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
Line For Lyons
Gerry Mulligan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How they shock my poor brain with that electric refrain
I hear a buzzin', just like a dozen doorbells
Everytime I hear our song
I get weak in the knees my heart pumps up a breeze
Sending a stream to every extremity
Parts of my anatomy are not controlled by me
The music's magic spell
Leaves me a mess of quivering jelly
Even on a violin
How those sweet dulcet tones pull marrow out of my bones
I must confess, it leaves me a mess, our song
Parts of my anatomy are not controlled by me
The music's magic spell
Leaves me a mess of quivering jelly
Even on a violin
How those sweet dulcet tones pull marrow out of my bones
I must confess, it leaves me a mess, our song does
I love to hear our song cause
It grooves me so our song
Gerry Mulligan’s “Line for Lyons” is a playful song about the power of music to move the body and the soul. The lyrics describe the physical and emotional effects of hearing “our song,” the catchy and electric refrain that “shocks” the singer’s brain and sends a “stream to every extremity.” The music has a “magic spell” that takes over the body, making parts of the anatomy “not controlled” by the singer and leaving him a “mess of quivering jelly.” The music is so powerful that even the sweet dulcet tones of a violin can “pull marrow out of [his] bones.” Despite the overwhelming physical sensations, the singer confesses that he loves to hear “our song” because it “grooves” him so.
Line by Line Meaning
Listen to them play our song
I'm enjoying listening to others play the song that we wrote.
How they shock my poor brain with that electric refrain
The upbeat tempo of the song is energizing and exciting to me.
I hear a buzzin', just like a dozen doorbells
The many different instruments playing together create a buzzing sound in my ears.
Everytime I hear our song
Whenever I hear our song being played, it stirs up emotions in me.
I get weak in the knees my heart pumps up a breeze
The music makes me so emotionally overwhelmed that it feels like my heart is beating faster and it's hard to stand.
Sending a stream to every extremity
My entire body gets affected by the emotions stirred up by the song.
Parts of my anatomy are not controlled by me
The emotions stirred up by the song keep me from having full control over my body and movements.
The music's magic spell
The music has a captivating power over me that feels very magical.
Leaves me a mess of quivering jelly
The music completely overwhelms me to the point where I feel like my body is jelly.
Even on a violin
Even when played on a softer instrument like a violin, the song still has a powerful effect on me.
How those sweet dulcet tones pull marrow out of my bones
The soothing and sweet melody feels like it's pulling emotions and reactions from deep within my body.
I must confess, it leaves me a mess, our song
I can't help but admit that the song leaves me feeling so overwhelmed and powerless that it's almost like a mess.
I love to hear our song cause
Despite the overwhelming effect the song has on me, I still love listening to it because of how powerful it is.
It grooves me so our song
The song has such a great groove to it that it's irresistible to me.
Writer(s): Gerry Mulligan
Contributed by Caroline O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@33uptempo
Had this in my brain and couldn't remember the title.....always loved that West Coast jazz. Thanks for posting.
@60otaku4
You're welcome, 33uptempo-san!!
Otaku4 (*^_^)b
@marvingoodman7381
ANYTIME you have Mulligan and Brookmeyer together, you have a "happening." What a sweet sound...
@Lorianotrentotto
Questa esecuzione è una vera meraviglia.
@giorgiocolombo1459
purtroppo questi grandi artisti non ci sono piu' ed e' una grande perdita, comunque noi che li abbiamo vissuti ne conserviamo tuttora buona memoria,GRAZIE.
@60otaku4
Prego, Giorgio-san!!
Otaku4 (*^_^)/
@jdmlist27
It’s just sweet.
@mikextase
Exquisite ... West Coast baby ... Thanks 60otaku4
@60otaku4
You're most welcome, Mikael-san!!
Otaku4 d(^_^)b
@valvetrom
arrangement= free improvisation with keen ears.