Editing Count Basie (section)

===Post-war and later years===
[[File:Count Basie in Rhythm and Blues Revue.jpg|thumb|Basie in ''[[Rhythm and Blues Revue]]'' (1955)]]
The big band era appeared to have ended after the war, and Basie disbanded the group. For a while, he performed in combos, sometimes stretched to an orchestra. In 1950, he headlined the [[Universal-International]] short film ''[["Sugar Chile" Robinson, Billie Holiday, Count Basie and His Sextet]].'' He reformed his group as a 16-piece orchestra in 1952. This group was eventually called the New Testament band. Basie credited [[Billy Eckstine]], a top male vocalist of the time, for prompting his return to Big Band. He said that [[Norman Granz]] got them into the [[Birdland (jazz club)|Birdland]] club and promoted the new band through recordings on the [[Mercury Records|Mercury]], [[Clef Records|Clef]], and [[Verve Records|Verve]] labels.<ref>Basie (1985), pp. 289–290.</ref> By 1956, Basie's recordings were also showcased by [[Ben Selvin]] within the [[RCA Thesaurus]] transcription library.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=iwoEAAAAMBAJ&dq=Ben+Selvin+RCA+Thesaurus&pg=PA39 The Billboard Music-Radio - "Thesaurus in Pact for Granz Transcriptions" 18 August 1956 p. 39 Ben Selvin RCA Thesaurus on Google Books.com]</ref> The [[jukebox]] era had begun, and Basie shared the exposure along with early [[rock'n'roll]] and [[rhythm and blues]] artists. Basie's new band was more of an ensemble group, with fewer solo turns, and relying less on "head" and more on written arrangements.

Basie added touches of [[bebop]] "so long as it made sense", and he required that "it all had to have feeling". Basie's band was sharing Birdland with such bebop musicians as [[Charlie Parker]], [[Dizzy Gillespie]], and [[Miles Davis]]. Behind the occasional bebop solos, he always kept his strict rhythmic pulse, "so it doesn't matter what they do up front; the audience gets the beat".<ref>Dance, 1980, p. 5.</ref> Basie also added [[flute]] to some numbers, a novelty at the time that became widely copied.<ref>Basie (1985), pp. 281, 304.</ref> Soon, his band was touring and recording again. The new band included: Paul Campbell, [[Tommy Turrentine]], [[Johnny Letman]], [[Idrees Sulieman]], and [[Joe Newman (trumpeter)|Joe Newman]] (trumpet); Jimmy Wilkins, [[Benny Powell]], [[Matthew Gee]] (trombone); [[Paul Quinichette]] and [[Floyd "Candy" Johnson]] (tenor sax); [[Frank Wess]] (tenor sax and flute); [[Marshal Royal]] and [[Ernie Wilkins]] (alto sax); and [[Charlie Fowlkes]] (baritone sax).<ref>Basie (1985), p. 293.</ref> ''[[DownBeat]]'' magazine reported: "(Basie) has managed to assemble an ensemble that can thrill both the listener who remembers 1938 and the youngster who has never before heard a big band like this."<ref>Basie (1985), p. 299.</ref> In 1957, Basie sued the jazz venue Ball and Chain in Miami over outstanding fees, causing the closure of the venue.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KnTSqVu9Zr4C&pg=PA59|title=Jade Visions: The Life and Music of Scott LaFaro|first=Helene|last=LaFaro-Fernandez|date=January 1, 2009|publisher=University of North Texas Press|access-date=May 2, 2017|via=Google Books|isbn=9781574412734}}</ref>

In 1958, the band made its first European tour. Jazz was especially appreciated in France, The Netherlands, and Germany in the 1950s; these countries were the stomping grounds for many [[expatriate]] American jazz stars who were either resurrecting their careers or sitting out the years of racial divide in the United States. [[Neal Hefti]] began to provide arrangements, including "[[Li'l Darlin']]". By the mid-1950s, Basie's band had become one of the preeminent backing big bands for some of the most prominent jazz vocalists of the time. They also toured with the "Birdland Stars of 1955", whose lineup included [[Sarah Vaughan]], [[Erroll Garner]], [[Lester Young]], [[George Shearing]], and [[Stan Getz]].<ref>Basie (1985), p. 315.</ref>

In 1957, Basie released the live album ''[[Count Basie at Newport]]''. "[[April in Paris (song)|April in Paris]]" (arrangement by Wild Bill Davis) was a best-selling instrumental and the title song for the hit album.<ref>Basie (1985), p. 318.</ref> The Basie band made two tours in the British Isles and on the second, they put on a command performance for [[Queen Elizabeth II]], along with [[Judy Garland]], [[Vera Lynn]], and [[Mario Lanza]].<ref>Basie (1985), p. 323.</ref> He was a guest on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[The Pat Boone Chevy Showroom]]'', a venue also opened to several other black entertainers. In 1959, Basie's band recorded a "greatest hits" double album ''The Count Basie Story'' ([[Frank Foster (jazz musician)|Frank Foster]], arranger), and ''[[Basie/Eckstine Incorporated]]'', an album featuring Billy Eckstine, [[Quincy Jones]] (as arranger) and the Count Basie Orchestra. It was released by Roulette Records, then later reissued by Capitol Records.

Later that year, Basie appeared on a television special with [[Fred Astaire]], featuring a dance solo to "[[Sweet Georgia Brown]]", followed in January 1961 by Basie performing at one of the five [[John F. Kennedy]] Inaugural Balls.<ref>Basie (1985), pp. 335, 337.</ref> That summer, Basie and [[Duke Ellington]] combined forces for the recording ''[[First Time! The Count Meets the Duke]]'', each providing four numbers from their play books.<ref>Basie (1985), p. 339.</ref>

[[Image:Countbasie.jpg|thumb|Count Basie (left) in concert (Cologne 1975)]]
During the balance of the 1960s, the band kept active with tours, recordings, television appearances, festivals, [[Las Vegas Valley|Las Vegas]] shows, and travel abroad, including cruises. Some time around 1964, Basie adopted his trademark yachting cap.<ref>Basie (1985), p. 353.</ref>

Through steady changes in personnel, Basie led the band into the 1980s. Basie made a few more movie appearances, such as in the [[Jerry Lewis]] film ''[[Cinderfella]]'' (1960) and the [[Mel Brooks]] movie ''[[Blazing Saddles]]'' (1974), playing a revised arrangement of "April in Paris". In 1982 Basie and his orchestra were the featured entertainment for the 50th Anniversary celebrations of the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] at the [[David L. Lawrence Convention Center]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=qEocAAAAIBAJ&dq=howard+cosell+plays+pittsburgh+they+play+the+whole+city&pg=4344,3796544 | title=The Pittsburgh Press - Google News Archive Search }}</ref>

Basie was a [[Prince Hall Freemasonry|Prince Hall Freemason]] as a member of Wisdom Lodge No. 102 in Chicago as well as a [[Shriners|Shriner]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Famous Freemasons (A – Z) – Freemasons Community |url=https://freemasonscommunity.life/famous-freemasons/ |access-date=May 19, 2023 |website=freemasonscommunity.life}}</ref>