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Chuck Mangione

 
Artist: Chuck Mangione
 
Chuck Mangione

Similar Artists:

Influenced By:

Followers:

Gordon Johnson

Performed Songs By:

Bat McGrath

Worked With:

Chris Vadala, Gerry Niewood, Joe La Barbera, Gordon Johnson, Don Potter, Esther Satterfield, Victor Feldman

Formal Connection With:

Pete Harris

Relationship With:

  • Born: November 29, 1940, Rochester, NY
  • Active: '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, 2000s
  • Genres: Jazz
  • Instrument: Flugelhorn, Producer, Leader
  • Representative Albums: "Land of Make Believe," "Greatest Hits," "Alive!"
  • Representative Songs: "Feels So Good," "Bellavia," "Hide & Seek (Ready or Not Her"

Biography

Throughout the 1970s, Chuck Mangione was a celebrity. His purposely lightweight music was melodic pop that was upbeat, optimistic and sometimes uplifting. Mangione's records were big sellers yet few of his fans from the era knew that his original goal was to be a bebopper. His father had often taken Chuck and his older brother Gap (a keyboardist) out to see jazz concerts and Dizzy Gillespie was a family friend. While Chuck studied at the Eastman School, the two Mangiones co-led a bop quintet called the Jazz Brothers that recorded several albums for Jazzland, often with Sal Nistico on tenor. Chuck Mangione played with the big bands of Woody Herman and Maynard Ferguson (both in 1965) and Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers (1965-67). In 1968, now sticking mostly to his soft-toned flugelhorn, Mangione formed a quartet that also featured Gerry Niewood on tenor and soprano. They cut a fine set for Mercury in 1972 but otherwise Mangione's recordings in the 1970s generally used large orchestras and vocalists (including Esther Satterfield), putting the emphasis on lightweight melodies such as "Hill Where the Lord Hides," "Land of Make Believe," "Chase the Clouds Away" and the huge 1977 hit (featuring guitarist Grant Geissman) "Feels So Good." After a recorded 1978 Hollywood Bowl concert that summed up his pop years and a 1980 two-LP set that alternated pop and bop (with guest Dizzy Gillespie), Mangione gradually faded out of the music scene. In the 1970s Chuck Mangione recorded for Mercury and A&M; in the 1980s he had a couple of very forgettable Columbia albums and had not been heard from in the '90s until a 1997 comeback tour found him in good form, having a reunion with his "Feels So Good" band. The Feeling's Back followed in 1999. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
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Wikipedia: Chuck Mangione
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Chuck Mangione
Mangione in 2006
Mangione in 2006
Background information
Birth name Charles Frank Mangione
Born November 29, 1940 (1940-11-29) (age 68)
Rochester, New York, U.S.
Genre(s) Jazz
Instrument(s) Flugelhorn, Trumpet, Piano, Electric Piano
Years active 1960–present
Label(s) Mercury, A&M, Columbia, Chesky
Website http://www.chuckmangione.com

Charles Frank "Chuck" Mangione (pronounced man-jee-OH-nee) (born November 29, 1940) is an American flugelhorn player and composer who achieved international success in 1978 with his jazz-pop single, "Feels So Good". Mangione has released more than thirty albums since 1960.[1]

Contents

Early life and career

Born and raised in Rochester, New York, Mangione and his pianist brother Gap led the Jazz Brothers group which recorded three albums for Riverside Records. He attended the Eastman School of Music from 1958 to 1963, and afterwards joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, for which he filled the trumpet seat, previously held by greats such as Clifford Brown, Kenny Dorham, Bill Hardman, and Lee Morgan.[2] Mangione served as director of the Eastman jazz ensemble from 1968 to 1972, and in 1970, he returned to recording with the album Friends and Love, recorded in concert with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and numerous guest performers.[3] His quartet with saxophonist Gerry Niewood was a popular concert and recording act throughout the 1970s. "Bellavia", recorded during this collaboration, won Mangione his first Grammy Award in 1977 in the category Best Instrumental Composition.[4]

Mangione's composition "Chase the Clouds Away" was used at the 1976 Summer Olympics, with a later composition, "Give It All You Got", being used as the theme to the 1980 Winter Olympic Games, held in Lake Placid, New York. He performed it live at the closing ceremonies, which were televised globally.[5] In 1978 Mangione composed the soundtrack for the film The Children of Sanchez, starring Anthony Quinn. This album won him his second Grammy, in the category Best Pop Instrumental performance in 1979 and the title song, almost 15 minutes long in full version and featuring one of the most recognizable wind section themes, has not lost its popularity to this day.

A 1980 issue of Current Biography called "Feels So Good" the most recognized tune since "Michelle" by The Beatles. Recently, smooth jazz stations throughout the United States have recognized Mangione's "Feels So Good" as their all-time number one song.[6] He raised over $50,000 for St. John's Nursing Home at his 60th Birthday Bash Concert, held at Rochester's Eastman Theatre.[7]

Acting career and television appearances

Chuck Mangione on King of the Hill

In addition to music, Chuck Mangione has had a recurring voice-acting role on the animated television series King of the Hill. In it he portrays himself as a celebrity spokesman for Mega Lo Mart, although his animated form looks much younger than his age would indicate. The first episode of King of the Hill featuring Mangione originally aired on February 16, 1997. The episode featured an original score specifically recorded for the occasion. He continued to appear in episodes, a total of ten more up until 2003.[8] In the context of the series, Chuck chafes under an oppressive spokesperson contract with Mega Lo Mart and eventually goes into hiding inside one of their own stores. After a long hiatus, the character of Chuck Mangione returned in a later episode entitled "Lucky's Wedding Suit", in May of 2007. A recurring joke is that whatever tune he plays on his flugelhorn inevitably shifts into "Feels So Good" after a few bars.

In the Magnum, P.I. episode "Paradise Blues," Chuck Mangione portrays a fellow night club act along with TC's (Roger E. Mosley's) former girlfriend. Chuck performs two singles and has lines near the end of the show.

On July 4, 1983, Chuck Mangione was in attendance as the New York Yankees played the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. After playing the national anthem on the flugelhorn, Mangione, a Yankees fan, joined Phil Rizzuto and Bill White in the broadcast booth. Mangione gave his thoughts on the Yankee players and played a few bars of Feels So Good.[citation needed]Dave Righetti threw a 4-0 no-hitter. It was the first Yankee no-hitter since Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series, and the first by a Yankee left-hander since 1917.

In 1988, Chuck Mangione appeared on the hit children's TV show: Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show as "Little Boy Blue".

Mangione's current band

Chuck Mangione's current band comprises:

Chris Vadala - Woodwinds
Dave Tull - Drums
Kevin Axt - Bass
Corey Allen - Keyboards
[citation needed]

Two members of the band were among those killed when Continental Airlines Flight 3407 crashed into a Buffalo, New York, area house on February 12, 2009. The members were identified as Gerry Niewood and Coleman Mellett. In a statement Mangione, said: "I'm in shock over the horrible, heartbreaking tragedy."[9]

References

  1. ^ "Chuck Mangione < Discography < Main Albums". Album discography on Allmusic. http://allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:gifexqy5ld6e~T2. 
  2. ^ Hard Bop Academy: The Sidemen of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Gene Santoro (Hal Leonard, 2002) ISBN 0634037935
  3. ^ "Friends & Love: A Chuck Mangione Concert". The Official Chuck Mangione World Wide Web Site. http://www.chuckmangione.com/friends&lovebid.html. 
  4. ^ "Chuck Mangione at All About Jazz". Biography at All About Jazz. http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/musician.php?id=9031. 
  5. ^ "Mangione at a Glance". The Official Chuck Mangione World Wide Web Site. http://www.chuckmangione.com/bio.html. 
  6. ^ "Chuck Mangione to Perform with Columbus Jazz Orchestra" (PDF). Jazz Arts Group press release. http://jazzartsgroup.org/press_room/docs/chuck_mangione_pr.pdf. 
  7. ^ "Chuck Mangione: Book Chuck Mangione For Concerts and Events Worldwide". Biography on BookingEntertainment.com. http://www.bookingentertainment.com/artists/jazz/booking-chuck-mangione.php. 
  8. ^ "Chuck Mangione - Filmography by TV Series". TV series filmography on Internet Movie Database. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0542246/filmoseries#tt0118375. 
  9. ^ "Chuck Mangione's Bandmates Die in Fatal Crash." TMZ. February 13, 2009. Retrieved on February 13, 2009.

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