Lester Young
Source: Wikipedia: Lester Young
Arts & Music • Historical Archive • 🇺🇸 United States • 2 views

Lester Young 🇺🇸

Lester Willis Young
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Born Aug 27, 1909 🇺🇸 Woodville, United States
Passed Away Mar 15, 1959 New York City, United States
Lifespan 49 years old
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Notice / Correction
"A musician should tell a story. If you're just playing notes, you ain't saying nothing."

Archival Overview

American jazz tenor saxophonist dubbed 'Pres', whose relaxed, airy tone, floating rhythmic phrasing, and hipster slang provided the foundational inspiration for cool jazz and bebop.

Biographical Record

Lester Young revolutionized jazz by offering a radical alternative to the heavy, aggressive vibrato of Coleman Hawkins. Playing with a light, airy, horn-tilted tone and a detached, floating rhythmic grace behind the beat, Young became the star soloist of Count Basie's legendary Kansas City big band in the late 1930s.

Young shared a sublime musical and personal kinship with Billie Holiday, who gave him his lifelong nickname 'Pres' (President of saxophonists), while he famously dubbed her 'Lady Day.' His idiosyncratic hipster vocabulary popularized words like 'cool,' 'bread' (money), and 'dig.' His style directly gave birth to modern cool jazz.

Key Life Milestones

1936

Count Basie Breakthrough

Recorded historic solos with Count Basie's Kansas City Six, introducing his floating, relaxed melodic style.

1939

Duets with Billie Holiday

Recorded timeless vocal-tenor conversational masterpieces with Billie Holiday, including Fine and Mellow.

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Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial
Memorial Location
New York City, United States
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