Today in the U.S., it's Presidents' Day, a federal holiday. First established in 1885 to pay tribute to America's first president, George Washington, the holiday became more inclusive in 1971, when the day celebrate all presidents. The shift was a result of the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which established more three-day weekends for workers. [Photo above of Lester Young courtesy of Herb Snitzer]
Here at JazzWax, it's a tradition to celebrate each Presidents' Day by showcasing Lester Young, whom Billie Holiday affectionately called "Prez" or "Pres"—short for president of the tenor saxophone. Young revolutionized the instrument's sound in the early 1940s. Instead of playing with a heavy feel, improvising by running up and down chords, Prez was more spare and linear, playing improvised notes lyrically the way a vocalist sings a song. In the process, he gave post-war jazz a cooler, more relaxed sound. Before long, an entire generation of tenor saxophonists was playing like him, including Stan Getz, Brew Moore, Zoot Sims, Al Cohn and Paul Quinichette, who was known affectionately as "Vice Prez." [Photo above of Lester Young]
So your heart won't forget why Lester Young is special, I've posted four albums covering a good stretch of Prez's career before he died in 1959:
Here are 29 glorious tracks of Billie Holiday with Lester Young...
Here are his complete sessions for the Aladdin label in the late 1940s...
Here's Lester Young with the Oscar Peterson Trio...
And here's Lester Young and the Teddy Wilson Quartet...
