Neal Hefti

During the 1950s Neal Hefti ranked among the leading jazz arranger-composers. His first charts appeared in the late 1930s for Nat Towles, after which he supplied additional scores for the Earl Hines orchestra. Between 1942 and 1943 he performed on trumpet alongside Charlie Barnet, Horace Heidt, and Charlie Spivak, then spent the next two years on the road with Woody Herman’s First Herd. During that period he married the band’s vocalist, Frances Wayne. His work with Herman quickly enhanced his standing; notable efforts included fresh arrangements of “Woodchopper’s Ball” and “Blowin’ Up a Storm” plus the originals “The Good Earth” and “Wild Root.” He also delivered a memorable trumpet solo on Lucky Thompson’s “From Dixieland to Bop.” Before long Hefti shifted his focus almost entirely to writing, although he continued to play occasional trumpet dates into the 1960s. He went on to furnish charts for Charlie Ventura in 1946 and for Harry James from 1948 to 1949, yet his longest and most celebrated association was with Count Basie, lasting from 1950 through 1962. Among the pieces he created for Basie were “Little Pony,” “Cute,” “Li’l Darling,” and “Whirlybird,” along with numerous other buoyant numbers that frequently showcased Frank Wess’s flute in fresh contexts. Hefti intermittently fronted his own groups throughout the 1950s, but in subsequent decades he devoted himself chiefly to film scoring while still drawing on his jazz background. He died at his California residence on October 11, 2008, aged 85.