The music world has lost another icon. Jazz legend Gerald Wilson has died at age 96. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work with Mr. Wilson while I was employed at the GRAMMYS. Gerald Wilson was on the Board of Directors of the Recording Academy so I communicated with him on a weekly basis, which was always a pleasure. For such a legend, Wilson was remarkably approachable, absolutely grounded and down to earth. It was a honor to speak with him, spend time with him or to see him perform. In particular, I remember when I was co-coordinating the official post GRAMMY award party at the Biltmore Hotel in the mid 90s -- his big band, the Gerald Wilson Orchestra, was booked to perform and he showed all the fly-by-night pop stars what it takes to stay on top for an entire lifetime. They blew the roof off the joint. In a truly impressive career going all the way back to the 1930s, Wilson provided arrangements and compositions for such major jazz artists as Duke Ellington, Dinah Washington, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Wilson and others, as well as — from various genres — Bobby Darin, Harry Belafonte, and B.B. King Onward, Gerald Wilson. Thank you. For everything. latimes/local/obituaries/la-me-gerald-wilson-20140909-story.html#page=1
Posted on: Tue, 09 Sep 2014 16:15:23 +0000
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