Biography
Born on 27 February 1940 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Hooper taught himself piano yet pursued formal studies in composition at Louisiana State University. He later moved into advertising, where he specialized in crafting jingles. During the mid-1970s in Chicago he assembled a large ensemble whose album Look What They’ve Done earned critical notice, though Woody Herman ultimately claimed the Grammy ahead of the group. Charts Hooper supplied to Don Ellis further illustrated his command of prevailing compositional trends. His work in advertising spanned the mid-1960s through the late 1970s, after which he relocated to Los Angeles and established himself as a session musician. From time to time he has reconvened a big band whose scores fuse swing-era techniques with present-day sonorities, attracting widespread interest among student players in collegiate ensembles throughout North America and Europe, many of whom continue to perform the arrangements.
Albums