JAZZ COMPOSERS

A look at some of the jazz musicians who were also composers

In today’s sub-stack, I am going to look at some of the jazz musicians who composed some of the standards that have become part of the standard jazz repertoire.

The jazz repertoire consists of those tunes, not specifically written as jazz, such as the songs of the great American Songbook and those compositions written by jazz musicians that have become part of the general repertoire. Some of these were written in the early days of jazz but are still part of the general jazz repertoire.

The most famous of these musicians was probably Jelly Roll Morton. He wrote many compositions, which have become part of the repertoire of more traditional musicians. He was perhaps the first person to write down and formally arrange the music. “Everyone today is playing mystuff, and I don’t even get credit. Kansas City style, Chicago style, New Orleans style. Hell, they’re all Jelly Roll style.” Here is Morton’s composition “King Porter Stomp” played by Benny Goodman and his band.

Clarence and Spencer Williams, though not related, wrote many numbers in the 20s and 30s that have become standards in many musicians’ repertoire. Their most famous work is Royal Garden Blues. There are many recordings of this tune, but I have chosen a perhaps more unusual version by Johnny Hodges and Duke Ellington.

This takes us to Duke Ellington, who was the most prolific jazz composer with over 1000 compositions to his credit. He wrote many of them in partnership with members of his band. It has been suggested that he just added his name to them and claimed joint ownership. For instance, Caravan was written by Juan Tizol. A large number of them are part of the regular repertoire of musicians from all styles. Here is Sophisticated Lady, played by Johnny Hodges and his Septet.

Very connected to Duke was Billy Strayhorn, who composed some of the most beautiful pieces in the jazz repertoire. Many compositions under Duke’s name were possibly written by Strayhorn. Written when he was only in his teens, is the beautiful ballad Lush Life. Here is a unique recording made by Billy Strayhorn, singing it himself.

Charlie Parker, one of the main figures in the development of BeBop, wrote many compositions for the early Bebop bands. In most cases, they were not originals,but were contrafacts. A contrafact is a musical composition built using the chord progression of a pre-existing piece, but with a new melody and arrangement. Examples are Ornithology on How High the Moon, Koko on Cherokee, Donna Lee based on Indiana, and Scrapple for The Apple based on Honeysuckle Rose, A lot of these contrafacts are still played by many jazz musicians. Here are Gerry Mulligan, Stan Getz, and Oscar Peterson playing Scrapple for the Apple.

Thelonius Monk, the “High Priest of Bop”, was known as a highly idiosyncratic and unconventional pianist, and, likewise, his works as a jazz composer sound like no one else’s.He came to prominence in the 1940s, but Thelonious Monk’s pieces still sound futuristic. He wrote around 80 published pieces, but there were quite a few that were never published. They feature angular melodies, odd forms, unusual phrase lengths, and surprising chord movements. And yet they are strangely memorable and incredibly clever, and jazz musicians continue to relish the challenges they provide for those improvising over and interpreting them. Here is British saxophonist Toni Kofi playing the Monk composition “Brilliant Corners”.

The great tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon memorably referred to Tadd Dameron as the “romanticist” of bebop.Dameron had worked as an arranger for major swing era names like Count Basie, ArtieShaw, and Jimmie Lunceford, before applying his talents to the revolutionary new jazz music of the 1940s and early 50s, his advanced writing helping to expand the scope and parameters of bop. Dameron did make some small group recordings as a pianist, but he is unusual as a bebop musician who is better known as a composer and arranger than as a performer..Dameron wrote the standards “Lady Bird”, “Half Nelson”, “Hot House” (a new melody over the chord sequence to Cole Porter’s “What Is This Thing Called Love”. Here is “Half Nelson” played by the Miles Davis Quintet.

Benny Golson, one of jazz's most prolific composers of sophisticated jazz standards and one of the most graceful powerhouse hard-bop tenor saxophonists, died on September 22, 2024. He was 95. Benny's long list of majestic compositions includes Along Came Betty, Park Avenue Petite, Blues March, I Remember Clifford, Killer Joe, Stablemates and Whisper Not. He not only was a dynamic side man in the 1950s but also a towering player on more than 40 leadership albums. He also co-led the Jazztet. a sextet he co-founded with trumpeter ArtFarmer.

Wayne Shorter is probably one of the best tenor saxophonists who have been around since the late 50s, when he was with The Jazz Messengers. He later spent a considerable time with Miles Davis for whom he wrote many compositions. Later, he featured many of his compositions on the recordings he made with his groups. These works are now regularly played by today’s groups. Here is a typical piece played by Miles Davis.

A pioneer of hard bop, Horace Silver has played a major part in the development of this style of jazz. After starting with the Jazz Messengers in 1956 he formed his quintet, which was a stepping stone for many musicians. As a player, Silver transitioned from bebop to hard bop by stressing melody rather than complex harmony, and combined clean and often humorous right-hand lines with darker notes and chords in a near-perpetual left-hand rumble. His compositions similarly emphasized catchy melodies, but often also contained dissonant harmonies. Many of his varied repertoire of songs, including "Doodling'", "Peace", and "Sister Sadie", became jazz standards that are still widely played. His considerable legacy encompasses his influence on other pianists and composers, and the development of young jazz talents who appeared in his bands for four decades. Here is the exciting Woody Herman band playing Sister Sadie, featuring Sal Nistico on tenor.

Gigi Gryce’s performing career was relatively short, much of his work as a player, composer, and arranger was quite influential and well-recognized during his time. However, Gryce abruptly ended his jazz career in the 1960s. This, in addition to his nature as a very private person, has resulted in very little knowledge of Gryce today. Several of his compositions have been covered extensively."Minority", "Social Call", "Nica's Tempo") and have become minor jazz standards.

One of the most versatile jazz musicians, was Gerry Mulligan, who as well as being a master of the baritone sax, was also an excellent pianist and arranger, for everything from small groups to big bands. He also wrote quite a number of compositions, many of which are played by other musicians. Here is Five Brothers, played by Keith Jarrett. Originally written for the Woody Herman sax section, this is a piano solo versin.

Fats Waller as well as being a great pianist in the stride tradition was a first class entertainer. AS a composer he is right up there with the very best. Honeysuckle Rose and Ain’t Misbehaving must be two of the most played compositions of his. He also wrote many other works which are standard repertoire for jazz men of all styles. Here is Louis Armstrong with an 1925 recording of Squeeze Me, with Earl Hines on piano.

Not really a jazz musician, Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim’s Bossa Nova compositions have become part of most jazz men’s repertoire, ever since the recordings he made with Stan Getz were released. It seems unusual to go to any live jazz session and not here at least one Bossa Nova being played. Here is a recording of Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea and Jobim performing Wave, recorded in 1993 at a special tribute concert to Jobim.

That brings us to the end of this SubStack. I hope that you enjoyed it. I realise that I have probably not included all the jazz composers, and the miusic reflects my tastes to a great extent.