Hank Jones - Eloquent, Lyrical & Impeccable

On May 15, 2003 my friend and partner Stan Levey and I recorded this interview with Jazz Hall of Fame inductee and ASCAP Jazz Living Legend Award winner pianist Hank Jones. Excerpts from this interview originally appeared in our documentary entitled Stan Levey The Original Original. In this newly produced video which showcases the entire interview, Hank expounds upon his being an eyewitness to the birth of bebop on 52nd Street in New York City, his playing with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Levey, Hot Lips Page, Coleman Hawkins, Ella Fitzgerald, Lester Young, Benny Goodman and many others and he elaborates on the influences of Art Tatum and Erroll Garner on his career as an eloquent, lyrical and impeccable jazz pianist. He tells the story of how on May 19, 1962, he played piano as actress Marilyn Monroe sang her famous “Happy Birthday, Mr President” song to then president John F. Kennedy. In 2009 Hank received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy award. This is a non-profit video made strictly for the education and enjoyment of you the viewer, produced and directed by Arthur Shelby Pritz. All of our TH-cam jazz videos are strictly non-profit and we do not receive any payments from TH-cam.

[@ivettepalacin8599]

Hank Jones is quite charismatic, well-loved by musicians and the public alike, and i am extremely grateful for all piano performances and interviews of him on youtube. He's a superb superstar we were blessed to listen to and follow.

[@TubeworksVideoChannel]

It was my honor to have been able to interview Hank together with my friend Stan Levey. Not long after this interview we saw him perform in concert and it was a truly marvelous and wonderful experience.

[@ivettepalacin8599]

❤️ thank you for doing this for all of us! I’m grateful you saw him perform right after. He’s so grounded, kind, and a great communicator. Beautiful person and musician.

[@mikeos1]

I had the honour of eating dinner with Hank (and Eddie Barefield) in 1977 at the Northsea festival. Great memory.

[@bth1212]

Fabulous

[@bustabass9025]

A third of Jones triumvirate from Pontiac, Michigan. Hank, Elvin, and Thad, were great influences during the Golden Age of Bop Jazz, circa 1955 to 1975. His artistic interpretation of standards with many of the titans of jazz is as remarkable today as it was when the music was created.

[@davidweinstock4977]

johnny smith called hank jones 'the chopin of jazz'. HJ played on more JS tracks than any other pianist. maybe more than any two or three pianists.