Thaddeus Joseph Jones (March 28, 1923 – August 20, 1986) was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader who was called "one of the greatest jazz trumpet soloists."

Early life, family and education

Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan, to Henry and Olivia Jones. He came from a musical family of 10 members, including an older brother named Hank Jones, who was a pianist, and a younger brother named Elvin Jones, who was a drummer. Thad taught himself to play music and began performing professionally at the age of 16. He worked in U.S. Army bands during World War II from 1943 to 1946.

Years later, while teaching jazz at the Royal Danish Conservatory in Copenhagen, Jones studied composition formally. During this time, he also started learning to play the valve trombone.

Career

After completing his military service, which included working at the US Military School of Music and performing with local bands in Des Moines, Iowa, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Jones joined the Count Basie Orchestra in May 1954. He played solos on famous songs such as "April in Paris," "Shiny Stockings," and "Corner Pocket." His most important work for Basie’s group was creating nearly two dozen arrangements and compositions, including "The Deacon," "H.R.H." (a piece named after a performance in London), "Counter Block," and "Speaking of Sounds." His ballad "To You" was performed by the Basie band and the Duke Ellington Orchestra in their only joint recording. The album Dance Along With Basie includes many of Jones’s uncredited arrangements of classic songs. In 1959, Jones played cornet on Thelonious Monk’s album 5 by Monk by 5.

Jones left the Basie Orchestra in 1963 to work as an independent arranger and musician in New York City. In 1965, he and drummer Mel Lewis formed the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. The group began with casual late-night performances by top New York City musicians. They started performing at the Village Vanguard in February 1966, receiving praise from audiences, and continued with Jones leading the group for 12 years. They won a Grammy Award in 1978 for their album Live in Munich.

Jones taught at William Paterson College in New Jersey. At the Thad Jones Archive site, which is now part of the Living Jazz Archives, visitors can see pencil scores and old photographs.

After moving suddenly to Copenhagen, where several other American jazz musicians had also relocated, Jones became the leader of the Danish Radio Big Band. He helped make the band one of the best in the world. A live recording from Montmartre in Copenhagen shows the band’s improved sound. In July 1979, Jones created a new big band called Eclipse and recorded a live album with it. The album included American musicians such as pianist Horace Parlan, baritone saxophonist Sahib Shihab, trumpeter Tim Hagans, and trombonist/vocalist Richard B. Boone. Other members of the band were trombonists Bjarne Thanning and Ture Larsen, trumpeter Lars Togeby, alto saxophonists Ole Thøger and Michael Hove, tenor saxophonist Bent Jædig, and bassist Jesper Lundgaard. Jones also wrote music for the Danish Radio Big Band and taught jazz at the Royal Danish Conservatory in Copenhagen. During this time, he studied composition formally and learned to play the valve trombone. Later in life, his ability to play the instrument was affected by a lip injury, but his skills in composing and arranging grew stronger. His most famous composition is the standard "A Child Is Born."

In February 1985, Jones returned to the United States to lead the Count Basie Orchestra after his previous leader passed away. He directed the band on many tours, wrote arrangements for recordings and performances with singer Caterina Valente and the group Manhattan Transfer, but eventually had to leave due to poor health.

Personal life

Jones had a daughter named Thedia and a son named Bruce from his first marriage in the United States. In January 1979, Jones moved quickly to Copenhagen, Denmark, which surprised his bandmates in New York. He married a Danish woman named Lis. They had a son named Thaddeus Joseph William Jones, who was born on January 4, 1980.

In 1985, Jones returned to the United States to lead the Count Basie Orchestra after his former leader passed away. His health began to decline, and he stopped performing. He went back to his home in Copenhagen for the final months of his life. Jones died from cancer on August 20, 1986, at the age of 63, at Herlev Hospital. He is buried in Vestre Kirkegård Cemetery in Copenhagen.

A street in southern Copenhagen, called Thad Jones Vej, is named in honor of Jones.

Discography

• The Fabulous Thad Jones (Debut, 1954)
• Detroit–New York Junction (Blue Note, 1956)
• The Magnificent Thad Jones (Blue Note, 1956)
• The Magnificent Thad Jones Vol. 3 (Blue Note, 1956)
• Mad Thad (Period, 1957)
• Sonny Rollins Plays (Period, 1957) – a shared album with Sonny Rollins
• The Jones Boys (Period, 1957) – with Jimmy Jones, Eddie Jones, Quincy Jones, and Jo Jones
• Olio (Prestige, 1957) – with Frank Wess, Teddy Charles, Mal Waldron, Doug Watkins, and Elvin Jones
• After Hours (Prestige, 1957) – with Frank Wess, Kenny Burrell, Mal Waldron, Paul Chambers, and Art Taylor
• Keepin' Up with the Joneses (MetroJazz, 1958) – as The Jones Brothers with Hank Jones and Elvin Jones
• Motor City Scene (United Artists, 1959)
• Mean What You Say (Milestone, 1966) – by the Thad Jones/Pepper Adams Quintet
• Greetings and Salutations (Four Leaf Clover, 1977) – with Mel Lewis, Jon Faddis, and the Swedish Radio Jazz Group (Lennart Åberg, Arne Domnérus, Bengt Hallberg, Georg Riedel, Rune Gustafsson, …)
• The Thad Jones Mel Lewis Quartet (Artists House, 1978) – with Mel Lewis, Harold Danko, and Rufus Reid
• Thad Jones, Mel Lewis and UMO (RCA, 1978) – with Mel Lewis and UMO (the Finnish 'New Music Orchestra')
• Live at Montmartre (Storyville, 1978) – with Idrees Sulieman, Allan Botschinsky, Jesper Thilo, and NHOP
• A tribute to Monk and Bird (Tomato, 1978) – with George Adams, George Lewis, Stanley Cowell, Reggie Workman, Lenny White, and Heiner Stadler
• Eclipse (Metronome, 1979) – with Tim Hagans, Sahib Shihab, Horace Parlan, and Jesper Lundgaard
• Jazz Gala 79 (America, 1979) – with Carmen McRae, Joe Williams, Claude Bolling, and Cat Anderson – live in Midem
• Live at Slukefter (Metronome, 1980) – with Tim Hagans, Sahib Shihab, Horace Parlan, and Jesper Lundgaard

• Presenting Thad Jones / Mel Lewis and the Jazz Orchestra (Solid State Records, 1966)
• Presenting Joe Williams and Thad Jones / Mel Lewis, The Jazz Orchestra (Solid State, 1966)
• Live at the Village Vanguard (Solid State, 1967)
• The Big Band Sound of Thad Jones/Mel Lewis featuring Miss Ruth Brown (Solid State, 1968)
• Monday Night (Solid State, 1968) – live
• Central Park North (Solid State, 1969)
• Consummation (Solid State/Blue Note, 1970)
• Live in Tokyo (Denon Jazz, 1974)
• Potpourri (Philadelphia International, 1974)
• Thad Jones / Mel Lewis and Manuel De Sica (Pausa, 1974)
• Suite for Pops (Horizon/A&M, 1975)
• New Life: Dedicated to Max Gordon (A&M, 1975)
• Thad Jones / Mel Lewis Orchestra With Rhoda Scott (Barclay, 1976) – also known as Rhoda Scott in New York with…
• Live in Munich (Horizon/A&M, 1976)
• It Only Happens Every Time with Monica Zetterlund (EMI Records, 1978) – recorded in 1977
• Body and Soul (West Wind Jazz, 1978) – Live in Berlin. Also known as Thad Jones / Mel Lewis Orchestra in Europe
• A Touch of Class (West Wind Jazz, 1978) – Live in Warsaw
• Basle, 1969 (TCB Music, 1996) – recorded in 1969
• Opening Night (Alan Grant Presents, 2000) – recorded in 1966

• By Jones, I think we've got it (Metronome/Atlantic, 1978) – recorded live at Jazzhus Montmartre, Copenhagen
• A good time was had by all (Metronome/Storyville, 1979) – recorded live at Jazzhus Montmartre, Copenhagen in 1978

• New Versions Of Down Beat Favorites (MGM E4265/SE4265, 1965)
• Our Leader! (Dot DLP 3801/DLP 25801, 1967)
• The King James Version (Sheffield Lab LAB 3, 1976)
• Comin' From A Good Place (Sheffield Lab LAB 6, 1977)
• Still Harry After All These Years (Sheffield Lab LAB 11, 1979)