music.wikisort.org - Composition

"Whisper Not" is a composition by Benny Golson. It is in a minor key[1] and contains a shout chorus (a special chorus between the final solo and the closing head).[2] Golson's account of writing the piece is that "I wrote it in Boston at George Wein's Storyville club when I was with Dizzy Gillespie's big band. I wrote that tune in 20 minutes."[3] Some sources indicate that the first recording was by Gillespie,[4] while others indicate that trumpeter Lee Morgan was first.[5]

"Whisper Not"
Song
Language	English
Written	1956
Composer(s)	Benny Golson
Lyricist(s)	Leonard Feather

It quickly became popular with other musicians: Thad Jones and Morgan recorded their own versions before its composer had the chance to record it with his own group.[6] Golson's early version was on his 1957 album Benny Golson's New York Scene.[7] By 1960, John S. Wilson, critic at The New York Times, had labelled the song, together with another Golson composition, "I Remember Clifford", "an established part of the jazz repertory".[1] It has been recorded by hundreds of musicians,[8] becoming a jazz standard.[9] Leonard Feather added lyrics, which were recorded by Anita O'Day in 1962 and later by several other prominent vocalists.[6]

Golson remained strongly associated with the tune, and named one of his tours – the "Whisper Not Tour" – after it, half a century after its composition.[6]

Other recordings

• Art Blakey with Lee Morgan and Benny Golson 1958 – Paris Olympia (Fontana, 1958)[10]
• Ella Fitzgerald – Whisper Not (Verve, 1965)[10]
• Benny Golson with Art Farmer – Benny Golson's New York Scene (Contemporary, 1957)[10]
• Oscar Peterson – The Trio (Verve, 1961)[10]
• Ray Bryant – Ray Bryant Plays (Signature, 1959)[10]
• Shelly Manne – Shelly Manne and His Men at the Black Hawk, Vol. 3 (Contemporary, 1959)[10]
• Ahmad Jamal – Extensions (Argo, 1966)[10]
• Lee Morgan with Horace Silver and Hank Mobley – Lee Morgan Sextet (Blue Note, 1956)[10]
• Anita O'Day – Anita O'Day & the Three Sounds (Verve, 1962)[10]

See also

• List of post-1950 jazz standards

References

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