Chuck Mangione
Encyclopedia
Charles Frank "Chuck" Mangione (icon; born November 29, 1940) is an American flugelhorn
player and composer who achieved international success in 1977 with his jazz-pop single, "Feels So Good." Mangione has released more than thirty albums since 1960.
, Mangione and his pianist brother Gap
led the Jazz Brothers group which recorded three albums for Riverside Records
. He attended the Eastman School of Music
from 1958 to 1963, and afterwards joined Art Blakey
's Jazz Messengers, for which he filled the trumpet seat, previously held by greats such as Clifford Brown
, Kenny Dorham
, Bill Hardman
, and Lee Morgan
.
In the late 1960s, Mangione was a member of the band The National Gallery, which in 1968 released the album Performing Musical Interpretations of the Paintings of Paul Klee
. Mangione served as director of the Eastman jazz ensemble from 1968 to 1972, and in 1970, he returned to recording with the album Friends and Love, recorded in concert with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
and numerous guest performers.
Mangione's quartet with saxophonist Gerry Niewood
was a popular concert and recording act throughout the 1970s. "Bellavia," recorded during this collaboration, won Mangione his first Grammy Award
in 1977
in the category Best Instrumental Composition
.
Mangione's composition "Chase the Clouds Away" was used at the 1976 Summer Olympics
, held in Montreal, Quebec, with a later composition, "Give It All You Got
," being used as the theme to the 1980 Winter Olympic Games, held in Lake Placid, New York
. He performed it live at the closing ceremonies, which were televised globally. In 1978 Mangione composed the soundtrack for the film "The Children of Sanchez
" starring Anthony Quinn
. This album won him his second Grammy, in the category Best Pop Instrumental performance
in 1979
and the title song, almost 15 minutes long in full version and featuring one of the most recognizable wind section themes, has not lost its popularity to this day.
In addition to his quartet with Niewood, Mangione also had much success with his later-‘70s ensemble, including Mangione on flugelhorn and keyboard, Chris Vadala on saxophones and flutes, Grant Geissman on guitars, Charles Meeks on bass and James Bradley, Jr. on drums. This version of Mangione’s band recorded and toured behind the hit studio albums “Feels So Good” and “Fun and Games,” as well as the “Children of Sanchez” film soundtrack recordings, and were some of the musicians that played on various songs as part of Mangione's 1980 “Tarantella" benefit concert.
The band was also featured, along with a 70-piece orchestra, on the live album “An Evening of Magic,” which was recorded at the Hollywood Bowl on July 16, 1978, at the height of Mangione’s success from “Feels So Good.” Performances of material new and old included versions of “Main Squeeze,” “Hill Where the Lord Hides” and “Chase the Clouds Away.” Mangione opened and closed the show with “Feels So Good” and its “Reprise” version. “B’Bye” featured a string arrangement from Bill Reichenbach. The horns were arranged by frequent collaborator Jeff Tyzik
, who also played trumpet in the horn section that night. Mangione also played material from the just-released “Children of Sanchez” soundtrack album, which made its West Coast concert debut.
The liner notes from the album describe the frenzy in which the performance was put together. Unable to set up on stage the day before (The Los Angeles Philharmonic played the “1812 Overture” on July 15), Mangione and his crew had only the day of show to set up lights, sound and recording gear. He had only nine hours the day before to rehearse at A&M studios with the orchestra's musicians and was never able to run through the entire set list once in its entirety. He and the band stayed at a hotel up the street from the Bowl to make sure they wouldn't miss the performance due to snarled traffic pouring in as showtime neared.
Nevertheless, the show went off without a hitch.
In December 1980, Mangione held a benefit concert in the American Hotel Ballroom in Rochester to benefit the victims of an earthquake in Italy. The nine-hour concert included jazz luminaries such as Chick Corea, Steve Gadd and Dizzy Gillespie, among a host of other session and concert greats. Soon thereafter, A&M released “Tarantella,” named for the Italian traditional dance, a vinyl album of some of the concert’s exceptional moments, which has yet to resurface on CD.
A 1980 issue of Current Biography
called "Feels So Good" the most recognized tune since "Michelle
" by The Beatles
. Recently, smooth jazz stations throughout the United States have recognized Mangione's "Feels So Good" as their all-time number one song. He raised over $50,000 for St. John's Nursing Home at his 60th Birthday Bash Concert, held at Rochester
's Eastman Theatre
and played a few bars of "Feels So Good.
", in May 2007. A recurring joke
is that whatever tune he plays on his flugelhorn inevitably shifts into "Feels So Good" after a few bars. The series finale in 2009 included Chuck Mangione one last time, playing the National Anthem
which of course segued into "Feels So Good". After the Mega Lo Mart blows up, Chuck states during a group therapy session that "Every song I play now sounds like 'Feels So Good'." In homage to the series, Mangione's album Everything For Love contains a track entitled Peggy Hill
.
In the Magnum, P.I.
episode "Paradise Blues," Chuck Mangione portrays a fellow night club act along with TC's (Roger E. Mosley
's) former girlfriend. Chuck performs two singles and has lines near the end of the show.
On July 4, 1983, Chuck Mangione was in attendance as the New York Yankees
played the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. After playing the national anthem on the flugelhorn
, Mangione, a Yankees fan, joined Phil Rizzuto
and Bill White in the broadcast booth. Mangione gave his thoughts on the Yankee players and played a few bars of "Feels So Good." Yankee pitcher Dave Righetti
threw a no-hitter, defeating the Red Sox 4-0.
In 1988, Mangione appeared on the hit children's TV show: Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show
as "Little Boy Blue".
Mangione's Feels So Good has also appeared in Family Guy
.
Two members of the band, Gerry Niewood
and Coleman Mellett
, were among those killed when Continental Airlines Flight 3407 crashed into a Buffalo, New York, area house on February 12, 2009. In a statement Mangione said: "I'm in shock over the horrible, heartbreaking tragedy."
Flugelhorn
The flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus...
player and composer who achieved international success in 1977 with his jazz-pop single, "Feels So Good." Mangione has released more than thirty albums since 1960.
Early life and career
Born and raised in Rochester, New YorkRochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, Mangione and his pianist brother Gap
Gap Mangione
Gaspare "Gap" Mangione is a jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader from Rochester, New York, United States.Born and raised in Rochester, Mangione's younger brother is Grammy-winning flugelhornist Chuck Mangione. Members of a music-loving family, both Gap and Chuck took up instruments...
led the Jazz Brothers group which recorded three albums for Riverside Records
Riverside Records
Riverside Records was a United States record label specializing in jazz. Founded by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer under his firm Bill Grauer Productions, Inc. in 1953, the label was a major presence in the jazz record industry for a decade...
. He attended the Eastman School of Music
Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...
from 1958 to 1963, and afterwards joined Art Blakey
Art Blakey
Arthur "Art" Blakey , known later as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina, was an American Grammy Award-winning jazz drummer and bandleader. He was a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community....
's Jazz Messengers, for which he filled the trumpet seat, previously held by greats such as Clifford Brown
Clifford Brown
Clifford Brown , aka "Brownie," was an influential and highly rated American jazz trumpeter. He died aged 25, leaving behind only four years' worth of recordings...
, Kenny Dorham
Kenny Dorham
McKinley Howard Dorham was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and composer born in Fairfield, Texas. Dorham's talent is frequently lauded by critics and other musicians, but he never received the kind of attention from the jazz establishment that many of his peers did...
, Bill Hardman
Bill Hardman
William Franklin Hardman, Jr. was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhornist who chiefly played hard bop.-Biography:...
, and Lee Morgan
Lee Morgan
Edward Lee Morgan was an American hard bop trumpeter.-Biography:...
.
In the late 1960s, Mangione was a member of the band The National Gallery, which in 1968 released the album Performing Musical Interpretations of the Paintings of Paul Klee
Paul Klee
Paul Klee was born in Münchenbuchsee, Switzerland, and is considered both a German and a Swiss painter. His highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. He was, as well, a student of orientalism...
. Mangione served as director of the Eastman jazz ensemble from 1968 to 1972, and in 1970, he returned to recording with the album Friends and Love, recorded in concert with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra is an American orchestra based in the city of Rochester, Monroe County, New York. Its primary concert venue is the Eastman Theatre at the Eastman School of Music....
and numerous guest performers.
Mangione's quartet with saxophonist Gerry Niewood
Gerry Niewood
Gerry Niewood was an American jazz saxophonist who worked closely with Chuck Mangione. Like Mangione, Niewood was born in Rochester, New York and graduated from the Eastman School of Music located there....
was a popular concert and recording act throughout the 1970s. "Bellavia," recorded during this collaboration, won Mangione his first Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
in 1977
Grammy Awards of 1977
The 19th Grammy Awards were held on February 19, 1977, and were broadcast live on American television . They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1976.-Award winners:*Record of the Year...
in the category Best Instrumental Composition
Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition
The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition has been awarded since 1960. The award is presented to the composer of the music.There have been several minor changes to the name of the award:...
.
Mangione's composition "Chase the Clouds Away" was used at the 1976 Summer Olympics
1976 Summer Olympics
The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...
, held in Montreal, Quebec, with a later composition, "Give It All You Got
Give It All You Got
"Give It All You Got" is an instrumental song from 1980 by the American flugelhorn player Chuck Mangione. It was written and produced by Mangione, and can be found on his 1979 album Fun and Games....
," being used as the theme to the 1980 Winter Olympic Games, held in Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid, New York
Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a population of 2,638....
. He performed it live at the closing ceremonies, which were televised globally. In 1978 Mangione composed the soundtrack for the film "The Children of Sanchez
The Children of Sanchez
The Children of Sanchez is a 1961 book by American anthropologist Oscar Lewis about a Mexican family living in the Mexico City slum of Tepito, which he studied as part of his program to develop his concept of culture of poverty...
" starring Anthony Quinn
Anthony Quinn
Antonio Rodolfo Quinn-Oaxaca , more commonly known as Anthony Quinn, was a Mexican American actor, as well as a painter and writer...
. This album won him his second Grammy, in the category Best Pop Instrumental performance
Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance was awarded between 1969 and 2011.*In 1969 it was awarded as Best Contemporary-Pop Performance, Instrumental*From 1970 to 1971 it was awarded as Best Contemporary Instrumental Performance...
in 1979
Grammy Awards of 1979
The 21st Grammy Awards were held in 1979, and were broadcast live on American television. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1978.- Award winners :*Record of the Year**Phil Ramone & Billy Joel for "Just the Way You Are"...
and the title song, almost 15 minutes long in full version and featuring one of the most recognizable wind section themes, has not lost its popularity to this day.
In addition to his quartet with Niewood, Mangione also had much success with his later-‘70s ensemble, including Mangione on flugelhorn and keyboard, Chris Vadala on saxophones and flutes, Grant Geissman on guitars, Charles Meeks on bass and James Bradley, Jr. on drums. This version of Mangione’s band recorded and toured behind the hit studio albums “Feels So Good” and “Fun and Games,” as well as the “Children of Sanchez” film soundtrack recordings, and were some of the musicians that played on various songs as part of Mangione's 1980 “Tarantella" benefit concert.
The band was also featured, along with a 70-piece orchestra, on the live album “An Evening of Magic,” which was recorded at the Hollywood Bowl on July 16, 1978, at the height of Mangione’s success from “Feels So Good.” Performances of material new and old included versions of “Main Squeeze,” “Hill Where the Lord Hides” and “Chase the Clouds Away.” Mangione opened and closed the show with “Feels So Good” and its “Reprise” version. “B’Bye” featured a string arrangement from Bill Reichenbach. The horns were arranged by frequent collaborator Jeff Tyzik
Jeff Tyzik
Jeff Tyzik is an American conductor, arranger, and trumpeter from Rochester, New York, working primarily with orchestral and jazz styles.-Education:Tyzik, born in Hyde Park, New York, started playing cornet at age 9...
, who also played trumpet in the horn section that night. Mangione also played material from the just-released “Children of Sanchez” soundtrack album, which made its West Coast concert debut.
The liner notes from the album describe the frenzy in which the performance was put together. Unable to set up on stage the day before (The Los Angeles Philharmonic played the “1812 Overture” on July 15), Mangione and his crew had only the day of show to set up lights, sound and recording gear. He had only nine hours the day before to rehearse at A&M studios with the orchestra's musicians and was never able to run through the entire set list once in its entirety. He and the band stayed at a hotel up the street from the Bowl to make sure they wouldn't miss the performance due to snarled traffic pouring in as showtime neared.
Nevertheless, the show went off without a hitch.
In December 1980, Mangione held a benefit concert in the American Hotel Ballroom in Rochester to benefit the victims of an earthquake in Italy. The nine-hour concert included jazz luminaries such as Chick Corea, Steve Gadd and Dizzy Gillespie, among a host of other session and concert greats. Soon thereafter, A&M released “Tarantella,” named for the Italian traditional dance, a vinyl album of some of the concert’s exceptional moments, which has yet to resurface on CD.
A 1980 issue of Current Biography
Current Biography
Current Biography is an American monthly magazine published by the H. W. Wilson Company of The Bronx, New York, a publisher of reference books, that appears every month except December. Current Biography contains profiles of people in the news and includes politicians, athletes, businessmen, and...
called "Feels So Good" the most recognized tune since "Michelle
Michelle (song)
"Michelle" is a love ballad by The Beatles, mainly written by Paul McCartney, with the middle eight co-written with John Lennon. It is featured on their Rubber Soul album. The song departs from most of The Beatles' other recordings in that some of the lyrics are in French...
" by The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
. Recently, smooth jazz stations throughout the United States have recognized Mangione's "Feels So Good" as their all-time number one song. He raised over $50,000 for St. John's Nursing Home at his 60th Birthday Bash Concert, held at Rochester
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
's Eastman Theatre
Eastman Theatre
The Eastman Theatre is the main building of the Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester, located in downtown Rochester, New York....
and played a few bars of "Feels So Good.
Relatives
Chuck Mangione's relatives include his uncle Jerre Mangione (Mar. 20, 1909 - Aug. 16, 1998) who was an American writer and scholar of the Italian-American experience. His brother is Gaspare (Gap) Mangione, with whom he played jazz in Rochester, New York. They recorded as the Jazz Brothers. Later, and into this decade, they played, recorded and toured together, mainly in Chuck's large, orchestral concerts. Chuck has also made guest appearances with Gap's big band.Acting career and television appearances
In addition to music, Chuck Mangione had a recurring voice-acting role on the animated television series King of the Hill. In it he portrays himself as a celebrity spokesman for Mega Lo Mart, although his animated form appears much younger than his current age, more closely resembling how he looked in the late 1970s. The first episode of King of the Hill featuring Mangione originally aired on February 16, 1997. The episode featured an original score specifically recorded for the occasion. He continued to appear in episodes, a total of ten more up until 2003. In the context of the series, Chuck chafes under an oppressive spokesperson contract with Mega Lo Mart and eventually goes into hiding inside one of their own stores. After a long hiatus, the character of Chuck Mangione returned in a later episode titled "Lucky's Wedding SuitLucky's Wedding Suit
"Lucky's Wedding Suit" is the 213th episode of the Fox animated television series King of the Hill, and was the 12th episode broadcast in the 11th season. It is a nominee for the Writers Guild of America Award in the animation category...
", in May 2007. A recurring joke
Running gag
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
is that whatever tune he plays on his flugelhorn inevitably shifts into "Feels So Good" after a few bars. The series finale in 2009 included Chuck Mangione one last time, playing the National Anthem
The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from "Defence of Fort McHenry", a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy ships...
which of course segued into "Feels So Good". After the Mega Lo Mart blows up, Chuck states during a group therapy session that "Every song I play now sounds like 'Feels So Good'." In homage to the series, Mangione's album Everything For Love contains a track entitled Peggy Hill
Peggy Hill
Margaret J. "Peggy" Hill is a fictional character in the American animated series King of the Hill.-Biography:Peggy is the matriarch of the Hill family, and the wife of series protagonist Hank Hill. She wears rimless glasses and is generally seen wearing cut-off blouses and culottes...
.
In the Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I.
Magnum, P.I. is an American television series starring Tom Selleck as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator living on Oahu, Hawaii. The series ran from 1980 to 1988 in first-run broadcast on the American CBS television network....
episode "Paradise Blues," Chuck Mangione portrays a fellow night club act along with TC's (Roger E. Mosley
Roger E. Mosley
Roger Earl Mosley is an American actor best known for his role as the helicopter pilot Theodore "T.C." Calvin on the long running television series, Magnum, P.I., which starred Tom Selleck as the title character.-Early life:...
's) former girlfriend. Chuck performs two singles and has lines near the end of the show.
On July 4, 1983, Chuck Mangione was in attendance as the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
played the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. After playing the national anthem on the flugelhorn
Flugelhorn
The flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus...
, Mangione, a Yankees fan, joined Phil Rizzuto
Phil Rizzuto
Philip Francis Rizzuto , nicknamed "The Scooter", was an American Major League Baseball shortstop. He spent his entire 13-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
and Bill White in the broadcast booth. Mangione gave his thoughts on the Yankee players and played a few bars of "Feels So Good." Yankee pitcher Dave Righetti
Dave Righetti
David Allan Righetti is a former left-handed pitcher for various Major League Baseball teams, primarily the New York Yankees. He is currently the pitching coach for the San Francisco Giants and was the first player in history to both pitch a no-hitter and also lead the league in saves in his career...
threw a no-hitter, defeating the Red Sox 4-0.
In 1988, Mangione appeared on the hit children's TV show: Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show
The Elephant Show
The Elephant Show is a Canadian children's television show from 1984 until 1988.-Summary and Highlights:...
as "Little Boy Blue".
Mangione's Feels So Good has also appeared in Family Guy
Family Guy
Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
.
Mangione's current band
Chuck Mangione's current band comprises:- Brandon Wright - Woodwinds
- Dave Tull - Drums
- Kevin Axt - Bass
- Corey Allen - Keyboards
Two members of the band, Gerry Niewood
Gerry Niewood
Gerry Niewood was an American jazz saxophonist who worked closely with Chuck Mangione. Like Mangione, Niewood was born in Rochester, New York and graduated from the Eastman School of Music located there....
and Coleman Mellett
Coleman Mellett
Coleman Mellett was an American jazz guitarist in Chuck Mangione's band. He had been scheduled to play with Mangione and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra on February 13, 2009, but was killed the night before in the crash of Continental Connection Flight 3407 together with fellow band member,...
, were among those killed when Continental Airlines Flight 3407 crashed into a Buffalo, New York, area house on February 12, 2009. In a statement Mangione said: "I'm in shock over the horrible, heartbreaking tragedy."
Compositions
Chuck Mangione's compositions include "Feels So Good", "Children of Sanchez", "Hide and Seek", "Hill Where the Lord Hides", "Fun and Games", "Give It All You Got", "Land of Make Believe", "Bellavia", "Main Squeeze", "Love Notes", "Steppin' Out", "I Never Missed Someone Before", "Maui-Waui", "Last Dance", "El Gato Triste", and "Chase the Clouds Away".External links
- Chuck Mangione official website
- [ Chuck Mangione at AllMusic.com]
- Mangione Magic - The Music of Chuck Mangione