LOVE JAZZ anyways BUT this group is and always will be my favourite of the lot....outstanding performers.>> oh yes and um....JON HENDRICKS ain't so bad either!!!
I had the pleasure of taking his class at University of Toledo about a decade ago. I also had the unusual pleasure of driving him to the bookstore near Monroe. He is not just an artist, but also a hell of a great guy. Thanks Jon! I'll never forget.
Im a Jazz singer in Portugal i listen to Jon since ever. His Not Just a Great Bebopper His a Great Person with a great history, a master of Lirycs. A human Tenor horn. His it! Swing, jive,rithm... You re the Man. Thank you. True your sounds I am were I am Today doing what i do. Thank you Jon. One Love Jazzafari
I was blessed enough to be in Jon's VOCALESE classes for 2 semesters at the UNIV. of TOLEDO. We also performed his lyrics to "Scheherazade" at a local historical church, and performed as group at the Bluebird Jazz Club in Ann Arbor. What wonderful experiences! I truly love Jon and his amazing wife, Judith. She hit all of the very highest notes during all of our performances and positively puts the icing on the cake! Jon and Judith are also the classiest dressers I've ever known! God love them! XOXO
+Terri Oke Thanks for posting this Terri,- I also had the Privilage of playing bass for Jon Hendricks and family in Germany & the UK - when Jon & family were living in the UK during 1971. Great to see that Jon is still performing & teaching his skills. Keith P.
My mom used to listen to Lambert Hendricks and Ross, therefore so did I. He is the master, I hear he is still performing and is 87 years young. If there is any performers I'd love to meet it would be him and Dizzy(RIP)
This is from the 1985 recording, "Vocalese," which was a masterpiece no other vocal group (including MT) will ever replicate. The tunes--Rollins' "Airegin," Clifford Brown' s "Joy Spring"--were complex, hard to perform, and over most people's heads. Plus Dizzy Gillespie and McCoy Tyner were on the date. It was MT, Hendricks' poetry (and not the scat), African-American music at its best. It wasn't about hip or unhip--it was art. (Is Shakespeare, James Baldwin, or Toni Morrison "hip"?)
So cool! I had the pleasure to welcome Jon & his wife and daughters (michelle & ..?)performing at the Jazz Club in Hong Kong back in 1990!! He is not just a very good vocalist but a wonderful person too!
@balhisay Indeed! I had the pleasure of seeing Jon, Janis, Dianne Reeves and Bobby McFerrin sing as a quartet years ago in San Francisco at the Great American Music Hall. Tim Hauser joined later. Great singing all around.
Jon is the best but of course he learned from the best, had the unbelievable opportunity to learn as a teenager and practice with Art Tatum. Jon could fit more word into a song, because Art could fit more notes than anyone who has ever lived.
Cool. It'd be quite something to go to that concert. Jon's vocalese is v. impressive, though I have to say I think I liked it slightly better on the vocalese cassette I had when he kinda put the words in there too. Still awesome though.
I think the important thing to keep in mind is that vocalese is based on an original instrumental solo. You can't really make a judgement on how well someone is performing without knowing the original tune, because much of the articulation and phrasing is based on the original solo. In this case, I'm thinking either Sonny Rollins or Miles Davis. Janis, for instance, is ripping it up, while I've heard the others do better in the studio.
over notable scatters/vocalese : Eddie Jefferson, Anita O'day, Cab Calloway, Al Jarraeu, Bobby Mcferrin, Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, King Pleasure, Sammy Davis Jr., Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Betty Carter, Gene Greene & Slim Gaillard!
Wow that is out cold and vicious! I applaud there effort at least they tried to keep that sound alive for the next generation. Too bad i cant say the same for black artists -who left all these wonderful styles for what? Rap, PoP R&B--cant blame them for trying and doing not a bad job-boy you are hard-lol
And while I am not a HUGE fan of MT, they continue to introduce hundreds of people each year to vocal jazz, and still sound great after all these years. I don't buy the comparison to Kenny G. I mean....ouch. The torch, however, is being passed to a new generation, and if you really want to listen to some amazing vocalese, you'll need to check out folks like Kurt Elling.
LOVE JAZZ anyways BUT this group is and always will be my favourite of the lot....outstanding performers.>> oh yes and um....JON HENDRICKS ain't so bad either!!!
Amazing vocalese!!! I love this group!
Jon is a national treasure.
I had the pleasure of taking his class at University of Toledo about a decade ago. I also had the unusual pleasure of driving him to the bookstore near Monroe. He is not just an artist, but also a hell of a great guy. Thanks Jon! I'll never forget.
Im a Jazz singer in Portugal i listen to Jon since ever. His Not Just a Great Bebopper His a Great Person with a great history, a master of Lirycs. A human Tenor horn. His it!
Swing, jive,rithm... You re the Man. Thank you. True your sounds I am were I am Today doing what i do. Thank you Jon.
One Love
Jazzafari
all time THE BEST vocal group.
I was blessed enough to be in Jon's VOCALESE classes for 2 semesters at the UNIV. of TOLEDO. We also performed his lyrics to "Scheherazade" at a local historical church, and performed as group at the Bluebird Jazz Club in Ann Arbor. What wonderful experiences! I truly love Jon and his amazing wife, Judith. She hit all of the very highest notes during all of our performances and positively puts the icing on the cake! Jon and Judith are also the classiest dressers I've ever known! God love them! XOXO
I am so jealous. lol
+Terri Oke
Thanks for posting this Terri,- I also had the Privilage of playing bass for Jon Hendricks and family in Germany & the UK - when Jon & family were living in the UK during 1971. Great to see that Jon is still performing & teaching his skills. Keith P.
1st I've heard of this John Hendricks. RIP for your contribution to society.
I love that ANYONE is keeping Jazz alive! Period!
I attended the very first concert of the Vocalese tour in 1984. That was in Montreal. The whole show was AWESOME and ranks in my top 5 shows in life.
My mom used to listen to Lambert Hendricks and Ross, therefore so did I. He is the master, I hear he is still performing and is 87 years young. If there is any performers I'd love to meet it would be him and Dizzy(RIP)
This is from the 1985 recording, "Vocalese," which was a masterpiece no other vocal group (including MT) will ever replicate. The tunes--Rollins' "Airegin," Clifford Brown' s "Joy Spring"--were complex, hard to perform, and over most people's heads. Plus Dizzy Gillespie and McCoy Tyner were on the date. It was MT, Hendricks' poetry (and not the scat), African-American music at its best. It wasn't about hip or unhip--it was art. (Is Shakespeare, James Baldwin, or Toni Morrison "hip"?)
Jon Hendricks rulz!¡!
So cool! I had the pleasure to welcome Jon & his wife and daughters (michelle & ..?)performing at the Jazz Club in Hong Kong back in 1990!! He is not just a very good vocalist but a wonderful person too!
That's so cool, what an honor to have him teach you.
Hendricks is the greatest!
@balhisay Indeed! I had the pleasure of seeing Jon, Janis, Dianne Reeves and Bobby McFerrin sing as a quartet years ago in San Francisco at the Great American Music Hall. Tim Hauser joined later. Great singing all around.
Wowwwsw what a singers.....!!!!!!!!!
👏🏾👏🏾
Jon is the best but of course he learned from the best, had the unbelievable opportunity to learn as a teenager and practice with Art Tatum. Jon could fit more word into a song, because Art could fit more notes than anyone who has ever lived.
Oh my God
❤😊
let's not 4get "Rare Silk", and the great Eddie Jefferson.
Great performance!, although it seems a little faster than the original 👏👏
@grenadian11 I agree. Where I live lots of Black people like Manhattan Transfer, especially the song Ray's Rock House.
Does anyone know if Jon Hendricks and Ella Fitzgerald ever performed together? Good Lord, can you imagine the scat goin' on?
the greatest living vocal group alive!
Cool. It'd be quite something to go to that concert. Jon's vocalese is v. impressive, though I have to say I think I liked it slightly better on the vocalese cassette I had when he kinda put the words in there too. Still awesome though.
@hippyblood4 yeah! you are right, and what about The Ritz or New York Voices?
does anybody have the video (or audio) for 'another night in Tunisia' with McFerrin, Hendricks and Manhattan Transfer? Please upload!
I think the important thing to keep in mind is that vocalese is based on an original instrumental solo. You can't really make a judgement on how well someone is performing without knowing the original tune, because much of the articulation and phrasing is based on the original solo. In this case, I'm thinking either Sonny Rollins or Miles Davis. Janis, for instance, is ripping it up, while I've heard the others do better in the studio.
great stuff, but the captions mixed up cheryl and janis.
I love this group!
Seriously. I get tongue-tied just trying to keep up with him...
over notable scatters/vocalese : Eddie Jefferson, Anita O'day, Cab Calloway, Al Jarraeu, Bobby Mcferrin, Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, King Pleasure, Sammy Davis Jr., Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Betty Carter, Gene Greene & Slim Gaillard!
And Kurt Elling.
And din't forget Mel Torme and Cleo Laine.
Wow that is out cold and vicious! I applaud there effort at least they tried to keep that sound alive for the next generation. Too bad i cant say the same for black artists -who left all these wonderful styles for what? Rap, PoP R&B--cant blame them for trying and doing not a bad job-boy you are hard-lol
The bass player is...? (sorry if I missed it)
Alex Blake.
And while I am not a HUGE fan of MT, they continue to introduce hundreds of people each year to vocal jazz, and still sound great after all these years. I don't buy the comparison to Kenny G. I mean....ouch. The torch, however, is being passed to a new generation, and if you really want to listen to some amazing vocalese, you'll need to check out folks like Kurt Elling.
SUXBIGTIME