Harry Lookofsky
Harry Lookofsky (1 October 1913 – 8 June 1998) was an American jazz violinist. He was also the father of keyboardist-songwriter Michael Brown, who most notably was a founding member of the Left Banke and Stories.
History
Harry Lookofsky was born in
Following his departure from St. Louis in 1938, Lookofsky joined the NBC Symphony Orchestra under Arturo Toscanini for a time while continuing to play jazz on the side. He continued his career as a classical symphony violinist later as concertmaster at ABC following Toscanini's retirement in 1954.[1]
Stringsville was Lookofsky's one major feature release. Aside from his classical and studio recording work, he was more often a contributing artist and/or arranger on other's albums. Over the years, his many jazz collaborators included Quincy Jones, Jaco Pastorius, Sarah Vaughan, George Benson, and Freddie Hubbard.
Lookofsky co-produced the pop hit, "Walk Away Renée", by the Left Banke, which was co-written by his son, Michael Brown, a founding member of the group.[2] The arrangement was heavily influenced by classical music. Lookofsky also played strings on songs recorded by Stories, his son Michael's later band.[1]
Lookofsky's archives are held at the American Roots Program at
Selected discography
- Stringsville (1958, Atlantic)
- Together!/Miracle in Strings (1994 reissue, Columbia). Together! is an album by Herb Ellis and Stuff Smith
Selected albums appeared on
- The Ballad Artistry of Milt Jackson (Atlantic, 1959) - Milt Jackson
- Blues Shout (1960, Atlantic - Leo Wright)
- The Song Is Paris (1962, Impulse! - Jackie Paris)
- The Body & the Soul (1963, Impulse! - Freddie Hubbard)
- The Individualism of Gil Evans (1964, Verve - Gil Evans)
- Who Can I Turn To (1964, Sony Music - Tony Bennett)
- Sarah Vaughn Sings the Mancini Songbook (1965, Verve - Sarah Vaughan)
- Child Is Father to the Man (1968, Columbia - Blood, Sweat & Tears)
- Stone Flower (1970, CTI - Antônio Carlos Jobim)
- Smackwater Jack (1971, A&M Records - Quincy Jones)
- Marlena (1972, Blue Note - Marlena Shaw)
- Sophisticated Lou (1973, Blue Note - Lou Donaldson)
- Polar AC (1974, CTI - Freddie Hubbard)
- Night Lights (Elliott Murphy album) (1975, RCA - Elliott Murphy)
- Windjammer (1977, Columbia - Freddie Hubbard)
- Sounds...and Stuff Like That!! (1978, A&M Records - Quincy Jones)
- In Your Eyes (1978, Collectables - George Benson)
- "Collaboration" (1988 EmArcy, Helen Merrill / Gil Evans)
- Standards (1998, Rhino - Ray Charles)
Sources
- "New Pop Records". Time. May 16, 1955. Archived from the original on December 15, 2008.
References
- ^ a b c "Harry Lookofsky: Stringsville". All About Jazz. October 1, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
- ^ "Michael Brown, musician - obituary". The Daily Telegraph. April 2, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
External links
- Harry Lookofsky discography on CD Universe
- Harry Lookofsky discography at Discogs