Jon Hendricks facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jon Hendricks
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Hendricks in 2008
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | John Carl Hendricks |
| Born | September 16, 1921 Newark, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | November 22, 2017 (aged 96) New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, lyricist |
| Years active | 1957–2017 |
| Associated acts | Lambert, Hendricks & Ross |
Jon Hendricks (born September 16, 1921 – died November 22, 2017) was an American jazz singer and songwriter. He was famous for a style called vocalese. This is where a singer adds words to jazz songs that were originally only played by instruments. He would even use his voice to sound like different instruments in a big band!
Jon Hendricks was also a master of scat singing. This is a type of jazz singing where the singer uses made-up sounds and syllables instead of real words. Many people called him the "Poet Laureate of Jazz" because he was so good at writing lyrics for jazz music.
Contents
Early Life and Music
Jon Hendricks was born in 1921 in Newark, Ohio. His family moved many times because his father was a pastor. They finally settled in Toledo, Ohio. Their home was often filled with jazz musicians, and Jon's mother would cook for them.
Jon started singing when he was only seven years old. By the time he was ten, he was already famous in Toledo! He even got to learn music from the amazing piano player Art Tatum. Jon and Art would perform together around town.
As a teenager, Jon sang with a group called The Swing Buddies on the radio. He earned enough money to help support his whole family. He kept performing until he joined the US Army.
Serving His Country
During World War II, Jon Hendricks was a soldier. He was part of the important D-Day landings in June 1944. After the war, he went to the University of Toledo to study law.
In 1950, Jon sang at a Charlie Parker concert in Toledo. Parker was a famous jazz musician who told Jon to come to New York. Two years later, Jon moved his family there and started his singing career again.
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross
After writing songs for other artists, Jon teamed up with Dave Lambert. Dave had an idea to record songs by Count Basie's orchestra. But instead of instruments, they would use voices! Jon wrote the lyrics for these songs.
They added Annie Ross to the group, and they used a new recording trick called multi-tracking. This meant they could record their voices many times to create a full sound. Their first album, Sing a Song of Basie, was a huge success!
This led them to form the famous group Lambert, Hendricks & Ross (LH&R). Jon wrote the lyrics, and Dave arranged the music. They became masters of vocalese and traveled the world. They won many awards for their unique style.
Jon often wrote lyrics for entire instrumental solos, not just the main melody. For example, he wrote words for Ben Webster's saxophone solo on Duke Ellington's song "Cotton Tail". His lyrics for "I Remember Clifford" were sung by many other famous singers.
The trio recorded six albums between 1957 and 1962. Their album High Flying won a Grammy Award! Annie Ross left the group in 1962 due to health issues. Yolande Bavan replaced her, and the group became Lambert, Hendricks and Bavan.
Many singers, like Joni Mitchell and Al Jarreau, say that LH&R influenced their music. Jon also wrote lyrics for the song "Yeh Yeh", which became a number one hit in 1965 for Georgie Fame.
In 1960, Jon created a musical show called Evolution of the Blues Song. It featured many great singers and musicians. The show was so popular that it ran for five years in San Francisco!
Solo Career and Teaching
Jon Hendricks recorded two solo albums in 1961. He later moved to London, England, so his children could get a good education. From London, he toured Europe and Africa. He also performed on British TV with stars like Lulu and Dusty Springfield. Famous bands like the Rolling Stones and the Beatles came to watch him perform at Ronnie Scott's.
After five years, Jon's family moved back to California. He worked as a jazz critic and taught classes at universities. In 1973, he recorded songs with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers.
In 1985, Jon worked with his old friends The Manhattan Transfer on their album Vocalese. This album won seven Grammy Awards! His last studio album, Freddie Freeloader, came out in 1990. It featured many jazz legends like George Benson and Al Jarreau.
In 2000, Jon returned to his hometown to teach at the University of Toledo. He became a special professor of Jazz Studies. He was also the first American jazz artist to give lectures at the famous Sorbonne in Paris. His singing group, the Jon Hendricks Vocalstra, performed there in 2002.
Jon also wrote lyrics for classical music pieces. He even wrote words for Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade" and performed it with the Toledo Symphony.
In 2003, Jon toured with a group called the "Four Brothers". He continued to work on new music and teach. He appeared in a few movies, including White Men Can't Jump (1992).
In 2012, Jon appeared in a documentary film called No One But Me. He talked about his former bandmate, Annie Ross.
In 2017, Jon finished writing lyrics for the entire album Miles Ahead by Miles Davis. This was an idea he had thought about for fifty years! It was performed in New York with Jon there to see it.
Death
Jon Hendricks passed away on November 22, 2017, in New York City. He was 96 years old.
Awards and Honors
Jon Hendricks received many important awards for his music.
- He was given an NEA Jazz Master award in 1993. This is a very high honor for jazz musicians.
- He won multiple Grammy Awards.
- In 2004, France honored him with the Legion of Honour, a very special award.
Discography
As a leader
- A Good Git-Together (1959)
- Evolution of the Blues Song (1960)
- Live Recording at Birdland with Count Basie (1961)
- Fast Livin' Blues (1962)
- ¡Salud! João Gilberto, Originator of the Bossa Nova (1963)
- Recorded in Person at the Trident (1965)
- Jon Hendricks Live (1970)
- Times of Love (1972)
- Tell Me the Truth (1975)
- Cloudburst (1982)
- Love (1982)
- Freddie Freeloader (1990)
- Boppin' at the Blue Note (1995)
With Lambert, Hendricks and Ross
- Sing a Song of Basie (1958)
- Sing Along with Basie (1958)
- The Hottest New Group in Jazz (1959)
- Sing Ellington (1960)
- High Flying (1961)
- The Real Ambassadors (1962)
- Basie Live in Person (1979)
- Everybody's Boppin (1989)
With Lambert, Hendricks and Bavan
- At Newport '63 (1963)
- Recorded Live at Basin Street East (1963)
- Havin' a Ball at the Village Gate (1964)
- Swingin' Till the Girls Come Home (1987)
As a guest artist
- 3 Cohens, Family (2011)
- Karrin Allyson, Footprints (2006)
- Art Blakey, Buhaina (1973)
- Terence Blanchard, People I Know (2003)
- Dave Brubeck, Young Lions & Old Tigers (1995)
- Benny Carter, Benny Carter Songbook (1997)
- Benny Carter, Benny Carter Songbook Volume II (1997)
- Neil Diamond, In My Lifetime (1996)
- Kurt Elling, Live in Chicago (1999)
- Georgie Fame, Cool Cat Blues (1991)
- Al Grey, Al Grey Fab (1990)
- Joyce, Language and Love (1991)
- King Pleasure, King Pleasure Sings (1954)
- The Manhattan Transfer, Mecca for Moderns (1981)
- The Manhattan Transfer, Vocalese (1985)
- Ellis Marsalis Jr., Ellis Marsalis Trio (1991)
- Wynton Marsalis, Crescent City Christmas Card (1989)
- Wynton Marsalis, Blood on the Fields (1997)
- Bobby McFerrin, Spontaneous Inventions (1986)
- Thelonious Monk, Underground (1968)
- Jimmy Rowles and Stan Getz, The Peacocks (1975)
- George Russell, New York, N.Y. (1959)
- Janis Siegel, Experiment in White (1982)
- Take 6, The Standard (2008)
- Larry Vuckovich, Cast Your Fate (1984)
- Royal Bopsters – The Royal Bopsters Project (2015)
Filmography
- Music in Monk Time, a documentary about Thelonious Monk (1983)
- The Steve Allen Plymouth Show (1958): Lambert, Hendricks & Ross appeared
- NET Playhouse Duke Ellington – A Concert of Sacred Music (1967): Jon Hendricks performed
- Jazz Is Our Religion (1972)
- White Men Can't Jump (1992): Jon Hendricks had a small role
- Foreign Student (1994): Jon Hendricks played April's Father
- Jon Hendricks, Tell Me The Truth, a documentary about Jon Hendricks (2008)
- Blues March: Soldier Jon Hendricks, a documentary about his time in World War II (2009)
Images for kids
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Hendricks in 2008
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Hendricks at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco, 1983
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Jon Hendricks at Birdland
See also
In Spanish: Jon Hendricks para niños
