Seven for Saturday - 7 Count Basie Videos
August 7, 2010 at 7:05 AM "Seven for Saturday" is a great way to see some of the legendary men and women of jazz in action.
Today I am featuring Count Basie videos:
William "Count" Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years.
Many notable musicians came to prominence under his direction, including tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Herschel Evans, trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry "Sweets" Edison and singers Jimmy Rushing and Joe Williams. Basie's theme songs were "One O'Clock Jump" and "April In Paris". [wikipedia.org]
The three clips below are from the movie "Rhythm and Blues Review," October 1955. They are performing "One O'Clock Jump
I wish that there was another copy on YouTube of the following video. It's lacking in clarity and jumps around a bit but here is Sammy Davis with Count Basie:
This is a great clip of a duet between Count Basie and Oscar Peterson performing "Slow Blues".
The following video clip is of Joe Williams singing "Well Alright, Okay, You Win" with Count Basie and his orchestra.
This last one is the Count Basie Orchestra doing "April In Paris".
I hope that you enjoyed this taste of Swing music - It was an enjoyable way for me to spend time this Saturday morning. 
Reader Comments (2)
great selection. loved them all!
Hey Wayne!
I'm glad that you loved them all - it was fun looking around YouTube and finding just the right ones to feature. :D