Pete Fountain:
Peter Dewey Fountain, Jr. was born July 3, 1930 in New Orleans, the
cradle of American music, Jazz. He was a skinny kid who spent too much
time hanging around the front stoop of the Top Hat Dance Hall near his
home. The Top Hat was a stronghold of Dixieland Jazz and Jazz already
had a strong hold on Pete Fountain. But, oh the sounds! This was music
straight from the soul. Sounds that would never be written in stone,
that would always be brand new because they were purely personal. Pete
heard all the greats in New Orleans and he knew he wanted to play Jazz.
After endless hours of practicing and listening to the recordings of
Benny Goodman and Irving Fazola, the personal sound of Pete Fountain
began to emerge and it was “Fat.” By the time Pete was 16, he had
already gained a reputation on Bourbon Street. Through these formative
years of his musical training, Pete performed with several sensational
bands. One such band was the Junior Dixieland Band which performed in
the famous Parisian Room-often performing for legendary jazz men. A few
years later Pete joined Phil Zito's International Dixieland Express.
They were playing the El Morocco on the street. Pete was performing with
some of the best known jazz bands in the country—The Basin Street Six,
The Dukes of Dixieland, and Al Hirt.
Until 1956...Be-Bop and Rock & Roll were the hot new sounds, and the
music that Pete loved could not provide him or anybody else with a
living. Jazz, in its own birthplace New Orleans, was definitely asleep.
He gave up music. He had no choice. With a wife and three small children
to support, music was a luxury he could not afford.
In 1957, Lawrence Welk, host of the nation's most popular television
program, wanted Pete on the show, and for two years, Pete was the most
famous Jazz musician on television. Pete Fountain became a household
name and New Orleans Jazz made a comeback that has never faded.
After two years in California, Pete came home to New Orleans. He had
learned what every New Orleanian has to accept as a fact of life. you
can leave New Orleans, but it never leaves you. Pete immediately opened
his own jazz club in the heart of the French Quarter. His national fame
and fans followed him to New Orleans which allowed Pete's club to
expand, through many years, into the largest jazz club in the city. Pete
has always been considered an ambassador of New Orleans Jazz as he
performs his music on guest appearances on network television and
specials. Some of the highlights have been such classics as the Ed
Sullivan, Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Andy Williams specials. More
recently his credits include A Close up of Pete Fountain, Super Bowl
Saturday Night and the National Memorial Day Concert. He also performed
59 times on Johnny Carson's “The Tonight Show.”
Pete has performed at four U.S. State Dinners by command performance for
four Presidents of the United States. He has also performed for Pope
John Paul II at the New Orleans Papal Mass with an attendance of over
400,000 people.
During Pete's career, he has recorded 56 albums and has been a featured
performer on 44 additional albums for a total of 100 recordings. Three
of Pete's albums have gone gold, “Pete Fountain's New Orleans,” “The
Blues,” and “Mr. New Orleans.” He also received a gold record for his
hit single “Just A Closer Walk With Thee.”
Through Pete's career he has received numerous awards and honors
including a Doctorate of Music from the College of Santa Fe; he was
voted the #1 Jazz Clarinetist for 13 consecutive years in the Playboy
Readers Poll; he was King of Bacchus; he received an Emmy for the 1990
Super Bowl Pre-Game Music; and he was awarded the 1993 Louisiana Legends
Award.
Pete has performed with music legends ranging from Louis Armstrong and
Harry James to Harry Connick, Jr.
Biography by Scott Yanow
One of the most famous of all New Orleans jazz clarinetists, Pete Fountain had the ability to play songs that he performed countless times (such as "Basin Street Blues") with so much enthusiasm that one would swear he had just discovered them. His style and most of his repertoire remained unchanged from the late '50s into the new millennium, yet he never sounded bored. In 1948, Fountain (who was heavily influenced by Benny Goodman and Irving Fazola) was a member of the Junior Dixieland Band and this was followed by a stint with Phil Zito and an important association with the Basin Street Six (1950-1954), with whom the clarinetist made his first recordings. In 1955, Fountain was a member of the Dukes of Dixieland, but his big breakthrough came when he was featured playing a featured Dixieland number or two on each episode of The Lawrence Welk Show during 1957-1959. After he left, he moved back to New Orleans, opened his own club, and played there regularly up until retiring from the nightclub business in early 2003. Fountain's finest recordings were a lengthy string for Coral during 1959-1965 (they turned commercial for a period after that). Fountain died in New Orleans in August 2016 at the age of 86.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/pete-fountain-mn0000312140#biography
One of the most famous of all New Orleans jazz clarinetists, Pete Fountain had the ability to play songs that he performed countless times (such as "Basin Street Blues") with so much enthusiasm that one would swear he had just discovered them. His style and most of his repertoire remained unchanged from the late '50s into the new millennium, yet he never sounded bored. In 1948, Fountain (who was heavily influenced by Benny Goodman and Irving Fazola) was a member of the Junior Dixieland Band and this was followed by a stint with Phil Zito and an important association with the Basin Street Six (1950-1954), with whom the clarinetist made his first recordings. In 1955, Fountain was a member of the Dukes of Dixieland, but his big breakthrough came when he was featured playing a featured Dixieland number or two on each episode of The Lawrence Welk Show during 1957-1959. After he left, he moved back to New Orleans, opened his own club, and played there regularly up until retiring from the nightclub business in early 2003. Fountain's finest recordings were a lengthy string for Coral during 1959-1965 (they turned commercial for a period after that). Fountain died in New Orleans in August 2016 at the age of 86.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/pete-fountain-mn0000312140#biography
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Pete Fountain:
Peter Dewey Fountain, Jr. nació el 3 de julio de 1930 en Nueva Orleans,
la cuna de la música americana, el Jazz. Era un niño flaco que pasaba
mucho tiempo colgado en la entrada del Top Hat Dance Hall cerca de su
casa. El sombrero de copa era un bastión del Dixieland Jazz y el Jazz ya
tenía una fuerte influencia sobre Pete Fountain. Pero, ¡oh, los
sonidos! Esto era música directamente del alma. Sonidos que nunca serían
escritos en piedra, que siempre serían nuevos porque eran puramente
personales. Pete escuchó a todos los grandes de Nueva Orleans y sabía
que quería tocar Jazz.
Después de horas interminables de practicar y escuchar las grabaciones
de Benny Goodman e Irving Fazola, el sonido personal de Pete Fountain
comenzó a emerger y fue "Fat". Para cuando Pete tenía 16 años, ya se
había ganado una reputación en Bourbon Street. Durante estos años de
formación musical, Pete tocó con varias bandas sensacionales. Una de
ellas fue la Junior Dixieland Band, que actuó en la famosa Parisian
Room, a menudo para hombres de jazz legendarios. Unos años después, Pete
se unió al International Dixieland Express de Phil Zito. Estaban
tocando El Morocco en la calle. Pete tocaba con algunas de las bandas de
jazz más conocidas del país: The Basin Street Six, The Dukes of
Dixieland y Al Hirt.
Hasta 1956... el Be-Bop y el Rock & Roll eran los nuevos sonidos
calientes, y la música que a Pete le encantaba no le permitía ganarse la
vida ni a él ni a nadie más. El jazz, en su lugar de nacimiento, Nueva
Orleans, estaba definitivamente dormido. Dejó la música. No tenía otra
opción. Con una esposa y tres hijos pequeños que mantener, la música era
un lujo que no podía permitirse.
En 1957, Lawrence Welk, conductor del programa de televisión más popular
del país, quería a Pete en el programa, y durante dos años, Pete fue el
músico de jazz más famoso de la televisión. Pete Fountain se convirtió
en un nombre muy conocido y el Jazz de Nueva Orleans tuvo un regreso que
nunca se ha desvanecido.
Después de dos años en California, Pete volvió a Nueva Orleans. Había
aprendido lo que todo New Orleanian tiene que aceptar como un hecho de
la vida. Puedes dejar Nueva Orleans, pero nunca te deja. Pete
inmediatamente abrió su propio club de jazz en el corazón del Barrio
Francés. Su fama nacional y sus seguidores lo siguieron a Nueva Orleans,
lo que permitió que el club de Pete se expandiera, a través de muchos
años, hasta convertirse en el club de jazz más grande de la ciudad. Pete
siempre ha sido considerado un embajador del Jazz de Nueva Orleans, ya
que interpreta su música en apariciones como invitado en la televisión
de la cadena y en programas especiales. Algunos de los puntos
culminantes han sido clásicos como los especiales de Ed Sullivan, Bing
Crosby, Bob Hope y Andy Williams. Más recientemente, sus créditos
incluyen A Close up of Pete Fountain, Super Bowl Saturday Night y el
National Memorial Day Concert. También actuó 59 veces en "The Tonight
Show" de Johnny Carson.
Pete se ha presentado en cuatro Cenas de Estado de los Estados Unidos
por comando para cuatro Presidentes de los Estados Unidos. También ha
actuado para el Papa Juan Pablo II en la Misa Papal de Nueva Orleans con
una asistencia de más de 400,000 personas.
Durante su carrera, Pete ha grabado 56 álbumes y ha participado en 44
álbumes adicionales para un total de 100 grabaciones. Tres de los
álbumes de Pete se han convertido en oro, "Pete Fountain's New Orleans",
"The Blues" y "Mr. New Orleans". También recibió un disco de oro por su
exitoso sencillo "Just a Closer Walk With Thee".
A lo largo de la carrera de Pete ha recibido numerosos premios y
honores, incluyendo un Doctorado en Música del Colegio de Santa Fe; fue
elegido Clarinetista de Jazz #1 por 13 años consecutivos en la Encuesta
de Lectores de Playboy; fue Rey de Baco; recibió un Emmy por la Música
de Pre-Juego del Super Bowl de 1990; y fue galardonado con el Premio de
Leyendas de Louisiana de 1993.
Pete ha tocado con leyendas de la música que van desde Louis Armstrong y
Harry James hasta Harry Connick, Jr.
Pete
Fountain, uno de los clarinetistas de jazz más famosos de Nueva
Orleans, tenía la habilidad de tocar canciones que había interpretado
innumerables veces (como «Basin Street Blues») con tanto entusiasmo que
uno juraría que acababa de descubrirlas. Su estilo y la mayor parte de
su repertorio permanecieron inalterados desde finales de los años 50
hasta el nuevo milenio, y sin embargo nunca sonó aburrido. En 1948,
Fountain (muy influido por Benny Goodman e Irving Fazola) fue miembro de
la Junior Dixieland Band, a lo que siguió una temporada con Phil Zito y
una importante asociación con los Basin Street Six (1950-1954), con los
que el clarinetista realizó sus primeras grabaciones. En 1955, Fountain
fue miembro de los Dukes of Dixieland, pero su gran éxito llegó cuando
apareció tocando un número o dos de Dixieland en cada episodio de The
Lawrence Welk Show durante 1957-1959. Tras su marcha, regresó a Nueva
Orleans, abrió su propio club y tocó allí con regularidad hasta que se
retiró del negocio de los clubes nocturnos a principios de 2003. Las
mejores grabaciones de Fountain fueron una larga serie para Coral
durante 1959-1965 (después se volvieron comerciales durante un tiempo).
Fountain falleció en Nueva Orleans en agosto de 2016 a la edad de 86
años.
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