Count Basie in Richmond, Indiana
Uploaded by
Nicolas MartinCount Basie in Richmond, Indiana
Uploaded by
Nicolas MartinPalladium-Item, Richmond, Ind., Wedr1esdav, Sept.
18, 1974 5
Count Basie .Sho:ws Are ''Toe Tappers'"'
By Eloise Beaeh pianoto front . .mike playing softly, subtly with io add variety a young
Tue:s:ltay -'W'&5 at his aU=- offbeat pauses. then the _singer. in a white suit; pin\c
Basie Day in dience and announce spe- giant surge of musical ruffled shirt and r.ed shoes'
The -76-year-old '\V,itlian'l eia1-ntt.mbei'S energyasc the whote'band ancttie-did-8ome-voeaHzing
Count Basie, one of the en- soloists. At the outset be ex- came blasting in. The in a different and .unique
during greats of the jazz plained that Harold Jones, was brilUJint, stimu- style.
world gave two sprightly Richmond native who bas lating. The audience could The Basie appearance
evening performances at been among his drummers have wished for more. But was the third for name big
the Ramada Inn here. was not in Richmond with Basi.e, it would appear. is bands at the Ramada this
Leading his band from, the band this time. Jones is pacing himself and when it summer. with Tommy Dar-
the plano, in the style for playing with Nancy Wilson" to responding to en- sey appearing in June and
which he is famous; the on the west coast. cotes it was sweet, Woody Herman in' August.
amiable Basie and his No Com Bread. engaging and
skilled filled the chef l)ere isn't gracious thank you.
plaee with a. beat that had.: going to give us any corn A number of .the greats
toes tapping and shoulders bread because we haven't in the jazz business have
swaying. got Harold with us," he con- played with the Basie
The exuberant big bapd fided. to the audience. over the years alld the men
sound tired the audience There is a contagious he had here Tuesday were
ar,d they were unstinting in happiness abo4t the Basie in the -same l)igh tradi
their demonstration of ap- band-wide grins here and tion-strorig
proval. Among those there and little bursts of powerful trombone players.
present were Basie buffs amusement as Basie makes Those who go for the
over the years. prepares to make in sound of the trumpet got
troductions. The humor satisfaction when Paul
Review
One of was William
Martin, psyt"hologist at
Wernle . Children s Home,
who claims a complete col-
lection of &sie record.-
to play all
night", he says.
Martin took to the mike
before Count Basie started
his show to read a procla-
manun; !tgned by Mayor
Byroh Klute. declaring
Tuesday Count Basie Day
10 Richmond.
The proclamation point-
ed out that since Richmond
has a rich tradition in the
histttry of jazz music, dat-
ing from the early 1920s'
when the Gennett Record-
ing Co. made recordings of
many jazz giants in its
plant in the Whitewater
Valley, and since Count
B-asie, one of the historical
giants of the jazz Hall of
Fame would be playing
here with his band Tues-
day, it was appropriate to
name the day in his honor.
Mrs. Martin, who has
won photographic honors
under her professional
name "Marlo... ptesented
the Count with a couple of
unusual framed pastels she
had made,. from profile
photos of the musician.
Basie would wander from
ran especially high when Cohen gave a
he presented a nimble tin- so\.o performance in -.. 1
ger-ed sa,x man, Jimmy-For-. Can:t . Get St-arted With.
rest, who looks a lot like You."
TV star Redd Fox. ,Gra);
sideburns pointed up the
Basie humor in introducing
him as a "young saxaphon-
ist" and his intricate trills
-one after another, coming
through loud and clear ahd
preciSI;l t,>stablished him as a
fine jazz roan.
Basie another sax
soloist, Eddie Dav1s, as
''Lockjaw" when
up to play the lead in.
"Speak !.,.ow,'' and de ..
scribed AI Grey, distin-
guished trombonist whose
name has long been associ-
ated with the Basie band,
as "The last ,Q! the big
plungers" w])en he stood
up to play. "The Spirit is
Willing".
Basie once admitted that
he was strong for tenor
that the band has
always been built from the
rhvthm section to the
tenors and then on to the
rest.
The sweN sax tone came
across to charm tht> au-
dience in an early prt>sent-
ation of "Prettv Gal."
"Real Stufr
There was some of the
real Basit> stuff with
Count beginning on the
piano, with only bass fiddle
1
and drum accompaniment,
