Count Basie

William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, Basie formed his own jazz orchestra, the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and their first recording. He led the group for almost 50 years, creating innovations like the use of two "split" tenor saxophones, emphasizing the rhythm section, riffing with a big band, using arrangers to broaden their sound, and others. Many musicians came to prominence under his direction, including the tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Herschel Evans, the guitarist Freddie Green, trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry "Sweets" Edison and singers Jimmy Rushing, Helen Humes, Thelma Carpenter, and Joe Williams.

Birth and Death Data: Born August 21st, 1904 (Red Bank), Died April 26, 1984 (Hollywood)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1929 - 1968

Roles Represented in DAHR: piano, leader, composer, songwriter, arranger, organ, vocalist

Notes: Also known as William Basie.

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 126-150 of 177 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Decca 64733 10-in. 11/9/1938 Hey! Lawdy Mama Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64734 10-in. 11/9/1938 The fives Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64735 10-in. 11/9/1938 Boogie woogie Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64746 10-in. 11/16/1938 Dark rapture Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64747 10-in. 11/16/1938 Shorty George Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64748 10-in. 11/16/1938 The blues I like to hear Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64749 10-in. 11/16/1938 Do you wanna jump, children? Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64750 10-in. 11/16/1938 Panassie stomp Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64851 10-in. 1/5/1939 My heart belongs to Daddy Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64852 10-in. 1/5/1939 Sing for your supper Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64954 10-in. 1/26/1939 Oh! Red Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64955 10-in. 1/26/1939 Fare thee honey, fare thee well Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64956 10-in. 1/26/1939 Dupree blues Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64957 10-in. 1/26/1939 When the sun goes down Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64958 10-in. 1/26/1939 Red wagon Count Basie ; Freddie Green ; Jo Jones ; Walter Page instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64978 10-in. 2/2/1939 You can depend on me Count Basie Sextet instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64979 10-in. 2/3/1939 Cherokee, part 1 Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64980 10-in. 2/3/1939 Cherokee, part 2 Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64981 10-in. 2/3/1939 Blame it on my last affair Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64982 10-in. 2/4/1939 Jive at five Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64983 10-in. 2/4/1939 Thursday-1 Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64984 10-in. 2/4/1939 Evil blues-1 Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 64985 10-in. 2/4/1939 Oh, Lady be good-1 Count Basie Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 89017 August 1955 Down south camp meetin'-2 Benny Goodman and his Orchestra arranger  
Decca 89018 August 1955 King Porter stomp-2 Benny Goodman and his Orchestra arranger  
(Results 126-150 of 177 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Basie, Count," accessed May 30, 2023, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103042.

Basie, Count. (2023). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved May 30, 2023, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103042.

"Basie, Count." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2023. Web. 30 May 2023.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103042

External Sources

Wikipedia: Count Basie

Discogs: Count Basie

Allmusic: Count Basie

Linked Open Data Sources

LCNAR: Basie, Count, 1904-1984 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n81016968

Wikidata: Count Basie - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q107008

VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/46945530

MusicBrainz: Count Basie - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/0dbd6300-efdc-420b-857e-895e18fad317

Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license

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