George Shearing - Tippin' In (2018)

George Shearing enjoys an international reputation as a pianist, arranger and composer. Equally at home on the concert stage as in jazz clubs, Shearing is recognized for inventive, orchestrated jazz. He has written over 300 compositions, including the classic “Lullaby of Birdland,” which has become a jazz standard.

Shearing was born in 1919 in the Battersea area of London. Congenitally blind, he was the youngest of nine children. His father delivered coal and his mother cleaned trains at night after caring for the children during the day. His only formal musical education consisted of four years of study at the Linden Lodge School for the Blind. While his talent won him a number of university scholarships, he was forced to refuse them in favor of a more financially productive pursuit…playing piano in a neighborhood pub for the handsome salary of $5 a week! Shearing joined an all-blind band in the 1930’s. At that time he developed a friendship with the noted jazz critic and author, Leonard Feather. Through this contact, he made his first appearance on BBC radio.

In 1947, Mr. Shearing moved to America, where he spent two years establishing his fame on this side of the Atlantic. The Shearing Sound commanded national attention when, in 1949, he gathered a quintet to record “September in the Rain” for MGM. The record was an overnight success and sold 900,000 copies. His U.S. reputation was permanently established when he was booked into Birdland, the legendary jazz spot in New York. Since then, he has become one of the country’s most popular performing and recording artist. In 1982 and 1983 he won Grammy Awards with recordings he made with Mel Torme. Mr. Shearing was the subject of an hour-long television documentary entitled “The Shearing Touch” presented on the Southbank Show with Melvyn Bragg on ITV in the UK.

Three presidents have invited Mr. Shearing to play at the White House.. Ford, Carter and Reagan. He performed at the Royal Command Performance for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip. He is a member of the Friars Club and the Lotos Club in New York and the Bohemian Club in San Francisco.

TRACKLIST

01. Mambo In Chimes
02. Darn That Dream
03. Young And Foolish
04. One Note Samba
05. Basie's Masement
06. As I Love You
07. Let There Be Love
08. High On A Windy Hill
09. Lullaby Of Birdland
10. If I Had You
11. Little White Lies
12. All Too Soon
13. For Every Man There's A Woman
14. Black Satin
15. Double Deal
16. Isn't It Romantic
17. If
18. Pick Yourself Up
19. Autumn Leaves
20. Bernie's Tune
21. Guilty
22. Caravan
23. You Came A Long Way From St. Louis
24. Joy Spring
25. On The Street Where You Live
26. Fly Me To The Moon
27. Baubles, Bangles And Beads
28. A Tune For Humming