29 Facts About Stanley Dance

Stanley Frank Dance was a British jazz writer, business manager, record producer, and historian of the Swing era.

Stanley Dance was personally close to Duke Ellington over a long period, as well as many other musicians; because of this friendship Dance was in a position to write "official" biographies.

Stanley Dance was born in England to a successful Essex tobacco merchant in 1910.

Stanley Dance soon learned of Louis Armstrong, Fats Waller and Duke Ellington through Lawrence Wright's music newspaper Melody Maker.

Stanley Dance chose to focus his enthusiasm on the music of black bands.

Stanley Dance started writing opinion pieces about the jazz scene for Hugues Panassie's French-language magazine Jazz Hot in 1935, modelling his articles on those found in Melody Maker and The Gramophone that were written by John Hammond.

In 1937, Stanley Dance visited New York City's jazz scene for three weeks, going to the Savoy Ballroom or similar venues in the evenings, and listening in on recording sessions during the day.

Stanley Dance had an introduction from Panassie to Chicago-based Canadian writer Helen Oakley.

Stanley Dance had been hired by Irving Mills to supervise the new Variety recordings of Cab Calloway, Red Nichols, Johnny Hodges, Chu Berry, and a number of others in whom Dance was interested.

Stanley Dance certainly missed the start of Bebop, which developed during the war and a recording-musicians' strike in the US.

Stanley Dance began writing a monthly column about the jazz milleu for Jazz Journal, beginning in its first issue in 1948 until his death in 1999; while he often wrote for other publications, he only discussed his personal opinions in that column.

Stanley Dance continued to run the family business, as well.

Stanley Dance arrived in the US with a commission from EMI's English Columbia label to make proprietary jazz recordings.

Stanley Dance again used his contacts with the Ellington players to produce seven albums that were quite successful in Europe.

Stanley Dance wrote the liner notes for all these, as well as for a number of other recordings by Ellington, Hodges, members of their orchestras, and the Basie band.

Stanley Dance shared a 1963 Grammy with Leonard Feather for his liner notes to The Ellington Era, Vol.

Stanley Dance worked for a year as the jazz critic for the New York Herald Tribune, which paid poorly but taught him to "write to deadline".

Stanley Dance began writing articles on jazz regularly for the Saturday Review, DownBeat, and other magazines.

On Memorial Day, 1974, Stanley Dance gave the funeral address for Ellington at the Cathedral Church of St John the Divine in Harlem.

Stanley Dance helped Ellington's son Mercer deal with the large number of unissued recordings, and co-wrote Mercer's biography of his father.

Stanley Dance is well informed about my activities and those of my associates.

Stanley Dance is credited with helping to revive the careers of several musicians, including Helen Humes and pianist Earl Hines; in 1964 he encouraged the California-based Hines to perform in New York concerts organised by a fellow-journalist.

Stanley Dance wrote a biography of Hines, published in 1977.

Stanley Dance provided consultation to Jimmy Cheatham while the latter headed the jazz program at UCSD, and to Ken Burns while he was developing his documentary television series Jazz.

Stanley Dance died of pneumonia at 88 years old on 23 February 1999, at the Rancho Bernardo Remington Rehabilitation Health Care Center.

Stanley Dance's grave is located in Mission San Luis Rey Cemetery.

Stanley Dance was famously characterised as an opponent of Bebop and the later jazz of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Free Jazz, based largely on his columns in Jazz Journal and in Jazz Times.

Stanley Dance's recording efforts ensured an expanded catalogue of recordings from his chosen era, and continued the careers of several notable musicians.

Stanley Dance was a significant contributor to the development of critical jazz journalism and jazz history over more than 60 years.