Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Music Maker Inductees (December 2021)

Top 20 Jazz Acts Originally posted 12/22/2021. January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog! To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This twelfth class of music maker inductees is comprised of the top jazz acts (see the full top 50 list here). That includes traditional pop and vocal jazz singers as well as jazz musicians and bandleaders. These are the top 20 from that list, minus previous inductees Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Glenn Miller, and Frank Sinatra. See the full list of music maker inductees here.

Louis Armstrong (1901-1971) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz singer, trumpeter, and bandleader born in Corona, Queens, NY. Nicknamed “Satchmo.” He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. His version of “St. Louis Blues” with Bessie Smith is a DMDB Hall of Fame inductee and in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. That song, “West End Blues,” “All of Me,” “Hello, Dolly!,” and “What a Wonderful World” rank in the top 1% of all time. The latter is also featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. His box set, The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings, ranks as one of the top 1000 albums of all time. Read more.

Count Basie (1904-1984) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz/big band leader and pianist born William James Basie in Red Bank, NJ. Learned to play the organ from Fats Waller. One of only seven recipients of both the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and Trustees Award. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. “One O'Clock Jump” and “April in Paris” rank in the top 1% of all time. Read more.

Nat “King” Cole (1919-1965) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Traditional pop singer and pianist born Nathaniel Adams Coles in Montgomery, AL. Inductee in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. He is also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)” and “Mona Lisa” are in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. Those two, along with “I Love You for Sentimental Reasons,” “Nature Boy,” and “Too Young” also rank in the top 1% of all time. After his death, his daughter recorded his famous “Unforgettable” song with him as a duet. It is also in the top 1% and won Grammys for Record and Song of the Year. Read more.

John Coltrane (1926-1967) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz musician born in Hamlet, NC. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. The songs “Giant Steps,” “My Favorite Things,” “In a Sentimental Mood,” “Lush Life,” and “Acknowledgement (A Love Supreme, Part 1)” all rank in the top 100 jazz songs. His album, A Love Supreme, is in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. That album and Giant Steps both rank in the top 1000 albums of all time. Read more.

Miles Davis (1926-1991) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz musician born in Alton, IL. Inductee in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. He is also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The songs “So What,” “Blues in Green,” and “All Blues” rank in the top 100 jazz songs. All three are featured on Kind of Blue, which is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. That album, as well as Birth of the Cool, Sketches of Spain, In a Silent Way, and Bitches Brew rank in the top 1000 albums of all time. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Read more.

Duke Ellington (1899-1974) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz/big band leader and pianist born Edward Kennedy Ellington in Washington, D.C. One of only seven recipients of both the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and Trustees Award. He has also been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. He also won the Pulitzer Prize. “Mood Indigo” and “Take the ‘A’ Train” are DMDB Hall of Fame inductees and are both in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. Those songs, as well as “It’ Don’t Mean a Thing if It Ain’t Got That Swing” and “Sophisticated Lady” the top 1% of all time. His box set The Blanton-Webster Band and live album At Newport rank in the top 1000 albums of all time. Read more.

Herbie Hancock (1940-) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Hancock was a jazz pianist born in Chicago in 1940. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. He is a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and a Kennedy Center Honoree. His albums Maiden Voyage and Head Hunters have both been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame and River: The Joni Letters won the Grammy for Album of the Year. Read more.

Woody Herman (1913-1987) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz/big band leader, clarinetist, and composer born in 1913 in Milwaukee. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. “Blues in the Night (My Mama Done Tol’ Me)” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. “At the Woodchopper’s Ball,” “Early Autumn,” and “Four Brothers” are in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.

Charles Mingus (1922-1979) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz pianist, bassist, and composer born 1922 in Nogales, Arizona. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Mingus Dynasty and Ah Um are in the Grammy Hall of Fame. The latter is also in the National Recording Registry. Read more.

Thelonious Monk (1917-1982) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz pianist born in Rocky Mount, NC. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. He is a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and won the Pulitzer Prize. His song “Round Midnight” is in the Grammy Hall of Fame, one of the top 100 jazz songs, and ranks in the top 1% of all time. His albums Genius of Modern Music Vol. 1, Genius of Modern Music, Vol. 2, and Brilliant Corners are all in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.

Artie Shaw (1910-2004) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz clarinetist and bandleader born in 1910 in New York City. He has been inducted into the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. “Begin the Beguine,” “Frenesi,” and “Stardust” are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. Read more.

Nina Simone (1933-2003) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz/blues singer born 1933 in Tryon, North Carolina. Inductee in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame, and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. “I Loves You, Porgy” and “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” are in the Grammy Hall of Fame. “Mississippi Goddam” is in the National Recording Registry. Read more.

Bessie Smith (1894-1937) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Blues singer born in Chattanooga, TN. Known as “The Empress of the Blues.” Inductee in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Blues Hall of Fame, Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Her version of “St. Louis Blues” with Louis Armstrong is a DMDB Hall of Fame inductee and in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. That song and “Down Hearted Blues” rank in the top 1% of all time. Her compilation The Essential ranks as one of the top 1000 albums of all time. Read more.

Sarah Vaughan (1924-1990) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz singer born 1924 in Newark, New Jersey. Inductee in the Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. “If You Could See Me Now” and “Tenderly” are in the Grammy Hall of Fame, as is her self-titled 1954 album. Read more.

Fats Waller (1904-1943) Inducted December 2021 as a “Top 20 Jazz Act”

Jazz/big band songwriter and pianist born Thomas Wright Waller in New York, NY. Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Big Band/Jazz Hall of Fame and Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame. Also a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. “Ain’t Misbehavin’” is a DMDB Hall of Fame inductee and in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Pre-Rock Era. That song and “Honeysuckle Rose” rank in the top 1% of all time. Both of those songs and “Jitterbug Waltz” are in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Read more.