Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was one of t… Read Full Bio ↴Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was one of the most influential pianists in the history of jazz. Along with Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie he was instrumental in the development of bebop, and his virtuosity as a pianist led many to call him "the Charlie Parker of the piano".

Powell was perhaps the first pianist to vocalize on the piano, meaning that he transfered his vocalized improvisations directly through his hands to the instrument. This gave his music a deep connection to time, which is an artifact of the human voice. Previously, horn players were more likely to express their improvisations vocally, as the mouth and breath are directly tied to the performance of horn players.

Powell suffered from Bi-Polar Disorder, and in November 1947, Powell was admitted to Creedmoor Psychiatric Center, where he stayed for more than a year, receiving electroconvulsive therapy which caused severe memory loss. The young Jackie McLean and Sonny Rollins became friendly with Powell on his release from the hospital, and Powell recommended McLean to Miles Davis. However, Powell suffered from mental illness throughout his life, and had a reputation for his strange behaviour. In fact his problems, exacerbated by a beating from the police in 1945 for being disorderly, could all be attributed to being a manic depressive, although his illness was almost certainly a key driver of his immense creative talent. He was also an alcoholic, and even small quantities of alcohol had a profound effect on his character, making him aggressive. Powell's continued rivalry with Charlie Parker, while essential to the production of brilliant music, was also the subject of disruptive feuding and bitterness on the bandstand, as a result of Powell's troubled mental and physical condition. He spent all of 1952 (and parts of many subsequent years) in a hospital. When he was out of the hospital, he was often locked up in a hotel room and was usually denied receiving the money he earned performing.

It is generally agreed that his best recordings are those made prior to 1954, both for Blue Note Records and for Norman Granz (at Mercury Records, Norgran Records, Clef Records and later on Verve Records).

After 1953 (when Powell attempted suicide), his style became darker and slower. Many jazz critics pronounced him "washed up" during the last decade of his career. There were a few recordings which never should have been issued (Verve from January 1955 and Roulette Oct. 1964). Still, he continued to play with great intensity even without the speed that made him famous in the 1940s. His late 1950s Blue Note recordings are recommended. Bud performed regularly with drummer Kenny Clarke and bassists Oscar Pettiford or Pierre Michelot. He performed brilliantly as a sideman for Coleman Hawkins, Dizzy Gillespie, and Dexter Gordon on recordings in the early 1960s. As late as 1962 he recorded concerts in Lausanne and Geneva, Switzerland, in which he played as brilliantly as he had played in the late 1940s. Powell moved to France in 1959, when his life was extended by several years under the care of a fan named Francis Paudras, whose book "Dance of the Infidels" is required reading for any Powell fan. Paudras' friendship produced many impromptu recordings and was the basis for the 1987 Bernard Tavenier film "Round Midnight", for which Dexter Gordon received a best actor Oscar nomination (as a fictional composite of Bud Powell and Lester Young).

Paudras and Powell returned to Birdland in the fall of 1964 to initial critical acclaim. Bud despised the drummer he had to play with and soon lost his regular engagement at Birdland. After Paudras returned to France without Powell, ESP-disk's founder became Bud's legal guardian, but let Bud self-destruct from late 1964 until his death in July, 1966. Bud's last recordings were a haunting, sparse "Round Midnight" from Carnegie Hall in March 1965 and other trio tracks from January 1966 on the mysterious "Ups 'n Downs" album.

He is survived by his daughter Celia, who has been reissuing Paudras' recordings of her father on the Pablo and Piadrum labels.

Body And Soul
Bud Powell Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

My heart is sad and lonely
For you I sigh, for you dear only
Why haven't you seen it
I'm all for you body and soul

I spend my days in longing
And wondering why it's me you're wronging
I tell you I mean it

I'm all for you body and soul

I can't believe it
It's hard to conceive it
That you'd turn away romance
Are you pretending
It looks like the ending
Unless I could have just one more chance to prove, dear

My life a wreck you're making
You know I'm yours for just the taking
I'd gladly surrender myself to you body and soul

My life a wreck you're making

You know I'm yours for the very taking
I'd gladly surrender myself to you body and soul

Overall Meaning

Bud Powell's version of the classic jazz standard, Body and Soul, is a heart-wrenching plea to a lover who has either left or is unattainable. The first verse sets the tone for the song as Powell sings, "My heart is sad and lonely, For you I sigh, for you dear only, Why haven't you seen it, I'm all for you body and soul." He is expressing his unrequited love and longing for this person, who he is willing to give his all for.

As the song continues, Powell delves deeper into his desperate state, singing, "I spend my days in longing, And wondering why it's me you're wronging, I tell you I mean it, I'm all for you body and soul." His days are filled with nothing but thoughts of this person and he can't understand why they won't reciprocate his love. He is willing to lay it all on the line for them and they are oblivious to his affections.

In the last verse, Powell's desperation reaches a climax as he sings, "My life a wreck you're making, You know I'm yours for just the taking, I'd gladly surrender myself to you, body and soul." He is willing to give up everything he has for this person, even if it means leaving him in ruins. The emotional intensity of this song is heightened by Powell's virtuosic piano playing and his expressive, raw vocal delivery.

Line by Line Meaning

My heart is sad and lonely
I am desolate and depressed.

For you I sigh, for you dear only
I crave and yearn for only you.

Why haven't you seen it
Why have you not realized my love for you?

I'm all for you body and soul
I am completely yours in mind, body, and spirit.

I spend my days in longing
I spend my days yearning and hoping for your affection.

And wondering why it's me you're wronging
And questioning why you are mistreating me.

I tell you I mean it
I assure you, I am sincere.

I'm all for you body and soul
I am completely devoted to you in every way.

I can't believe it
I am in disbelief.

It's hard to conceive it
It's difficult to comprehend.

That you'd turn away romance
That you would reject the possibility of a romantic relationship.