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  • Writer's pictureJazz Attack
    • Jan 30
    • 2 min read

Jazz Greats: Lester Young

Updated: Feb 8

Lester Young was born on August 27, 1909 in Woodville, Mississippi to a pair of musicians. His father was a music professor and his mother was a piano teacher. Young began performing at the age of 10 when his father was leading carnival-minstrel bands. He taught Lester and his siblings to dance, play drums, and eventually, taught Lester to play the saxophone.



In the 1930s, Young’s jazz band journey began with a move to Minneapolis. He played in small local bands and toured with groups such as the Oklahoma City Blue Devils. In 1930, he married his first wife, Beatrice Tolliver. In 1934, Young moved to New York and began playing with Fletcher Henderson’s orchestra; unfortunately, his sound was so hated by the other musicians, specifically the other saxophonists, that they refused to help him learn Henderson’s arrangements and Young was forced to move back to Minneapolis. He eventually made his way to Kansas City, where things began to look up.


In 1936, Young joined the Count Basie Orchestra and toured with them across the country. He played with renowned musicians such as Buck Clayton, Herschel Evans, and singer Billie Holiday, who would become a lifelong friend. Musicians from his era and today credit his sound for influencing and inspiring them. His sound is also attributed with starting the “cool school” in jazz which refers to an understated or subdued feeling in the music. Billie Holiday gave him his nickname, Prez, short for “President of Tenor Saxophonists.” Today, Young is best known for his songs Taxi War Dance, D.B. Blues, and Lester Leaps In. In 1937, he married his second wife, Mary Dale; they were together until 1946. In 1941, Lester began fronting his own band and played several clubs in New York. He returned to Basie’s band in 1943 but would continue to lead his own groups as well. 





During World War II, Young was drafted into the Army. He was sent to basic training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. He refused to cut his hair, wear army boots, or fire a gun. He was caught smoking marijuana and was court-martialed and put in a detention barracks for a year. This experience is what inspired his song D.B. Blues. He was eventually dishonorably discharged in 1945. In 1948, Young married his third wife, Mary Berkeley and they had two children, Lester, Jr. and Yvette. Sadly,Young’s army experience would traumatize him for the rest of his life. He began drinking heavily, performing with a much darker tone, suffering from panic attacks, and eventually had a nervous breakdown in 1955. He continued to perform and even went on a European tour in 1959, but after returning to the states he suffered from internal bleeding due to the effects of alcoholism and passed away on March 14. 


Prior to his passing, Young took part in the legendary TV-show The Sound of Jazz. For this performance, he was reunited with Billie Holiday. She sang Fine and Mellow and Lester’s saxophone solo for that performance is sometimes credited as being the most moving music ever captured on television.



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  • Writer's pictureJazz Attack
    • Jan 30
    • 2 min read

Jazz Greats: Johnny Hodges

John Cornelius "Johnny" Hodges was born July 25, 1907 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to John H. Hodges and Katie Swan Hodges. While known as a saxophone player, Hodges began as a self-taught pianist and drummer. His professional career began when he was a teen, playing piano at dances in private homes for $8 an evening. At the age of 14, his sister introduced him to Sidney Bechet, revered American saxophonist and clarinetist, who began giving Hodges private lessons. Hodges honed his skills and became well-known in Boston before moving to New York City in 1924.



In New York, Hodges began playing with many of the greats. He was in bands led by legends such as Lloyd Scott, Chick Webb, Bobby Sawyer, and Luckey Roberts. The band he is most closely associated with though, he joined in 1928: Duke Ellington’s Orchestra. Hodges was a pivotal part of Duke’s band, not only as an alto sax soloist but as a co-writer on several of Ellington’s records. He toured with Ellington’s band in Europe in the 1930s. In the late 30s and early 40s, he recorded many well-known songs with the group such as In a Sentimental Mood, Things Ain’t What They Used to Be and The Jeep Is Jumpin’  (Jeep was one of Hodge’s nicknames). In New York, Hodges also met his first wife Bertha Pettiford and had his son, John C. Hodges II. In 1944, Hodges was re-married to Edith Cue, a dancer in the Cotton Club chorus. They had a daughter, Lorna Lee.


In 1951, Hodges left Duke Ellington’s Orchestra to create his own small group: Johnny Hodges and His Orchestra. Many greats played in his band such as Lawrence Brown, Sonny Greer, and John Coltrane. One of the group’s most well-received records was Castle Rock, the title track was a hit song. In 1955, Hodges rejoined Ellington’s group but continued to record and perform under his own name as well. He recorded several joint albums with Ellington such as Duke Ellington And Johnny Hodges Play The Blues – Back To Back and Duke Ellington And Johnny Hodges Side by Side. He continued to work with greats such as Frank Sinatra, Wild Bill Davis, and Ben Webster. 



In 1970, Johnny Hodges performed at the Imperial Room in Toronto. Less than a week later, on May 11, 1970, he died of a heart attack while visiting the office of a dental surgeon. At Hodges’ funeral, Duke Ellington was quoted saying "Never the world's most highly animated showman or greatest stage personality, but a tone so beautiful it sometimes brought tears to the eyes—this was Johnny Hodges. This is Johnny Hodges." Hodge’s melodies were distinct and integral to the sound he brought to Ellington’s band and his own groups. His technique and harmonic sense were unmatched and kept his solos sounding contemporary, no matter where or when he was playing.



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  • Writer's pictureJazz Attack
    • Jan 30
    • 2 min read

Jazz Greats: Duke Ellington

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was born April 29, 1899 in Washington, DC. His parents encouraged his love of music with his mother teaching him how to play piano. His nickname “Duke” came from his childhood friends, specifically Edgar McEntee, who were impressed by his suave outfits and noble manners. Duke composed his first song, Soda Fountain Rag, at the age of 15 and began playing professionally at 17. In 1918, Duke married his high school sweetheart Edna Thompson and they soon had their son and future bandleader, Mercer Kennedy Ellington.



Duke was part of a band in Washington, but in 1923 he moved to New York and began leading his own group, the Washingtonians. The band started as a sextet but quickly grew into a 10-piece band. The group regularly consisted of other jazz legends such as Johnny Hodges and Cootie Williams. In 1927, after gaining a fanbase, the Washingtonians were hired as a regular house band at the Cotton Club. This meant Duke’s band now had regular radio broadcasts and recordings, gaining him much more notoriety. He was also able to expand the band to a 14-piece. In 1931, Ellington wrote one of his greatest hits, It Don't Mean a Thing if It Ain't Got That Swing.



In 1933, In Duke’s band began touring in Europe where he clashed with the traditional idea of a unified big band sound and instead focused on his soloist’s individual strengths. Allowing them to play against each other and have extended solos. 

When talking about Duke Ellington, it’s impossible not to include Billy Strayhorn, who was an arranger, composer, and pianist and worked extensively with Ellington. Strayhorn composed some of his most popular songs, such as Take The A Train in 1939. In the late 1930s and 1940s, Ellington wrote many of his other most well known songs such as Don’t Get Around Much Any More, In a Mellow Tone, and I’m Beginning To See The Light.

Though the popularity of big band music began to wane after World War II, Ellington continued to write and perform. He also began exploring the idea of composing classical jazz. He composed several suites in the 40s and 50s such as Black, Brown and Beige, Liberian Suite, and even a reorchestrated version of the Nutcracker Suite. He wrote for ballets, theater, and television. He was known for his sense of musical drama and compositions that were full of complex rhythms and melodies, but still accessible to all listeners. Ellington was nominated for 22 grammy awards and won 11. He was awarded the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1966 and the Trustees Award, along with Billy Strayhorn, in 1968. Mood Indigo was inducted to the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1975. Duke was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969.


Duke Ellington died of lung cancer on May 24, 1974. His last words were, "Music is how I live, why I live and how I will be remembered." Duke’s career spanned over half a century. Countless songs of his are now considered jazz standards. He not only changed the format of jazz, but built a foundation on which all American music could grow.


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