Lester Leaps In

"Lester Leaps In"
Single by Count Basie's Kansas City Seven
Released 1939
Format 78 rpm
Recorded September 5, 1939, New York City, NY
Genre Jazz
Length 3:12
Label Vocalion
5118
Songwriter(s) Lester Young

"Lester Leaps In" is a jazz standard originally recorded by Count Basie's Kansas City Seven in 1939.[1] The composition, credited to the group's tenor saxophone player Lester Young, is a head arrangement based on the chord progression of "I Got Rhythm", and serves as a vehicle for interweaving solos by Young and Basie.

Eddie Jefferson, pioneer of vocalese, wrote lyrics for the composition, calling his version "I Got the Blues".[2]

Critical acclaim

  • "Lester Leaps In" is listed among the Milestone Recordings in American Music at the Three Perfect Minutes site.[3]
  • jazz.com gives "Lester Leaps In" a 98, on a scale of 100 – "Classic performance. A 'must have' for jazz fans."[4]

Personnel (original 1939 recording)

Other recordings

In 1960 Harry James released a version on his album Harry James...Today (MGM E-3848).

References

  1. ↑ Brian Rust, Jazz and Ragtime Records, 1897-1942 Archived 2009-02-09 at the Wayback Machine., Mainspring Press, 2008.
  2. ↑ "Lester Leaps In (1940)", JazzStandards.com.
  3. ↑ "Lester Leaps In (1939)", at Three Perfect Minutes, retrieved 2013-10-23.
  4. ↑ Lester Leaps In (1939) Archived 2013-09-27 at the Wayback Machine., at jazz.com Archived November 21, 2015, at the Wayback Machine., retrieved 2013-10-23.


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