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.
I Remember Clifford
Bud Powell Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We'll sigh goodbye to all we ever had
Alone where we have walked together
I'll remember April and be glad
I'll be content you loved me once in April
Your lips were warm and love and spring were new
I'm not afraid of autumn and her sorrow
The fire will dwindle into glowing ashes
For flames live such a little while
I won't forget but I won't be lonely
I'll remember April and smile
The song I Remember Clifford by Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk is a poignant tribute to jazz musician Clifford Brown, who died in a car accident in 1956. The lyrics evoke bittersweet memories of a past love and the passing of time, while the melody captures the mournful beauty of Brown's trumpet playing. "This lovely day will lengthen into evening" sets the stage for a wistful reflection on the transience of life and love. The second line, "We'll sigh goodbye to all we ever had," suggests the sorrow of saying farewell to someone or something that was once cherished.
The singer then describes being alone and remembering April, a month associated with new beginnings and hope. "I'll be content you loved me once in April" suggests that the singer has come to terms with a loss or separation, finding solace in the memory of a time when love was young and pure. The line "I'm not afraid of autumn and her sorrow" indicates a level of acceptance and resilience in the face of change and adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
This lovely day will lengthen into evening
The current good times will come to an end eventually
We'll sigh goodbye to all we ever had
We will have to let go and move on from what we had
Alone where we have walked together
We will miss the joy of companionship in familiar places
I'll remember April and be glad
I will hold onto the good memories and cherish them
I'll be content you loved me once in April
I will be satisfied with the fact that you once loved me
Your lips were warm and love and spring were new
You showed me affection when our love was fresh and new
I'm not afraid of autumn and her sorrow
I am not afraid of sad times or change
For I'll remember April and you
Because I have the memories of you, I will not fear the future
The fire will dwindle into glowing ashes
The passion we once had will eventually fade away
For flames live such a little while
Passion is fleeting, temporary
I won't forget but I won't be lonely
I will always remember, but I will not let loneliness consume me
I'll remember April and smile
I will look back fondly on the memories of when we were happy
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DON RAYE, GENE DE PAUL, PATRICIA JOHNSTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Maga Lee Craveiro
Jazz Music, absolutamente belíssimo, eu amo essa canção!! Domo arigato!
lenard hinds
THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE THAT I'D HEAR FEELING COME FROM A PIANO. I PROMISE YOU.
james webb
Bud had good reason to show a lot of emotion as his brother Ritchie died with Clifford in the car crash.
lastknowngood0
Budo is the man! This Benny Golson Composition depicts the sadness equated to the loss of Brownie, Richie Powell & wife in a devastating car accident! Richie was Buds Brother! OOPS looks like I said this before! ;-) <3
magajazzfan Lee
Maravilhosoooooo!! Belíssimooooooo!! 5/*
Favorito!! Domo arigatouuuuuuu!!
lastknowngood0
Beautiful rendition of Benny Golson's tribute to Brownie ! On June 26, 1956, Powell and his wife, Nancy, together with Brown, were traveling overnight by car from Philadelphia to Chicago. On the Pennsylvania Turnpike outside Bedford, in heavy rain, Nancy lost control of the vehicle, which crashed off the road and rolled down an embankment. All three were killed instantly. Nancy was 19; Brown, 25, and Powell, 24. Rest easy up there!
charles miller
Bud is THE PIANO
murp h
Beautiful
lastknowngood0
Beautiful rendition of Benny Golson's tribute to Brownie. BTW Ritchie Powell, Bud's Bro & his Mrs. were killed in that fateful car crash so long ago!
Oscar Grillo
Sadly his brother Richie Powell was in the the car the night of the accident when Clifford Brown died aged 25, Richie also died aged 24