Music Monday - Lester Young

Things are sort of dull around the Music Monday composing room, so for the next few weeks the cracked editorial staff has decided on a new feature for the day:

The artwork of David Stone Martin on record covers.

One exciting work of art (called Illustration by some) will be presented here each week until they run out. Most scans are from the editor's personal library and the original copyrights apply.

They are presented here for admiration and educational purposes only.

I saw Lester Young only once.

He appeared in a traveling extravaganza called Birdland All Stars of 1957 which included the Basie band, Joe Williams, Chet Baker, Sarah Vaughn, Billy Eckstine and a number of others.

Young was obviously not well. He had to be accompanied onto the stage and placed at the microphone. His solo duties out of the way, he waited at the microphone. Someone from back stage came out and accompanied him off stage. He didn’t seem to know where he was. He died in March of 1959.

Next Saturday August 22, in 1909, Lester Young was born.

In June of 2000 I sold the concert program (pictured above) on eBay, for fifty-eight bucks.

Among the people supplying the background for Mr. Young are:
Gene Ramey
Ray Brown
Jo Jones
John Lewis
Buddy Rich

This is a 10” LP
The tunes in this album are:
A foggy Day Let’s Fall in Love
Down ‘N Adam Little Pee Blues
In A Little Spanish Town Thou Swell
‘Deed I Do Jeepers Creepers

Other David Stone Marting covers for Lester Young.