Happy Birthday, Jon Hendricks

Jazz singer and lyricist Jon Hendricks was born on September 16, 1921 in Newark, Ohio. He was a member of the trio Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross and is one of the originators of vocalese, a technique that adds lyrics to existing instrumental songs. Al Jarreau, a pretty decent singer in his own right, called Hendricks "pound-for-pound the best jazz singer on the planet."

A good example of vocalese is Hendricks's version of the Herbie Hancock piece, "Watermelon Man":

In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross album, The Best of Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross (Columbia C-32911 or JCS-8198). Unfortunately, the album is only available in vinyl. Jim Determan, who has updated Lyons's list of albums for CD, recommends instead the following title:

• Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross: Everybody's Boppin' (Columbia Jazz Masterpieces) (Buy at Barnes & Noble)
  

Robert