Adderley is remembered for his 1966 single "Mercy Mercy Mercy", a crossover hit on the pop charts, and for his work with trumpeter Miles Davis, including on the epochal album Kind of Blue (1959). He was the brother of jazz cornetist Nat Adderley, a longtime member of his band.
The name 'Canonball' is supposed to have originated from his being nicknamed 'cannibal' in his youth, on account of his prodigious eating
Early life and career
Originally from Tampa, Florida, Adderley moved to New York in the mid-1950s. His nickname derived originally from "cannibal", a title imposed on him by high school colleagues as a tribute to his voracious appetite.
His educational career was long established prior to teaching applied instrumental music classes at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Cannonball moved to Tallahassee, Florida when his parents obtained teaching positions at Florida A&M University. Both Cannonball and brother Nat played with Ray Charles when Charles lived in Tallahassee during the early 1940s. Cannonball was a local legend in Florida until he moved to New York City in 1955, where he lived in Corona, Queens.
It was in New York during this time that Adderley's prolific career began. Adderley visited the Cafe Bohemia, where Oscar Pettiford's group was playing that night. Adderley had brought his saxophone into the club with him, primarily because he feared that it would be stolen, and he was asked to sit in as the saxophone player was late. That performance established his reputation.
Prior to joining Miles Davis' band, Adderley formed his own group with his brother Nat after signing onto the Savoy jazz label in 1957. He was noticed by Miles Davis, and it was because of his blues-rooted alto saxophone that Davis asked him to play with his group.
Adderley joined the Miles Davis Sextet in October 1957, three months prior to John Coltrane's return to the group. Adderley played on the seminal Davis records Milestones and Kind of Blue. This period also overlapped with pianist Bill Evans' time with the sextet, an association that led to recording Portrait of Cannonball and Know What I Mean?.
His interest as an educator carried over to his recordings. In 1961, Cannonball narrated The Child's Introduction to Jazz, released on Riverside Records.
Band leader
The Cannonball Adderley Quintet featured Cannonball on alto sax and his brother Nat Adderley on cornet. Cannonball's first quintet was not very successful; however, after leaving Davis' group, he formed another, again with his brother, which enjoyed more success.
Later life
By the end of the 1960s, Adderley's playing began to reflect the influence of the electric jazz, avant-garde, and Davis' experiments on the album Bitches Brew. On his albums from this period, such as Accent on Africa (1968) and The Price You Got to Pay to Be Free (1970), he began doubling on soprano saxophone, showing the influence of Coltrane and Wayne Shorter. In that same year, his quintet appeared at the Monterey Jazz Festival in California, and a brief scene of that performance was featured in the 1971 psychological thriller Play Misty for Me, starring Clint Eastwood. In 1975 he also appeared (in an acting role alongside Jose Feliciano and David Carradine) in the episode "Battle Hymn" in the third season of the TV series Kung Fu.
Joe Zawinul's composition "Cannon Ball" (recorded on Weather Report's album Black Market) is a tribute to his former leader. Pepper Adams and George Mraz dedicated the composition "Julian" on the 1975 Pepper Adams album (also called "Julian") days after Cannonball's death.
Songs made famous by Adderley and his bands include "This Here" (written by Bobby Timmons), "The Jive Samba", "Work Song" (written by Nat Adderley), "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" (written by Joe Zawinul) and "Walk Tall" (written by Zawinul, Marrow and Rein). A cover version of Pops Staples' "Why (Am I Treated So Bad)?" also entered the charts.
Adderley was initiated as an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia fraternity (Gamma Theta chapter, University of North Texas, '60, & Xi Omega chapter, Frostburg State University, '70) and Alpha Phi Alpha (Beta Nu chapter, Florida A&M University).
Adderley died of a stroke in 1975. He was buried in the Southside Cemetery, Tallahassee, Florida. Later that year he was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame.
You
Cannonball Adderley Lyrics
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A beautiful theme of every
Dream I ever knew.
Down deep in my heart I hear it play.
I feel it start, then melt away.
I hear music when I touch your hand,
A beautiful melody
Down deep in my heart, I hear it say,
Is this the day?
I alone have heard this lovely strain,
I alone have heard this glad refrain:
Must it be forever inside of me,
Why can't I let it go,
Why can't I let you know,
Why can't I let you know the song
My heart would sing?
That beautiful rhapsody
Of love and youth and spring,
The music is sweet,
The words are true
The song is you.
Cannonball Adderley's song "Song Is You" is a beautiful ode to love, music, and the power of emotions. The lyrics refer to the feeling that the singer experiences whenever they look at or touch their lover, and the music that resonates within them as a result. The music that he hears is a beautiful theme, a melody that he has heard before in his dreams, and whenever he looks at his lover, it plays. Down deep in his heart, he hears it play, starting as a feeling that melts away over time.
In the second verse, the singer talks of the music he hears when he touches his lover's hand. A beautiful melody from some enchanted land, something that resonates with him deeply. He hears it play in his heart, asking him if this is the day he has been waiting for. The music and the words of the song are true, and the feeling that it gives him is like a beautiful rhapsody of love, youth and spring.
The last verse speaks of the singer's dilemma. He alone has heard this perfect song, and it echoes inside him forever. He wonders why he can't let it go, why he can't share it with his lover. He wants to let them know the song that his heart would sing, the beautiful music and words that he hears. It is a longing that is both sweet and melancholic, like the song itself.
Line by Line Meaning
I hear music when I look at you,
When I gaze upon you, my heart fills with beautiful music.
A beautiful theme of every
This music is the embodiment of all my desires and dreams.
Dream I ever knew.
Both realized and unrealized aspirations are captured in this melody.
Down deep in my heart I hear it play.
The music resonates deeply within me, filling me with emotion.
I feel it start, then melt away.
The music starts to build, then fades away like a distant memory.
I hear music when I touch your hand,
When I make physical contact with you, sweet music envelops my senses.
A beautiful melody
This music is a beautiful tune.
From some enchanted land.
It conjures up images of a fantastical, magical place.
Down deep in my heart, I hear it say,
Deep inside me, I hear the music whispering to me.
Is this the day?
Perhaps this is the moment when we both will recognize the true depths of our feelings.
I alone have heard this lovely strain,
This beautiful music is something that only I have experienced.
I alone have heard this glad refrain:
This joyous melody is known only to me.
Must it be forever inside of me,
Why must this music forever remain locked away inside me?
Why can't I let it go,
Why can't I let these feelings be known?
Why can't I let you know,
Why can't I express to you the depth of my emotions?
Why can't I let you know the song
Why can't I share with you the music that fills my soul?
My heart would sing?
This music is the song that my heart yearns to express.
That beautiful rhapsody
The music is a beautiful and intricate song.
Of love and youth and spring,
It embodies feelings of love, the vibrancy of youth, and the freshness of spring.
The music is sweet,
The music is pleasing and delightful.
The words are true
The emotional meaning behind the music is genuine and honest.
The song is you.
This music represents you, and everything that you inspire in me.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jerome Kern, Oscar II Hammerstein
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
SELMER B.Action
I prefer Bird's version but this one is great too
Kenny James Woods
:D
zangsax
Early cannonball vibrato.
walkercatenaccio
N.B. Nat Adderley, Cannonball's brother, plays the trumpet, not the sax.
Desmond Callier
1:24