Lester Leaps In
| "Lester Leaps In" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Count Basie's Kansas City Seven | |
| Released | 1939 |
| Recorded | September 5, 1939, New York City, NY |
| Genre | Jazz |
| Length | 3:12 |
| Label | Vocalion 5118 |
| Songwriter | Lester Young |
"Lester Leaps In" is a jazz standard originally recorded by Count Basie's Kansas City Seven in 1939. The composition, credited to the group's tenor saxophone player Lester Young, is a contrafact based on the chord progression of "I Got Rhythm", and serves as a vehicle for interweaving solos by Young and Basie.
Eddie Jefferson, pioneer of vocalese, wrote lyrics for the composition, calling his version "I Got the Blues".
Critical acclaim
- "Lester Leaps In" is listed among the Milestone Recordings in American Music at the Three Perfect Minutes site.
- jazz.com gives "Lester Leaps In" a 98, on a scale of 100 – "Classic performance. A 'must have' for jazz fans."
Personnel (original 1939 recording)
- Count Basie - piano
- Lester Young - tenor saxophone
- Buck Clayton - trumpet
- Dicky Wells - trombone
- Freddie Green - guitar
- Walter Page - bass
- Jo Jones - drums
Other recordings
In 1958 Gil Evans recorded it with his orchestra for his New Bottle Old Wine album.
In 1960 Harry James released a version on his album Harry James...Today (MGM E-3848).
Charlie Watts Orchestra included it in their 1986 'Live at Fulham Town Hall' album.
References
- ↑ Brian Rust, Jazz and Ragtime Records, 1897-1942 Archived 2009-02-09 at the Wayback Machine, Mainspring Press, 2008.
- ↑ "Lester Leaps In (1940)", JazzStandards.com.
- ↑ "Lester Leaps In (1939)", at Three Perfect Minutes, retrieved 2013-10-23.
- ↑ Lester Leaps In (1939) Archived 2013-09-27 at the Wayback Machine, at jazz.com Archived November 21, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2013-10-23.
| International | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
 | This article about a jazz standard or composition written in the 1930s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by adding missing information. |