April Showers - Music

Kai Chresten Winding May 18 1922 – May 6 1983 Was A Danish-Born American Trombonist And Jazz Composer. He Is Well Known For A Successful Collaboration With Fellow Trombonist J. J. Johnson. Winding Was Born In Aarhus Denmark. In 1934 His Family Emigrated To The United States. He Graduated In 1940 From Stuyvesant High School In New York City Plus That Same Year He Began His Career As A Professional Trombonist With Shorty Allen's Band. Subsequently He Played With Sonny Dunham And Alvino Rey Until He Entered The United States Coast Guard During World War II. After The War Winding Joined Benny Goodman's Band And Later Moved On To Stan Kenton's Orchestra. Winding Participated In The First Of The Birth Of The Cool Sessions In 1949 Appearing On 4 Of The 12 Tracks While J. J. Johnson Appears On The Other Eight Having Participated On The Other Two Sessions . In 1954 At The Urging Of Producer Ozzie Cadena He Joined Forces With Johnson To Produce A Highly Successful Series Of Trombone Duet Recordings Which Were Initially On Savoy Records And Then On The Columbia Records Label. While At Columbia Winding Experimented With Different Instrumentation In Brass Ensembles The 1956 Album Jay & Kai 6 Features A Trombone Octet As Well As Winding And Johnson Performing On The Trombone-Like Valved Horn Called The Trombonium. Winding Also Arranged And/or Composed Many Of The Tracks He And Johnson Recorded. Unlike Most Players Who Absorbed The "bebop" Style Winding Notably Used More Overtly Trombonistic Slide And Mute Effects From The Earlier Eras Of Jazz As Had Another Former Goodman Trombonist Bill Harris Sounds Which Johnson Studiously Avoided. During The 1960s Winding Had A Long Stint At Verve Records And Under Producer Creed Taylor Made Some Of His Most Memorable Jazz-Pop Albums. He Released The First Version Of "Time Is On My Side" In 1963 Before It Was Recorded By Irma Thomas And The Rolling Stones. His Best Selling Recording From This Period Is "More " The Theme From The Movie Mondo Cane. Arranged And Conducted By Claus Ogerman "More" Featured What Is Probably The First Appearance Of The French Electronic Music Instrument The Ondioline On An American Recording. Though Winding Himself Was Credited With Playing The Ondioline Guitarist Vinnie Bell Who Worked On The Session Has Said He Remembers Distinctly That The French Electronic-Music Pioneer Jean-Jacques Perrey Was The Actual Player. He Served As Musical Director For The Playboy Club In Mid-Sixties New York When Rock Was Beginning To Edge Out Jazz As The Fashionable Club Music. While At Verve Winding Further Experimented With Various Ensembles Made Solo Albums And Even An Album Of Country Music With The Anita Kerr Singers. In The Late 1960s Winding Followed Creed Taylor To His New Recording Label At A&M/CTI And Made At Least Two More Albums With Johnson. In The 1970s And Early 1980s Winding Recorded For A Number Of Independent Record Labels. During This Time He Continued To Give Clinics Play Jazz Concerts And Even Reunited With Johnson For A Live Concert In Japan. He Was A Member Of The All-Star Jazz Group Giants Of Jazz In 1971-2. He Also Wrote Instructional Jazz Trombone Books That Included Transcribed Solos. Winding Died Of A Brain Tumor In New York City In 1983. He Was Survived At The Time By His Wife The Accomplished Painter Ezshwan Winding And His Son The Session Keyboardist Jai Winding. Discography As Leader/co-Leader
Kai Winding All Stars Roost 1949-51 1952 Trombone By Three Prestige 1949 1956 With J. J. Johnson And Bennie Green
Jay & Kai Savoy 1952-54 1955 With J. J. Johnson
An Afternoon At Birdland RCA 1954 With J. J. Johnson
Dec. 3 1954 Prestige 1954 With J. J. Johnson
K J.J. Bethlehem 1955 With J. J. Johnson - Also Released As 'Nuf Said
Trombone For Two Columbia 1955 With J. J. Johnson
Jay And Kai 6 Columbia 1956 With J. J. Johnson
Dave Brubeck And Jay & Kai At Newport Columbia 1956 With J. J. Johnson - Split Album
Jay And Kai Columbia 1956 With J. J. Johnson
The Trombone Sound Columbia 1956 Trombone Panorama Columbia 1956 The Axidentals With The Kai Winding Trombones ABC-Paramount 1958 The Swingin' States Columbia 1958 Dance To The City Beat Columbia 1959 The Great Kai & J. J. Impulse! 1960 With J. J. Johnson
The Incredible Kai Winding Trombones Impulse! 1960 Kai Olé Verve 1961 Suspense Themes In Jazz Verve 1962 That's Where It Is Sesac 1963 Solo Verve 1963 Soul Surfin' Verve 1963 Featuring Kenny Burrell - Also Released As !!!More!!!
Kai Winding Verve 1963 Mondo Cane #2 Verve 1964 Modern Country Verve 1965 Rainy Day Verve 1965 The In Instrumentals Verve 1965 More Brass Verve 1966 Dirty Dog Verve 1966 Penny Lane & Time Verve 1967 Israel A&M/CTI 1968 With J. J. Johnson
Betwixt & Between A&M/CTI 1968 With J. J. Johnson
Stonebone A&M/CTI Japan 1969 With J. J. Johnson
Danish Blue Glendale 1974 1976 Lionel Hamton Presents Kai Winding Who's Who In Jazz 1977 Caravan Glendale 1977 Jazz Showcase Gateway 1977 Duo Bones Red 1979 With Dino Piana
Bone Appétit Black & Blue 1980 With Curtis Fuller
Giant Bones '80 Sonet 1980 With Curtis Fuller
Trombone Summit MPS 1981 With Albert Mangelsdorff Bill Watrous And Jiggs Whigham As Sideman With Paul Desmond Summertime A&M/CTI 1968 With Curtis Fuller Cabin In The Sky Impulse! 1962 With The Giants Of Jazz The Giants Of Jazz Atlantic 1971 With Art Blakey Dizzy Gillespie Al McKibbon Thelonious Monk And Sonny Stitt With Dizzy Gillespie The Complete RCA Victor Recordings Bluebird 1937-1949 1995 With Stan Kenton Stan Kenton's Milestones Capitol 1943-47 1950 Stan Kenton Classics Capitol 1944-47 1952 Artistry In Rhythm Capitol 1946 Encores Capitol 1947 The Kenton Era Capitol 1940–54 1955 With The Modern Jazz Quartet Jazz Dialogue Atlantic 1965 With Oscar Pettiford Oscar Pettiford Sextet Vogue 1954 With Pete Rugolo Rugolomania Columbia 1955 New Sounds By Pete Rugolo Harmony 1954-55 1957 With Lalo Schifrin New Fantasy Verve 1964 With Zoot Sims The Brothers Prestige 1949 read less