Joseph Benjamin Wilder (February 22, 1922 – May 9, 2014) was an American ja… Read Full Bio ↴Joseph Benjamin Wilder (February 22, 1922 – May 9, 2014) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer.

Wilder was awarded the Temple University Jazz Master's Hall of Fame Award in 2006. The National Endowment for the Arts honored him with its highest honor in jazz, the NEA Jazz Masters Award for 2008.

Wilder was born into a musical family led by his father Curtis, a bassist and bandleader in Philadelphia. Wilder's first performances took place on the radio program, "Parisian Tailor's Colored Kiddies of the Air." He and the other young musicians were backed up by such illustrious bands as Duke Ellington's and Louis Armstrong's that were also then playing at the Lincoln Theater. Wilder studied at the Mastbaum School of Music in Philadelphia, but turned to jazz when he felt that there was little future for an African American classical musician. At age 19, Wilder joined his first touring big band, Les Hite's band.

Wilder was one of the first thousand African Americans to serve in the Marines during World War II. He worked first in Special Weapons and eventually became Assistant Bandmaster at the headquarters' band. Following the war during the 1940's and early 1950's, he played in the orchestras of Jimmie Lunceford, Herbie Fields, Sam Donahue, Lucky Millinder, Noble Sissle, Dizzy Gillespie, and finally with the Count Basie Orchestra. From 1957 to 1974, Wilder did studio work for ABC-TV, New York, and in the pit orchestras for Broadway musicals, while building his reputation as a soloist with his albums for Savoy (1956) and Columbia (1959). His Jazz from Peter Gunn (1959), features ten songs from Henry Mancini ("Peter Gunn") television score in melodic and swinging fashion with a quartet. He was also a regular sideman with such musicians as NEA Jazz Masters Hank Jones, Gil Evans, and Benny Goodman. He became a favorite with vocalists and played for Billie Holiday, Lena Horne, Johnny Mathis, Harry Belafonte, Eileen Farrell, Tony Bennett, and many others. Wilder earned a bachelor of music degree in 1953, studying classical trumpet at the Manhattan School of Music with Joseph Alessi, where he was also principal trumpet with the school's symphony orchestra under conductor Jonel Perlea. In the 1960s, he performed on several occasions with the New York Philharmonic under Andre Kostelanetz and Pierre Boulez and played lead for the Symphony Of The New World from 1965 to 1971.

He appeared on The Cosby Show episode "Play It Again, Russell" (1986), and played the trumpet in the Malcolm X Orchestra in Spike Lee's "Malcolm X" (1992). Since 1991 he returned as a leader and recorded three albums for Evening Star. He died on May 9, 2014 in New York City, of congestive heart failure.

Discography

As leader

1956 Wilder N' Wilder Jazz Savoy
1956 Softly With Feeling Jazz Savoy
1959 The Pretty Sound of Joe Wilder Jazz Columbia
1959 Jazz from "Peter Gunn" Jazz Columbia
1991 Alone With Just My Dreams Jazz Evening Star
1993 No Greater Love Jazz Evening Star
2003 Among Friends Jazz Evening Star

As sideman

With Trigger Alpert
Trigger Happy! (Riverside, 1956)

With Gil Evans
Into the Hot (Impulse!, 1961)

With Dizzy Gillespie
Gillespiana (Verve, 1960)

With Tadd Dameron
The Magic Touch (1962)

With Etta Jones
From the Heart (Prestige, 1962)

With Yusef Lateef
10 Years Hence (Atlantic, 1974)
The Doctor is In... and Out (Atlantic, 1976)

With Mundell Lowe
New Music of Alec Wilder (Riverside, 1956)

With Oliver Nelson
The Spirit of '67 with Pee Wee Russell (Impulse!, 1967)

With Houston Person
Broken Windows, Empty Hallways (Prestige, 1972)

With Shirley Scott
Great Scott!! (Impulse!, 1964)

With Sonny Stitt
What's New!!! (Roulette, 1966)

With others

Joe Newman: Hangin´ Out (Concord, 1984)
Benny Carter: A Gentleman and His Music (Concord, 1985)
Ruby Braff: Being With You (Arbirs, 1996)
Charlie Byrd: For Louis' (Concord, 1996)
Jay Jay Johnson: The Brass Orchestra (Verve, 1996)
The Heath Brothers: Jazz Family (Concord, 1998)

Mad About the Boy
Joe Wilder Lyrics

We have lyrics for 'Mad About the Boy' by these artists:

Adam Lambert I'm mad about the boy (ah) I know it's stupid to…
Al Bowlly Mad about the boy, I know it's stupid to be mad…
Al Bowlly with Ray Noble and his Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Alyssa Allgood Mad about the boy. I know it's stupid to be mad…
Anita O'Day I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Ava Can't make up my mind, about the boy Sometimes he brings…
Ava Leigh Can't make up my mind, about the boy Sometimes he brings…
Beatrice Lillie Mad about the boy, it's pretty funny But I'm mad a…
Ben Selvin & His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…

Benny Golson Quartet I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Billy May & His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Carmen McRae & Ray Bryant Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Carmen McRae Jack Pleis and His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Caro Emerald I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
China Moses I know it's stupid to be mad about the boy I'm…
Chris Connor I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Coward Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Day & Taxi I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Dinah Shore I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Dinah Washington Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Dinah Washington浯 Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Duke Ellington I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Earl Hines & His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Easy Virtue I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Easy Virtue Orchestra (The) Jessica Biel I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Elaine Paige I met him at a party just a couple of…
Francis Wayne With Neal Hefti And His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Gertrude Lawrence I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Helen Forrest I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Helen Forrest & Carmen Dragon and His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Helen Forrest (Fallout New Vegas Mafia 2 SoundTrack) I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Ilse Huizinga I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Irene Kral I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Jack Hylton and His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Jackie Gleason I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Jackie Gleason and His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Jay & Kai Quintet Hey, what do you wanna play? If you don't want anything,…
Jeri Southern I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Jessica Biel The Easy Virtue Orchestra I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Jools Holland I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Jools Holland Caro Emerald I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Jools Holland & His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra feat. Caro Emerald I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Julie London Mad about the boy It's pretty funny But I'm mad about the…
Julie London With Walter Rodell And His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Laura Zakian I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Lena Horne I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Lena Horne & Lennie Hayton & His Orchestra I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Lena Horne with Lennie Hayton and His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Lennie Hayton and His Orchestra I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Marianne Faithfull I met him at a party just a couple of…
Maxine Sullivan Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Morgana King I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Ozzie Nelson & His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Ray Noble Mad about the boy, I know it's stupid to be mad…
Russ Case & His Orchestra Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Status Quo She never has to worry and she never has to…
The Easy Virtue Orchestra I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
The Easy Virtue Orchestra & Jessica Biel I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
The Easy Virtue Orchestra/Soundtrack I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
The Easy Virtue Orchestra/Various I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
The Ink Spots & Ella Fitzgerald I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
The Pop-Allstars Hahaha, ahh, it's Kenny Allstar (star, star, star) The voice…
various artists [Hooverphonic - Mad About You] Feel the vibe, feel the terr…
Vol. 7 - Lena Horne I'm mad about the boy And I know it's stupid to…
Washington Dinah Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…
Yots. K Lauky Beatz Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's the general And you alrea…
Dinah Washington Mad about the boy I know it's stupid to be mad…

We have lyrics for these tracks by Joe Wilder:

Blue Moon Blue moon you saw me standing alone Without a dream in…
But Not For Me Old man sunshine listen you Never tell me dreams come true J…
Everything Happens to Me Black cats creep across my path Until I'm almost mad I mus…
Far Away Places Far away places with strange sounding names Far away over t…
I Love You How did I know that the warmth of the glow…
It Might As Well Be Spring I'm as restless as a willow in a windstorm I'm as…
My Heart Stood Still I took one look at you That's all I meant to…
Prelude to a Kiss If you hear A song in blue Like a flower crying For the…

There Is No Greater Love There is no greater love Than what I feel for you No…

The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos

TRACKS