Early years
Count Basie arrived in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1927 playing on the Theater Owners Bookers Association (TOBA) circuit.[1] After playing with the Blue Devils, he joined rival band leader Bennie Moten's band. Upon Moten's death, Basie left the group to start his own band, taking many of his colleagues from the Moten band with him. This nine-piece group consisted of Joe Keyes and Oran 'Hot Lips' Page on trumpet, Buster Smith and Jack Washington on alto saxophone, Lester Young on tenor saxophone, Dan Minor on trombone, and a rhythm section made up of Jo Jones on drums, Walter Page on bass and Basie himself on piano. With this band, then named 'The Barons of Rhythm', Basie brought the sound of the infamous and highly competitive Kansas City 'jam session' to club audiences, coupling extended improvised solos with riff-based accompaniments from the band. The group's first venue was the Reno Club in Kansas City, later moving to the Grand Terrace in Chicago.
When music critic and record producer John Hammond heard the band on a 1936 radio broadcast, he sought them out and offered Basie the chance to expand the group to the standard 13-piece big band line up. He also presented the opportunity to move the group to New York in order to play at venues such as the Roseland Ballroom. Basie agreed, hoping that with this new band he could retain the freedom and spirit inherent in the Kansas City style of his nine-piece.
The band, which now included Buck Clayton on trumpet and famous blues 'shouter' Jimmy Rushing, demonstrate this style in their first recordings with the Decca label in January 1937: in pieces such as 'Roseland Shuffle' we can hear that the soloists are at the foreground with the ensemble effects and riffs playing a strictly functional backing role. This was a fresh big band sound for New York, contrasting the complex jazz writing of Duke Ellington and Sy Oliver and highlighting the difference in styles that had emerged between the east and west coasts.
In New York
Following the first recording session the band's line up was reshuffled, with some of players being replaced on the request of Hammond as part of a 'strengthening' of the band. Trumpeters Ed Lewis and Bobby Moore replaced Keyes and Smith, and alto saxophonist Coughey Roberts was replaced by Earl Warren. Significantly, March 1937 saw the arrival of guitarist Freddie Green, who replaced Claude Williams to complete one of the most respected rhythm sections in big band history. Billie Holiday also sang with the band during this period, although never recorded with them.
Hits such as "One O'clock Jump" and "Jumpin' at the Woodside" (from 1937 and 1938 respectively) helped to gain the band, now known as the 'Count Basie Orchestra', national and international fame. These tunes were what was known as 'head-arrangements'; not scored in individual parts but made up of riffs memorised by the band's members. Although some of the band's players, such as trombonist Eddie Durham, did contribute their own written arrangements at this time, it was these 'head-arrangements' that captured the imagination of the audience in New York and communicated the spirit of the band's members.
In 1938, Helen Humes joined the group, replacing Billie Holiday as the female singer. She sang mostly pop ballads, including "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" and "Blame it on my Last Affair", acting as a gentle contrast to the blues style of Jimmy Rushing.
The Forties
As time went on, the band became increasingly dependent on arrangers to provide its music. These varied from players within the band, such as Eddie Durham and Buck Clayton, to professional arrangers from outside the group, who could bring their own character to band with each new piece. External arranger Andy Gibson brought the band's harmonic style closer to the forward looking music of Duke Ellington, with arrangements from 1940 such as "I Never Knew" and "Louisiana" introducing increased chromaticism to the band's music. Tab Smith also contributed important arrangements at this time such as "Harvard Blues", and others including Buster Harding and veteran arranger Jimmy Mundy also expanded the group's repertoire at this time.
However, this influx of new arrangements led to a gradual change in the band's sound, distancing the group musically from its West Coast roots. Rather than structuring the music around the soloists with memorised 'head arrangements' and riffs, the group's sound at this time became more focused on ensemble playing; closer to the traditional East Coast big band sound. This can be attributed to the increasing reliance on arrangers to assert their own character on to the band with their music; an indicator perhaps that Basie's ideal of a big band sized group with the flexibility and spirit of his original Kansas City 8-piece was not to last.[9]
The World War II years saw some of the key members of the band leave: drummer Jo Jones and tenor saxophone player Lester Young were both conscripted in 1944, leading to the hiring of drummers such as Buddy Rich and extra tenor saxophonists including Illinois Jacquet, Paul Gonzalves and Lucky Thompson. Some, such as musicologist Gunther Schuller, have claimed that when Jo Jones left he took some of the smooth and relaxed style of the band with him, due to his replacements, such as Sonny Payne, drumming a lot louder and therefore raising the whole dynamic of the band to a 'harder, more clamorous brass sound'.[10] The ban on instrumental recordings of 1942 to 44 had a financial impact on the Count Basie Orchestra, as it did on all big bands in America, and despite taking on new soloists such as Wardell Gray, Basie was forced to temporarily disband the group for a short period in 1948, before dispersing again for two years in 1950. For these two years Basie led a reduced band of between 6 and 9 people, featuring players such as Buddy Rich, Serge Chaloff and Buddy DeFranco.
The 'Second Testament'
Basie reformed the jazz orchestra in 1952 for a series of tours, not only in America but also in Europe in 1954 and Japan in 1963. The band also released new recordings; some featuring guest singers such as Joe Williams, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald, and all reliant on music provided by arrangers, some of whom are now synonymous with the Basie band: Neal Hefti, Quincy Jones and Sammy Nestico to name a few. This new band became known as 'The Second Testament'., and achieved a new surge of popularity with albums such as 1958's 'The Atomic Mr. Basie' With this album and others of the late fifties, such as April in Paris and Basie Plays Hefti, we can hear the epitome of the new Count Basie Orchestra sound, thanks largely to the work of the aforementioned arrangers. The sound of the band was now that of a tight ensemble: heavier and full bodied, and a contrast to the riff based band of the late thirties and early forties. Whereas previously the emphasis had been on providing space for exemplary soloists such as Lester Young and Buck Clayton, now the focus had shifted to the arrangements themselves, despite the presence of notable soloists such as trumpeter Thad Jones and saxophonist Frank Foster. This orchestral style was to remain the typical sound of the band, even up to the present day; a fact that has attracted criticism from some musicologists, notably Gunther Schuller who, in his book 'The Swing Era', described the group as 'perfected neo-classicism...a most glorious dead end'.
The Continuing Band
After Basie's death in 1984, the band has continued to play under the direction of some of the players he had hired, including Eric Dixon, Thad Jones, Frank Foster, Grover Mitchell, Bill Hughes, and now drummer and arranger Dennis Mackrel. It continues to release new recordings, for example Basie is Back from 2006 which features new recordings of classic tunes from the Basie Orchestra's back catalogue, including "April in Paris" and even the band's early hit "One O'clock Jump". The group also continues to produce notable collaborations, such as with singer Ray Charles in Ray Sings, Basie Swings of 2006, and with arranger Allyn Ferguson on the 1999 album Swing Shift.
www.basieband.com
Close to You
The Count Basie Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Every time you are near?
Just like me, they long to be
Close to you
Why do stars fall down from the sky
Every time you walk by?
Just like me, they long to be
On the day that you were born, the angels got together
And decided to create a dream come true
So they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold
And starlight in your eyes of blue
That is why all the girls in town
Follow you all around
Just like me, they long to be
Close to you
On the day that you were born, the angels got together
And decided to create a dream come true
So they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold
And starlight in your eyes of blue
That is why all the girls in town
Follow you all around
Just like me, they long to be
Close to you
Just like me they long to be
Close to you
I've only just began to live close to you
The lyrics to The Count Basie Orchestra's song, Close to You, speak to the overwhelming sense of admiration and attraction that the vocalist has towards another person. The opening lines ask a question that almost seems rhetorical: "Why do birds suddenly appear every time you are near?" The metaphorical suggestion is that the singer sees the same beauty and grace in the person they are singing about, as one would perceive in the flight and movements of birds. They long to be as close to this person as the birds are.
Similarly, the following lines, "Why do stars fall down from the sky every time you walk by?" speak not just to an overwhelming sense of admiration, but to the sense of disbelief that such beauty exists in one person. For the singer, this person is a dream come true and is the object of the attention and admiration of everyone else in town. The idea that moon dust was sprinkled in their hair of gold and starlight in their eyes of blue suggests not just that this person is beautiful but that this beauty is almost otherworldly or divine. The closing lines, "Just like me they long to be close to you. I've only just begun to live close to you," concludes the song and reiterates the idea that being close to this person is the only thing that matters.
Line by Line Meaning
Why do birds suddenly appear
Why do birds manifest in your presence out of nowhere?
Every time you are near?
Is it because you have a charming aura?
Just like me, they long to be
Just like me, birds also wish to be
Close to you
Near to you, in your personal space
Why do stars fall down from the sky
Why do stars plummet from the sky
Every time you walk by?
Each time you cross their path
Just like me, they long to be
Just like me, the stars also aspire to be
Close to you
Near to you, or by your side
On the day that you were born, the angels got together
When you were born, the angles congregated
And decided to create a dream come true
They made a wish, and a dream turned into reality
So they sprinkled moon dust in your hair of gold
They blessed you with magical moondust in your hair, that's gold
And starlight in your eyes of blue
They gave you a twinkle in your blue eyes, from the stars
That is why all the girls in town
This is the reason why every girl in the town
Follow you all around
Languish to be near you all the time
Just like me, they long to be
Just like me, they yearn to be
Close to you
Near you, like your shadow
Just like me they long to be
Just like me they wish to be
Close to you
Strivel to be close to you
I've only just begun to live close to you
I've just started living, and I want it to be close to you
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: WILLIE DIXON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@RATCLIFFE-LISTENS
Ella was so far into the next Galaxy as a Stylist there was no other. Listen her raw Power unbelievable.
@nancyrice7569
I loved her even as a small child in the 60's! None can compare. A classy gifted singer who wears the joys of music on her beautiful face.
@falanajerido875
She was beautiful can sing
@boomerfaceplant3644
Icon.
@brianwatson9199
Beautiful ❤❤❤
@s.t.martin7939
Oh, that “Lady Ella!!!”
🎼 🤗🙏🏽😍 🎶
In My, and Many other’s opinions,….Ella Is most Definitely,…THE First Lady of Jazz, and Popular Song, from the Greatest Generation,…to Today!!!!
Of Course, There have certainly been Many other wonderful & Awesome women jazz/popular music performers through the years, ie.:
Sarah Vaughan,
“Lady Day”- Billie Holliday, Carmen McCrae, Shirley Horn, Dinah Washington, Lena Horne, Julie London, Nancy Wilson, Della Reese, Anita O’Day, Nina Simone,….
& More recently, Diana Krall, Diane Shurr, Jane Monheit, Dianne Reeves, and Cassandra Wilson!!
As soon as the first note of a song that “Lady Ella” sings, starts,….her superfluous voice,… her perfect diction, the musical notes begin,…
and everyone, especially her fans,…know that Voice:
It’s The One, the Only,….
Miss Ella Fitzgerald!!!
Oh,…and when she “Scats!!!”
….All,…Pure Magic!!!!
🎶 😊😵💫 🎼
If you’ve never heard Ella Fitzgerald, do yourself, and those around you, a HUGE favor!!! Download an “Ella Fitzgerald, Essentials” album, and just listen,…. You’ll be Skatin singing along with Ella in no time.!!! ☺️
@terryfriend16
Can't match this. Ella, unmistakable.
@Bradwick1
I know its Ella.
But its just not Karen.
@s.t.martin7939
@Bradwick1 If you’re talking about Karen Carpenter, (who else, right!)
Oh Yes, she was a one of a kind, talent & voice!! God rest her soul. 🙏🏽
She absolutely had the voice of an angel! Karen was another kind of voice, from another genre! 😊
I was born in 1962,… I am more of an old soul, I grew up listening to music that my Grandparents & parents loved, like Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Johnny Mathis, but I loved, and still do love, All kinds of music!!
Actually,….“The Carpenters” was the first album that I bought for myself, with b’day, or chore money, 1970,… I think 🤔
Karen may not have been a Jazz legend, but she Certainly had a voice for the ages! 😇🙏🏽