Benny Golson Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Benny Golson
Golson in 1985
Background information
Born	(1929-01-25)January 25, 1929 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	September 21, 2024(2024-09-21) (aged 95) New York City, U.S.
Genres	Jazz bebop hard bop
Occupation(s)	Musician composer arranger
Instruments	Saxophone
Years active	1949–2024

Benny Golson (born January 25, 1929 – died September 21, 2024) was an American jazz musician. He was a talented tenor saxophonist, a composer who wrote many famous jazz songs, and an arranger who helped shape the sound of music.

Benny Golson became well-known playing with big bands led by famous musicians like Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie. He was especially good at writing music. Later, in 1959, he started his own group called The Jazztet with trumpeter Art Farmer.

From the late 1960s to the 1970s, Golson wrote music for many TV shows and movies. This meant he played less jazz himself. But in 1982, he and Art Farmer brought The Jazztet back together.

Many of Golson's songs are now considered "jazz standards." This means they are classic songs that many jazz musicians play. Some of his most famous tunes include "I Remember Clifford", "Blues March", "Stablemates", "Whisper Not", "Along Came Betty", and "Killer Joe". He is known as one of the most important people who helped create a style of jazz called hard bop. In 2021, he received a special Grammy Trustees Award for his contributions to music.

Early Life & Learning Music
Benny Golson's Music Career
Personal Life
Awards & Honors
Famous Songs by Benny Golson
Images for kids
Discography
See also

Early Life & Learning Music

Benny Golson was born in Philadelphia on January 25, 1929. He started learning to play the piano when he was nine years old. When he was 14, he switched to the saxophone.

While he was a student at Benjamin Franklin High School, he played music with other young, talented musicians. Some of these future jazz stars included John Coltrane, Red Garland, and Jimmy Heath. He later went to Howard University.

Benny Golson's Music Career

After finishing college at Howard University, Golson joined a rhythm and blues band led by Bull Moose Jackson. A musician named Tadd Dameron was the pianist in that band. Golson looked up to Dameron and said he was the most important person who influenced his music writing.

From 1953 to 1959, Golson played with several famous bands. He played with Tadd Dameron, Lionel Hampton, Johnny Hodges, Dizzy Gillespie, and Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. With Art Blakey's group, he recorded a very famous album called Moanin' in 1958.

In 1956, Golson was playing with Lionel Hampton's band in Harlem. He heard that Clifford Brown, a well-liked jazz trumpeter, had died in a car accident. Golson had played with Clifford Brown before. He was so sad that he wrote the song "I Remember Clifford" to honor his friend.

Besides "I Remember Clifford", many of Golson's other songs became jazz standards. Songs like "Stablemates", "Killer Joe", "Whisper Not", "Along Came Betty", and "Are You Real?" have been played and recorded by many musicians over the years.

Golson in New York City in 2006

From 1959 to 1962, Golson led The Jazztet with Art Farmer. They mostly played songs that Golson had written. After this, Golson took a break from playing jazz. For 12 years, he focused on writing music for movies and TV shows.

He composed music for popular shows like Mannix, Ironside, M*A*S*H, and Mission: Impossible. He also created music arrangements for different recordings, like the 1967 album Eric Is Here by Eric Burdon.

In the mid-1970s, Golson started playing and recording jazz again. In 1982, he brought The Jazztet back together.

Benny Golson even had a small role in the 2004 movie The Terminal. This was because he was in a famous 1958 photo called "A Great Day in Harlem", which showed many important jazz musicians. In the movie, the main character, Viktor Navorski (Tom Hanks), travels to the U.S. to get Golson's signature. Golson's band also performs his song "Killer Joe" in the film. After the movie, Golson released an album called Terminal 1 as a tribute to the movie's director, Steven Spielberg.

Personal Life

In an interview in 1980, Benny Golson shared that he had become a member of the religious group Jehovah's Witnesses in the late 1960s.

Benny Golson passed away at his home in New York City on September 21, 2024, at the age of 95.

Awards & Honors

Benny Golson received many important awards for his music.

In 1996, he received the NEA Jazz Masters Award. This is a very high honor for jazz musicians in the United States.
In 1999, he was given an honorary music degree from Berklee College of Music.
In October 2007, he received the Mellon Living Legend Legacy Award.
Also in 2007, he won the University of Pittsburgh International Academy of Jazz Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award.
In November 2009, Golson was added to the International Academy of Jazz Hall of Fame.
Howard University created a special award in his honor in 1996, called the "Benny Golson Jazz Master Award." Many famous jazz artists have received this award.