Mulligan started on the piano before learning clarinet and the various saxophones. His initial reputation was as an arranger. In 1944 he wrote charts for Johnny Warrington's radio band and soon was making contributions to the books of Tommy Tucker and George Paxton. He moved to New York in 1946 and joined Gene Krupa's Orchestra as a staff arranger; his most notable chart was "Disc Jockey Jump." The rare times he played with Krupa's band was on alto and the same situation existed when he was with Claude Thornhill in 1948.
Gerry Mulligan's first notable recorded work on baritone was with Miles Davis' Birth of the Cool nonet (1948-50) but once again his arrangements ("Godchild," "Darn That Dream" and three of his originals "Jeru," "Rocker" and "Venus de Milo") were more significant than his short solos. Mulligan spent much of 1949 writing for Elliot Lawrence's orchestra and playing anonymously in the saxophone section. It was not until 1951 that he began to get a bit of attention for his work on baritone. Mulligan recorded with his own nonet for Prestige, displaying an already recognizable sound. After he traveled to Los Angeles, he wrote some arrangements for Stan Kenton (including "Youngblood," "Swing House" and "Walking Shoes"), worked at the Lighthouse and then gained a regular Monday night engagement at the Haig. Around this time Mulligan realized that he enjoyed the extra freedom of soloing without a pianist. He jammed with trumpeter Chet Baker and soon their magical rapport was featured in his piano-less quartet. The group caught on quickly in 1952 and made both Mulligan and Baker into stars.
A drug bust put Mulligan out of action and ended that quartet but, when he was released from jail in 1954, Mulligan began a new musical partnership with valve trombonist Bob Brookmeyer that was just as successful. Trumpeter Jon Eardley and Zoot Sims on tenor occasionally made the group a sextet and in 1958 trumpeter Art Farmer was featured in Mulligan's Quartet. Being a very flexible player with respect for other stylists, Mulligan went out of his way to record with some of the great musicians he admired. At the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival he traded off with baritonist Harry Carney on "Prima Bara Dubla" while backed by the Duke Ellington Orchestra, and during 1957-60 he recorded separate albums with Thelonious Monk, Paul Desmond, Stan Getz, Ben Webster and Johnny Hodges. Mulligan played on the classic Sound of Jazz television special in 1958 and appeared in the movies I Want to Live and The Subterraneans.
During 1960-64 Mulligan led his Concert Jazz Band which gave him an opportunity to write, play baritone and occasionally double on piano. The orchestra at times included Brookmeyer, Sims, Clark Terry and Mel Lewis. Mulligan was a little less active after the big band broke up but he toured extensively with the Dave Brubeck Quartet (1968-72), had a part-time big band in the 1970s (the Age of Steam), doubled on soprano for a period, led a mid-'70s sextet that included vibraphonist Dave Samuels, and in 1986 jammed on a record with Scott Hamilton. In the 1990s he toured the world with his excellent "no-name" quartet and led a "Rebirth of the Cool Band" that performed and recorded remakes of the Miles Davis Nonet classics. Up until the end, Gerry Mulligan was always eager to play. Gerry Mulligan died on January 20th, 1996 in Darien, CT.
Among Mulligan's compositions were "Walkin' Shoes," "Line for Lyons," "Bark for Barksdale," "Nights at the Turntable," "Utter Chaos," "Soft Shoe," "Bernie's Tune," "Blueport," "Song for Strayhorn," "Song for an Unfinished Woman" and "I Never Was a Young Man" (which he often sang). He recorded extensively through the years for such labels as Prestige, Pacific Jazz, Capitol, Vogue, EmArcy, Columbia, Verve, Milestone, United Artists, Philips, Limelight, A&M, CTI, Chiaroscuro, Who's Who, DRG, Concord and GRP. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
Let There Be Love
Gerry Mulligan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let there be me.
Let there be oysters
Under the sea.
Let there be wind,
An occasional rain.
Chile con carne,
Let there be birds
To sing in the trees,
Someone to bless me
Whenever I sneeze.
Let there be cuckoos,
A lark and a dove,
But first of all, please
Let there be love.
Let there be cuckoos,
A lark and a dove,
But first of all, please
Let there be love
Hmmm umm, love
Hmmm umm, love
Let there be love.
The lyrics of Gerry Mulligan's song "Let There Be Love" present a simple, yet powerful message about the importance of love in our lives. The opening lines, "Let there be you, Let there be me," express the idea that love is about two individuals coming together to create something greater than themselves. The subsequent lines use picturesque imagery, such as oysters under the sea and birds singing in the trees, to illustrate the beauty and wonder that exist in the world when there is love.
The third and fourth lines, "Let there be wind, An occasional rain. Chile con carne, Sparkling champagne," create a sense of comfort and pleasure, suggesting that love brings enjoyment to our lives. The following line, "Someone to bless me whenever I sneeze," portrays the nurturing and caring aspects of love. The repetition of the line "Let there be cuckoos, a lark and a dove," reinforces the idea that love brings not just individual joy, but also the joy of shared experiences. Lastly, the closing line, "But first of all, please let there be love," emphasizes the importance of love as the foundation of everything else that follows.
Line by Line Meaning
Let there be you,
May there exist not only me but you as well.
Let there be me.
May there exist not only you but also myself.
Let there be oysters Under the sea.
May there exist oysters deep under the sea that we can harvest and enjoy.
Let there be wind,
May the air flow and create wind.
An occasional rain.
May there be a bit of rain, but not too much or too often.
Chile con carne,
May there be delicious South American inspired cuisine.
Sparkling champagne
May there be fine, bubbly wine for us to celebrate with.
Let there be birds To sing in the trees,
May there be small feathered creatures, chirping and living in trees.
Someone to bless me Whenever I sneeze.
May there be someone around to wish me well when I sneeze.
Let there be cuckoos,
May there exist cuckoo birds that sing their melodic songs.
A lark and a dove,
May there be other birds like larks and doves living alongside cuckoos.
But first of all, please Let there be love.
But before all of that, may there exist love in our lives.
Let there be cuckoos,
May there exist cuckoo birds that sing their melodic songs.
A lark and a dove,
May there be other birds like larks and doves living alongside the cuckoos.
But first of all, please Let there be love.
But before all of that, may there exist love in our lives.
Hmmm umm, love
Ah, love is so important to us.
Hmmm umm, love
Ah, love is so important to us.
Let there be love.
May love continue to exist and guide us always.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JAMES GRANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jeanie Barton
what a line up - I was lucky enough to meet Annie recently - she is definitely one of my greatest influences
Peter Brown Pianist
There will never be another Annie. This one's new to me, but wonderful, just like everything she ever did.
Paul Ostroff
The inimitable Annie Ross! Brava!
Mark Nielsen
RIP Henry Grimes (b), of COVID-19 complications, 4/15/20. A great swinging and inventive bassist, wish we'd had more from him. He was down on his luck for over twenty years. Annie's still doin' it, though. And Bill Crow, the other bassist who worked w/ Gerry on these sessions.
Phaedra Collins
Alas, Annie is with us no more...a great talent.....
Edoardo Micati
Bravissima, incredibilmente brava, e poi con Gerry ......
theoriginalbadbob
For a short time in, I believe, 1958, Annie's voice was the "2nd horn" in one of Mulligan's piano-less quartets. Gerry used Annie's voice purely as a musical instrument. I don't think she sang any words. She probably did some scat-singing, but that was about it.
27sepulchre
An all star line up
vova47
It's not as unusual as you might think. Most jazz musicians still record in one or two sessions. Far be it from me to boast about myself, but i just recorded a trio album in one afternoon. If you cannot do your stuff in a few hours you shouldn't be in studio in the first place...
John Benn
WOW WOW WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From a mad keen 75yo Aussie fan.