March is an amazing month for birthdays of jazz-related people.
From the Riverwals website:
George Avakian, Born March 15, 1919 Thank you George, for all you've done for Jazz
Produced first jazz album in the history of the industry: Chicago Jazz (Decca 121), reunited Eddie Condom Pee Wee Russell and others from the late '20s Chicago scene and was released in March 1940.
In 1948, Avakian introduced the LP record format created by Columbia engineers and produced the industry's first 100 long-playing discs of popular music and jazz.
He organized and launched the "Hot Jazz Classics" line for Columbia, the industry's first regular series of reissue albums accompanied by notations explaining the history and importance of the material.
Under Avakian's lead, Columbia became the first major label to enter the field of live jazz recording. Avakian recorded Harry James, Lionel Hampton and others in ballroom settings and Louis Armstrong on tour in Europe in 1955, all of which led to the precedent shattering series of four albums covering the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival. CLICK HEREto listen to Armstrong's Historial Recordings.
AWARDS
2011 Added to the ASCAP Jazz Wall of Fame as a Living Legend Giant of Jazz 2010 National Endowments for the Arts AB Spellman Jazz Advocacy 2009 The Trustees Lifetime Achievement Award (Grammy) 2008 France awarded the rank of Commandeur des Arts et Lettres 2006 Europes prestigious jazz award, the Django dOr 2000 A Lifetime Achievement award from Down Beat Magazine
