jazz at the philharmonic

Jazz at the Philharmonic (JATP) was the title of a series of concerts and recordings produced by Norman Granz. The first concert was held in 1944 in Los Angeles, and featured Illinois Jacquet, Jack McVea, J.J. Johnson, Shorty Sherock, Nat King Cole, and Les Paul; Jacquet in particular created a sensation. After a few more similar concerts in Los Angeles Granz began producing annual tours in 1946. These featured Swing and bop musicians playing in small groups. There were among the first high-profile performances to feature racially integrated bands. Jazz at the Philharmonic featured most of the era's preeminent musicians: Louie Bellson, Ray Brown, Benny Carter, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Roy Eldridge, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Bill Harris, Coleman Hawkins, Illinois Jacquet, Hank Jones, Gene Krupa, Charlie Parker, Oscar Peterson, Flip Phillips, Buddy Rich, Charlie Shavers, Willie Smith, Tommy Turk, Ben Webster, and Lester Young, among others. Grantz recorded many of these sessions and released them on Mercury Records and later on his labels Clef and Verve. The tours ended in 1957, then were briefly revived in 1967. In the 1970s, Granz kept the spirit of the JATP alive on his many jam session-type records for his label Pablo.

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