Paul Desmond

Подробности

Paul Desmond (25 November 1924 - 30 May 1977), born Paul Emil Breitenfeld, was a jazz alto saxophonist and composer born in San Francisco, best known for the work he did in the Dave Brubeck Quartet and for penning that group's greatest hit, "Take Five". Known to have possessed an idiosyncratic wit, he was one of the most popular musicians to come out of the West Coast's "cool jazz" scene.

In addition to his work with Dave Brubeck he led several of his own groups and did significant collaborations with artists such as Gerry Mulligan, Jim Hall and Chet Baker. After years of chain smoking and general poor health, Desmond succumbed to lung cancer in 1977 following one last tour with Brubeck.

Early life

Paul Desmond was born Paul Breitenfeld in San Francisco, California in 1924. His father was an organist who played in movie theaters during silent films, and his mother was emotionally unstable during his upbringing. During childhood he spent years living with relatives in New York due to problems at home. Desmond began playing violin at a young age, though his father forbade him to play it.

He played clarinet at the age of twelve at San Francisco Polytechnic High. It was not until he became a freshman at San Francisco State College that he picked up the alto saxophone. In his freshman year he joined the United States Army and joined the band where he was stationed.
Career
Following the conclusion of World War II, Desmond started working in Palo Alto, California at the Bandbox. He also worked some with Brubeck at the Geary Cellar in San Francisco. Desmond soon hired Brubeck, but cut his pay in half and then replaced him altogether after taking him along to Graeagle at The Feather River Inn for gigs; this was done so Desmond could gamble in nearby Reno. In 1950 Desmond left for New York City playing alto and clarinet for Jack Fina, but returned to California after hearing Brubeck's trio on the radio.
The story of their encounter is somewhat humorous. Brubeck — married with three children now held a grudge from his earlier experience with Desmond — instructed his wife Iola not to let him step foot in his house. But Desmond came to his home in San Francisco one day while Dave was out back hanging diapers on a laundry line, and Iola let him in and took him to Brubeck. Apparently all the begging in the world would not convince Brubeck to hire him in his band, not until Desmond offered to babysit Brubeck's children.

Dave Brubeck Quartet

Main article: The Dave Brubeck Quartet

Desmond had first met Dave Brubeck in 1944 while still in the military. Brubeck was trying out for the 253rd Army band which Desmond belonged to. After making the cut he—unlike Desmond—was sent to war in 1944. Desmond once told Marian McPartland of National Public Radio's Piano Jazz that he was taken aback by the chord changes Brubeck introduced during that 1944 audition. After convincing Brubeck to hire him following his stint with Jack Fina, the two had a contract drafted (of which Brubeck was the sole signatory); the language forbade Brubeck from ever firing him, ensured Brubeck's status as group leader, and gave Desmond twenty percent of all profits generated from the quartet.

That is how the Dave Brubeck Quartet had its start, a group that began in 1951 and ended in December of 1967. The quartet became especially popular with college-age audiences, often performing in college settings like on their 1953 album Jazz At Oberlin at Oberlin College or on their recordings on the campuses of Ohio University and the University of Michigan, among others. The success of the quartet led to a Time magazine piece on them in 1954, with the famous cover featuring Brubeck's face.
The group played until 1967, when Brubeck switched focus from music to composition and broke the unit up. During the 1970s Desmond rejoined with Dave Brubeck for several reunion tours including "Two Generations of Brubeck". Accompanying them were Brubeck's sons Chris Brubeck, Dan Brubeck and Darius Brubeck. In 1976 he played 25 shows in 25 nights with Brubeck, touring the United States in several cities by bus. It was during that tour, incidentally, that Joe Morello went blind.

With Gerry Mulligan

In June of 1969 Desmond appeared at the New Orleans Jazz Festival with Gerry Mulligan, procuring favorable reactions from critics and audience members. During Brubeck's Two Generations tours, Desmond and Mulligan shared the stage together in 1974. Unlike Brubeck, Mulligan personally shared much in common with Desmond. The two shared similar interests and humor, and both men had no shortage of addictions in their lives.

With Jim Hall

After some time spent inactive, he was asked to play the famous Half Note in New York City in 1971 by guitarist Jim Hall. With his special brand of humor, he says he only took the job because he was nearby and could tumble out of bed to work. The two continued to play at the club to jam-packed audiences. Desmond also joined The Modern Jazz Quartet for a Christmas concert in 1971 at the New York Town Hall.

Paul Desmond Quartet

Desmond met Ed Bickert through Jim Hall in Toronto, Canada and began performing with him at several clubs in the Toronto area. He appeared with the Paul Desmond Quartet at the Edmonton Jazz Festival.

Personal life

In their private lives Dave Brubeck and his family were very close to Paul Desmond, though the two men possessed very different personalities. Darius Brubeck recalls thinking that he was his uncle almost into adolescence. Desmond grew especially close to Dave's son Michael, to whom he left his saxophone upon death. Desmond also was never able to hold down steady relationships with women, though he had no shortage of them. In contrast, Brubeck was a religious family man who by all accounts never cheated on his wife in all the years of touring.
Desmond was quite well-read and retained a unique wit. He enjoyed reading works by the thinkers of his generation like Timothy Leary and Jack Kerouac, also dabbling in some LSD usage. He was known to have several addictions in life, namely Dewar's Scotch whisky and Pall Mall cigarettes. His chemical dependency problems would sometimes drain him of his energy on the road. Perry Robinson recalls in his autobiography that Desmond would sometimes need a vitamin B12 shot just to go on playing during his later career.

He died in 1977, not of his heavy alcohol habit but of lung cancer. Desmond had been a very heavy smoker. Never without his humor, after he was diagnosed with cancer he expressed pleasure at the health of his liver. His last concert was with Brubeck in February 1977, in New York City. His fans didn't know that he was already dying. Desmond specified in his will that all proceeds from "Take Five" would go to the Red Cross following his death. The Paul Desmond Papers are held at the Holt-Atherton Special Collections in the University of the Pacific Library.

Style

Desmond had a light melodic tone when playing the alto saxophone that is similar to the style of Lee Konitz, one of his influences. He was able to achieve particularly high notes, becoming one of the best-known players from the West Coast's "cool school of jazz". Much of the success of the classic Brubeck quartet was due to the superposition of his airy style over Brubeck's sometimes relatively heavy, polytonal piano work. His gift for improvised counterpoint is perhaps most notable on the two albums he recorded with Mulligan ("Mulligan-Desmond Quartet" and "Two of a Mind").

Discography

Year ------- Album ------- Leader------- Label

1946 The Dave Brubeck Octet  Dave Brubeck  Fantasy Records
1951 Brubeck/Desmond  Dave Brubeck Fantasy Records
1951 Jazz At Storyville Dave Brubeck Fantasy Records
1951 Modern Complex Dialogues Dave Brubeck  Alto Records
1951 How Long, Baby How Long, Pt. 1&2  Jack Sheedy Koronet Records
1951 The Man I Love c/w Down In Honkytonk Town  Jack Sheedy Koronet
1952 Jazz At the Blackhawk Dave Brubeck Fantasy
1952 The Dave Brubeck Quartet Dave Brubeck Fantasy
1953 Jazz At Oberlin Dave Brubeck Fantasy
1953 Jazz At College Of The Pacific 1 & 2  Dave Brubeck Fantasy
1954 Dave Brubeck At Storyville 1954  Dave Brubeck Columbia Records
1954 Jazz Goes To College  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1954 Brubeck Time  Dave Brubeck Columbia
1954 Jazz Red Hot And Cool  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1954 Gerry Mulligan/Paul Desmond  Gerry Mulligan & Paul Desmond Fantasy
1954 Desmond  Dave Brubeck Fantasy
1955 Chet Baker Quartet Plus: The Newport Years, Vol. 1 Chet Baker Philology Records
1956 The Paul Desmond Quartet With Don Elliott Paul Desmond  Fantasy
1956-57 Dave Brubeck Quartet Live In 1956-57 Featuring Paul Desmond  Dave Brubeck  Jazz Band
1956 Live From Basin Street Dave Brubeck  Jazz Band
1956 Dialogue For Jazz Combo And Orchestra  Dave Brubeck w/ Leonard Bernstein  Ozone Records
1956 Jazz Impressions Of U.S.A.  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1956 Live Together Dave Brubeck Featuring Paul Desmond  Dave Brubeck  Blue Vox Records
1957 Reunion  Dave Brubeck w/ Dave Van Kriedt  Fantasy
1957 Jazz Goes To Junior College  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1957 Dave Digs Disney  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1957 Blues In Time  Gerry Mulligan & Paul Desmond  Verve Records
1958 In Europe  Dave Brubeck Quartet   Columbia
1958 Newport 1958  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1958 Jazz Impressions Of Eurasia  Dave Brubeck Columbia
1959 Gone With the Wind  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1959 Time Out  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1959 St. Louis Blues Dave Brubeck  Moon Records
1959 First Place Again!  Paul Desmond  Warner Bros. Records
1959 Southern Scene  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1960 Brubeck and Rushing  Dave Brubeck w/ Jimmy Rushing  Columbia
1960 Summit Sessions  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1960 The Dave Brubeck Quartet Plays Music From Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story     Dave Brubeck     Columbia
1960 Tonight Only w/ Carmen McRae  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1961 Countdown - Time In Outer Space  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1961     Time Further Out  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
61, 63, 64 The Complete Recordings Of The Paul Desmond Quartet With Jim Hall  Paul Desmond  Mosaic Records
1961 Brandenburg Gate Revisited  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1961 Take Five With Carmen McRae  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1961 Desmond Blue w/ Jim Hall  Paul Desmond  RCA Victor
1961 The Quartet  Dave Brubeck Europa Jazz
1962 Bossa Nova U.S.A. Dave Brubeck Columbia
1962 Late Lament   Paul Desmond  RCA/Bluebird Records
1962 Paul Desmond/Gerry Mulligan - Two Of A Mind  Desmond & Mulligan  RCA Victor
1962 Angel Eyes Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1962 My Favorite Things Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1962 Brubeck In Amsterdam  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1963 The Dave Brubeck Quartet At Carnegie Hall, Pt. 1 & 2  Dave Brubeck Quartet Columbia
1963 Take Ten w/ Jim Hall  Paul Desmond  RCA Victor
63, 64, 65 Easy Living  Paul Desmond  RCA Victor
1963 Glad To Be Unhappy  Paul Desmond  RCA Victor
1963 Time Changes  Dave Brubeck Columbia
1964 Jazz Impressions Of Japan  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1964 Jazz Impressions Of New York  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1964 In Concert 1964 Dave Brubeck  Jazz Connoisseur
1964 Bossa Antigua  Paul Desmond  RCA Victor
1964 Dave Brubeck In Berlin  Dave Brubeck CBS Records
1965 The Canadian Concert Of Dave Brubeck Dave Brubeck  Can-Am Records
1965 Time In  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1965 Anything Goes!  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1966 Jackpot!  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1967 Bravo! Brubeck!  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1967 Buried Treasures Dave Brubeck Columbia/Legacy
1967 Take Five Live  Dave Brubeck  Jazz Music Yesterday
1967 The Last Time We Saw Paris  Dave Brubeck  Columbia
1968 Summertime  Paul Desmond  A&M Records
1969 From The Hot Afternoon  Paul Desmond  A&M
1969 From The Hot Afternoon  Paul Desmond  Verve
1969 Bridge Over Troubled Water  Paul Desmond  A&M
1971 The Only Recorded Performance Of Paul Desmond With The Modern Jazz Quartet Paul Desmond  Finesse Records
1972 We're All Together Again For The First Time  Dave Brubeck/Gerry Mulligan/Paul Desmond  Atlantic Records
1973 Skylark  Paul Desmond  CTI Records
1974 She Was Too Good To Me  Chet Baker CTI
1974 Pure Desmond  Paul Desmond  CTI
1975 Like Someone In Love  Paul Desmond  Telarc Records
1975 Concierto  Jim Hall  CTI
1975 The Duets  Dave Brubeck/Paul Desmond  Horizon Records
1975 The Paul Desmond Quartet Live  Paul Desmond  Horizon
1976 25th Anniversary Reunion  Dave Brubeck  Horizon
1977 You Can't Go Home Again  Chet Baker  Horizon
1977 The Best Thing For You  Chet Baker  A&M