recent musicians included Luis Bonilla, Rick Baptist, Randall Willis, Wilson's son-in-law Shuggie Otis and son Anthony Wilson (both guitarists); his grandson Eric Otis also played on such recordings. Wilson continued to record Spanish-flavored compositions, notably the bravura trumpet solos "Carlos" (named for Mexican matador Carlos Arruza, and recorded three times over the years, featuring trumpeters Jimmy Owens, Oscar Brashear, and Ron Barrows) and "Lomelin" (also named for a matador—Antonio Lomelin—and recorded twice, with solos by Oscar Brashear and Jon Faddis).
The National Endowment for the Arts named Wilson an NEA Jazz Master in 1990. In 1998 Wilson received a commission from the
Wilson was a member of the faculty at
In February 2006,
In June 2007, Wilson returned to the studio with producer Al Pryor and an all-star big band to record a special album of compositions commissioned and premiered at the
Death
Wilson died at his home in Los Angeles, California, on September 8, 2014, four days after his 96th birthday,[2] after a brief illness that followed a bout of pneumonia, which had hospitalized him.
Awards and honors
- 1990 NEA Jazz Masters Award
- 1996 Library of Congress Gerald Wilson archive of his life's work
- 1997 American Jazz Award: Best Arranger and Best Big Band
- 2008 Monterey Jazz Festival Jazz Legends Award
- 2012 Los Angeles County Museum of Art/Los Angeles Jazz Society L.A. Jazz Treasure Award
Grammy nominations [7]
Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
---|---|---|---|
1963
|
"Tell Me the Truth" (track for Nancy Wilson) | Best Background arrangement (behind vocalists or instrumentalist) | Nominated |
1964
|
"Paco" (track) | Best Original Jazz Composition | Nominated |
1995
|
State Street Sweet (album) | Best Large Ensemble Jazz Performance | Nominated |
1998
|
Theme For Monterey (album) | Best Large Ensemble Jazz Performance | Nominated |
1998
|
"Romance" (track) | Best Instrumental Composition | Nominated |
2003
|
New York, New Sound (album) | Best Large Ensemble Jazz Album | Nominated |
2011
|
Legacy (album) | Best Large Ensemble Jazz Album | Nominated |
Grammy Award–nominated and -winning singles or albums contributed to
Year | Grammy category | Album or Single | Primary artist | Label | Role/Content composed or arranged | Honor |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | Best Musical Composition First Recorded and Released in 1959 (more than 5 minutes duration) | Anatomy of a Murder (Soundtrack album) | Duke Ellington | Columbia | trumpet/instrumentalist on all tracks | Won |
Best Sound Track Album | Won | |||||
Best Performance by a Dance Band | Won | |||||
1963 | Album of the Year | Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music (album) | Ray Charles | ABC-Paramount | arranger - Hey, Good Lookin'
|
Nominated |
1999 | Grammy Hall of Fame | Won |
Discography
As leader
- You Better Believe It! (Pacific Jazz, 1961)
- Moment of Truth (Pacific Jazz, 1962)
- Portraits (Pacific Jazz, 1964)
- On Stage (Pacific Jazz, 1965)
- McCann/Wilson with Les McCann (Pacific Jazz, 1965)
- Feelin' Kinda Blues (Pacific Jazz, 1966)
- The Golden Sword (Pacific Jazz, 1966)
- Live and Swinging (Pacific Jazz, 1967)
- Everywhere (Pacific Jazz, 1968)
- California Soul (Pacific Jazz, 1968)
- Eternal Equinox (Pacific Jazz, 1969)
- Groovin' High In L.A. 1946 (Hep, 1977)
- Lomelin (Discovery, 1981)
- Jessica (Trend, 1982)
- Calafia (Trend, 1984)
- Jenna (Discovery, 1989)
- State Street Sweet (MAMA Foundation/Summit, 1994)
- Suite Memories (MAMA Foundation, 1996)
- Theme for Monterey (MAMA Foundation/Summit, 1997)
- New York, New Sound (Mack Avenue, 2003)
- In My Time (Mack Avenue, 2005)
- Monterey Moods (Mack Avenue, 2007)
- Detroit (Mack Avenue, 2009)
- Legacy (Mack Avenue, 2011)
As sideman
With Count Basie
- The Count (RCA Camden, 1958)
- Shoutin' Blues 1949 (Bluebird, 1993)
With Ray Charles
- ABC-Paramount, 1962)
- Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music Volume Two (ABC-Paramount, 1962)
With Buddy Collette
- Man of Many Parts (Contemporary, 1956)
- Buddy's Best (Dooto, 1958)
- Polynesia (Music & Sound, 1959)
With Curtis Counce
- Carl's Blues (Contemporary, 1960)
- Sonority (Contemporary, 1989)
With Duke Ellington
- Dance to the Duke! (Capitol, 1954)
- Anatomy of a Murder (Columbia, 1959)
- Swinging Suites by Edward E. and Edward G. (Columbia, 1960)
- Piano in the Background (Columbia, 1962)
With Jimmie Lunceford
- Lunceford Special (Columbia, 1956; reissue: 1967)
- The Chronological Jimmie Lunceford & His Orchestra 1939-1940 (Classics, 1991)
With Jimmy Witherspoon
- Singin' the Blues (World Pacific, 1959)
- 'Spoon (Reprise, 1961)
- Roots (Reprise, 1962)
With others
- Kenny Burrell, 75th Birthday Bash Live! (Blue Note/EMI, 2006)
- Red Callender, The Lowest (MetroJazz, 1958)
- Bobby Darin, You're the Reason I'm Living (Capitol, 1963)
- Little Esther, Better Beware (Charly, 1990)
- Neal Hefti, Jazz Pops (Reprise, 1962)
- Carmell Jones, Business Meetin' (Pacific Jazz, 1962)
- Tricky Lofton & Carmell Jones, Brass Bag (Pacific Jazz, 1962)
- Les McCann, Les McCann Sings (Pacific Jazz, 1961)
- Googie Rene, Romesville! (Class, 1959)
- Sarah Vaughan, Sarah Sings Soulfully (Roulette, 1965)
- Leroy Vinnegar, Leroy Walks! (Contemporary, 1958)
References
- ^ a b c d e Don Heckman, "Gerald Wilson dies at 96; multifaceted jazz musician", Los Angeles Times, September 8, 2014.
- ^ a b Richard S. Ginell (2011). "Gerald Wilson Biography". allmusic. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
- ^ a b c Peter Vacher, "Gerald Wilson obituary", The Guardian, 15 September 2014.
- ^ a b William Yardley, "Gerald Wilson, Versatile Jazz Arranger, Is Dead at 96", The New York Times, September 9, 2014.
- ^ “Stars Galore Set for Sept. Jazz Festival” Article The California Eagle Aug. 23, 1956.
- ^ “Bigger and Better Than Ever” Los Angeles Sentinel Aug. 16, 1956.
- ^ National Academy of Recordings Arts and Sciences reference page for Gerald Wilson - Grammys and nominations Archived July 1, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
- Jürgen Wölfer, Gerald Wilson Discography, Almere (NL) 2012
External links
- Gerald Wilson discography at Discogs
- Interview with Gerald Wilson NAMM Oral History Library (2004)
- Interview of Gerald S. Wilson, Center for Oral History Research, UCLA
- The Legacy of Gerald Wilson - Panel Discussion on Detroit JazzStage - Jazz Extras
- Interview by Jason Crane (Part 1) from The Jazz Session Podcast Series
- Artist page at jazzprofiles blogspot