Ken Ascher: Amerikansk komponist

oktober">26. oktober 1944) er ein amerikansk jazzpianist, komponist og arrangør som er aktiv innan jazz, rock, klassisk og musikalar. Han er kjend for å i lag med Paul Williams ha skrive The Rainbow Connection — musikk frå The Muppet Movie. Både Williams og Ascher fekk ein Oscar-nominasjon i 1979 for beste originale song.

Kenny Ascher
Fødd	26. oktober 1944 (79 år)
Fødestad	Washington
Fødenamn	Kenneth Lee Ascher
Opphav	USA
Sjanger	Storband, jazz, rock
Instrument	piano
Verka som	Jazzpianist, komponist, arrangør, studiomusikar

Ascher har mellom anna spelt klaverinstrument og gjort strykearrangement for John Lennon-albuma Mind Games, Walls and Bridges og Rock 'n' Roll og Yoko Ono sitt A Story, musikk for fleire songar frå Barbra Streisand' sin A Star Is Born og arrangement for delar av Jim Steinman og Meat Loaf sitt Bat out of Hell (produsert av Todd Rundgren).

• Three for the show, m & arr. Ascher (1960)
• The White rabbit, musikk & arr. Ascher (1960)
• Scotch mist, musikk & arr. av Ascher (1960)
• Theme for Ken's men, m & arr. Ascher (1960)
• Retrospect, tekst & arr. Ascher (1960)
• Typically April: A Revolutionary Musical, lyrics and musikk av Ascher (1966)
• Stars and sand (1967)
• Nightling (1967)
• April's in my lady's face (1967)
• Colors (1967)
• Dressed up for a dream (1967)
• These blues were made for cookin' (1967)
• Who can hear the nightingale? (1967)
• It seems different to me now (1967)
• Lullaby (1967)
• Last night's rain (1967)
• Laughin' place (1967)
• Miss Fitz (1967)
• Maybe another spring (1967)
• Funny little girl (1967)
• Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra (1968)
• 1968 Baltimore Colts Highlights (ASCAP 1968)
• Music for Orchestra (Master's essay, Columbia University) (1968)
• Bittersweet wild child, tekst av Donna Lee, musikk av Ascher (1968)
• Cavettina (1968)
• Silent partners, tekst Donna Lee, musikk Ascher (1968)
• So I told it to the rain, tekst Donna Lee Levitt (Donna Lee), musikk av Ascher (1968)
• You can't make this child cry, tekst Donna Lee Levitt, musikk av Ascher (1968)
• Here I go again, tekst Donna Lee (Donna Lee Levitt), musikk av Ascher (1968)
• My memory bank's been robbed, tekst Donna Lee (Donna Lee Levitt), musikk av Ascher (1968)
• Leaf in the wind, tekst og musikk av Lon Ritchie & Ascher (1969)
• Omnibus, tekst & musikk av Ascher, Donna Lee & Joe Renzetti (1969)
• One for Jim (1970)
• Another kind of blues (1970)
• Mosaics : a piece for gitar, string quartet and woodwind quartet with accompanying aesthetic commentary and description (doktorgradsavhandling for Columbia University) (1972)
• Inspiration, av Paul Williams, Ascher (1973)
• Bugaloo and such (1973)
• Play, piper, play, tekst Donna Lee Levitt, musikk Ascher (1973)
• Little bit of love, tekst & musikk av Paul Williams & Ascher (1974)
• Lone star, tekst & musikk av Paul Williams & Ascher (1974)
• Loneliness, tekst & musikk Paul Williams & Ascher (1974)
• Nilsson sings Newman, av Paul Williams, Ascher (1974)
• Sad song, tekst & musikk Paul Williams & Ascher (1974)
• Sunday, tekst & musikk Paul Williams & Ascher (1974)
• You know me, tekst & musikk Paul Williams & Ascher (1974)
• She Sings for Free, tekst & musikk av Paul Williams & Ascher (1974, 2002)
• You and Me Against the World, Paul Williams, Ascher (1974)
• Makin' the same mistakes (1974)
• Isn't it odd? (1974)
• Candlelight dreamer (1974)
• Bein' a movie star (1974)
• Coming undone (1974)
• With you, tekst Carole Bayer Sager, musikk Ascher (1975)
• Don't you worry child, tekst Carole Bayer Sager, musikk Ascher (1975)
• Frå filmen A Star is Born (1976)
  1. Watch Closely Now, Paul Williams, Ascher
  2. Hellacious Acres, Paul Williams, Ascher
  3. The Woman in the Moon, Paul Williams, Ascher
  4. Finale: With One More Look at You/Watch Closely Now, Paul Williams, Ascher
• Run for life, vocal musikk av Ascher, lyrics by Albert Lerman (1978)
• From the 1979 film, The Muppet Movie
  1. Rainbow connection, tekst & musikk av Ascher og Paul Williams (1979)
  2. Movin' right along, Paul Williams & Ascher (1979)
  3. Never Before, Never Again!, – Miss Piggy, Paul Williams & Ascher (1979)
  4. Never Before, Never Again!, – Instrumental, Paul Williams & Ascher (1979)
  5. I Hope That Somethin' Better Comes Along!, – Kermit and Rowlf, Paul Williams & Ascher (1979)
  6. Can you picture that?, Paul Williams & Ascher (1979)
  7. I Hope That Somethin' Better Comes Along!, – Instrumental
  8. For goodness sake, Paul Williams, Ascher (1979)
  9. Finale, the magic store, Paul Williams, Ascher (1979)
• For the life of me, Paul Williams, Ascher (1979)
• Making friends, Waring & LaRosa; arr. Ascher (1979)
• Gift, Paul Williams, Ascher (1979)
• Little more like you, Paul Williams, Ascher (1979)
• Save me a dream, Paul Williams, Ascher (1979)
• Go away
• Song for children of all ages, tekst and musikk av Ascher
• Kenny's ballad, musikk av Ascher (1980)
• Perfect crime, musikk & lyrics av Ascher & John Barranco (1989)

Som leiar

• Kenny Ascher, The Moog Machine, Switched-On Rock (played on Moog by Kenny) Columbia Records (1969)
• Kenny Ascher, Christmas Becomes Electric / The Moog (played on Moog by Kenny) Columbia Records (1970)

Som arrangør

• Woody Herman And The Thundering Herd, Concerto For Herd (Monterey Jazz Festival), Verve Records (Sep 17, 1967)

Woody's boogaloo, arrangørt av Ascher

• Paul Williams, Here Comes Inspiration, (LP) (Ascher er produsent, dirigent, arrangør, writer, & pianist) A&M Records, (1974)
• Airto Moreira, Virgin Land (Salvation, 1974)
• Helen Reddy, No Way To Treat A Lady, Capitol Records (1975)

B3 – You Know Me, av Ascher & Williams

• Lori Lieberman, Letting Go, RCA Victor, arrangement av Ascher (19 Jun 1978)

Som studiomusikar

• Howard Tate, Keep cool (Don’t be a fool), The Hit Factory (Oct 12, 1971)
• Tom Scott, Smoothin' on down, Epic/Ode, New York (July 1971)
• Patti Labelle, Moon Shadow (Ascher speler på spor A3, A4, B2, B4), Warner Bros. Records (1972)
• Yvonne Elliman, Yvonne Elliman, Decca Records (1972)
• Bill Quateman, Bill Quatemen, (Ascher speler klaverinstrument, produced the album, and wrote the string arrangements) CBS Records (1972)
• John Lennon, Mind Games (1973)
• Johnny Hartman, I've Been There (1973)
• Cecil Holmes, Cecil Homes Soulful Sounds, The - Black Motion Picture Experience, Buddah Records (1973)
• Bette Midler, Bette Midler, Atlantic Records (1973)
• Morgana King, New Beginnings, Paramount Records (1973)

A4 – The Sands Of Time And Changes (Ascher, piano)
B2 – A Song For You (Ascher, piano)

• Mark Murphy, Mark II, Muse Records (1973)
• John Prine, Sweet Revenge, Atlantic Records (1973)
• Carly Simon, Hotcakes, Elektra Records (1974)
• Martha Reeves, Martha Reeves, MCA Records (1974)

B2 – Sweet Misery (Ascher speler clavinet og orgel)

• Johnny Winter, John Dawson Winter III Columbia Records (1974)
• John Lennon, Whatever Gets You Through the Night (singel) (Ascher speler clavinet) Apple Records (1974)
• John Lennon, Walls and Bridges (Ascher speler klaverinstrument), Apple Records (1974)
• Paul Williams, A Little Bit Of Love (Ascher er produsent, dirigent, arrangør, låtskrivar, & pianist), A&M Records (1974)

A1 – A Little Bit Of Love, av Ascher
A4 – Sunday, av Ascher
B2 – She Sings For Free, av Ascher
B5 – Loneliness, av Ascher
B6 – Sad Song, av Ascher

• James Taylor, Walking Man, Warner Bros. Records (1974)
• Harry Nilsson, Pussy Cats (Ascher: piano, dirigent, orchestration), RCA Victor (1974)
• Yoko Ono, Feeling The Space (recorded 1974, released 1997)
• Airto, Virgin Land, Salvation (Feb 1974)

B4 – I don't have to do what I don't want to do (Ascher speler melletron på dette sporet)

• Judy Collins, Judith, Elektra Records (1975)
• Merry Clayton, Keep Your Eye On The Sparrow, Ode Records (1975)
• John Lennon, Rock 'n' Roll (Ascher speler klaverinstrument), Capitol Records (1975)
• Paul Simon, Still Crazy After All These Years (Ascher speler orgel), Warner Bros. Records (1975)
• Gladys Knight & The Pips, 2nd Anniversary (Ascher speler klaverinstrument) (1975)

B1 – You And Me Against The World, arr Don Hannah, skriven av Ascher & Williams

• John Tropea, The jingle, West Orange, NJ, Marlin (1975)
• Frankie Valli, Closeup, Private Stock Records (1975)
• Dr. John, Hollywood Be Thy Name, United Artists Records (1975)
• Nanette Natal, The beginning, New York, Evolution (date unknown, prob late 1970s)
• Leslie West, The Leslie West Band Phantom Records, distributed by RCA Records, and later, ESP Management Inc. (1975)
• Barbra Streisand & Kris Kristofferson, A Star Is Born (filmmusikk), Columbia Records (1976)

A1 – Watch Closely Now, av Ascher
A5 – Hellacious Acres, av Ascher
B1 – The Woman In The Moon, av Ascher og Williams
B4 – Finale: With One More Look At You / Watch Closely Now, av Ascher og Williams

• Paul Williams, Classics, A&M Records (1977)

A2 – You And Me Against the World, av Ascher og Williams
A4 – Loneliness, av Ascher og Williams
B2 – With One More Look at You, av Ascher og Williams
(Ascher produced spor: A2, A4, B4, B5)

• Phoebe Snow, Never Letting Go, Columbia Records (Ascher speler på klaverinstrument and orchestrates on selections) (1977)
• Frankie Valli, Lady Put The Light Out, Private Stock Records (1977)
• Meat Loaf, Bat out of Hell, Epic Records (1977) (RIAA 14xPlatinum Certified)

A3 – Heaven Can Wait (string arrangement av Ascher)
B1 – Two Out of Three Ain't Bad (string arrangement av Ascher)

• Tom Scott, Blow It Out, Ode Records (1977)

A2 – Smoothin' On Down (Ascher speler clavinet på dette sporet)

• Maynard Ferguson, Conquistador, Columbia Records (1978)
• The Muppets, Movin' Right Along, (45 RPM) CBS Records Australia (1979)
• The Muppets The Muppet Movie Filmmusikk Recording (Ascher co-writes, co-arranges, and speler på klaverinstrument), Columbia Records, (1979)
• Perry Como, Perry Como, RCA Victor (1980)
• Earl Klugh, Late Night Guitar
• Yoko Ono, Walking On Thin Ice (45 RPM), Geffen Records (1981)

B – It Happened (Ascher, klaverinstrument på B-sida)

• Marvin Stamm, Stammpede, New York, Palo Alto (1983)
• Peter Dean, Radio, Inner City Records, New York (1984)
• Pat Williams’ New York Band, 10Th Avenue, New York, Soundwings (Dec 1986)
• Warren Bernhardt, Hands On (CD) (1987)
• Dr. John, Mos' Scocious: The Dr. John Anthology, Rhino Records (1993)

2-15 – Back By The River (Ascher speler keyboard)

• David Matthews Orchestra, Furuhata Jazz in N.Y., New York, WEA (Japan) (1997)
• The Wiz (Filmmusikk), MCA Records (1997)
• Gary LeMel, Moonlighting (Ascher er assisterande dirigent), Skylark Atlantic 83178-2 (1998)
• Alex Donner, White Tie, New York & Astoria, Black Tie Records (Mar 10, 1998-Sep 8, 2000)
• Patti LaBelle, Labelle, Wounded Bird Records (2000)

1 – Morning Much Better, Ascher – piano
6 – Running Out Of Fools - If You Gotta Make A Fool Of Somebody, Ascher – piano
10 – Time, Ascher – piano
11 – When The Sun Comes Shining Through (The Ladder), Ascher – piano

• Wally Dunbar, Everything In Time, Nardis Consolidated Artists CAP953 (2000)
• Nelson Foltz, The Longing Hours, New York & Northvale, N.J., Syberdelix (2001)
• Jane Monheit, In the Sun, New York, N Coded Music (March–June 2002)
• Jane Monheit, Live at the Rainbow Room, N Coded Music (Sept 23, 2002)
• Scott Whitfield Jazz Orchestra East, Live at “Birdland,” Summit Records (March 10, 2003)
• Clay Aiken, Merry Christmas With Love, RCA Records (2004)
• Susan Robkin, Surfacing To Breathe (May 2004)
• Don Payne (bass), Rhapsodic Echoes, (Ascher speler piano på spor 5 & 8) Recycled Notes Music Company Arkivert 2011-07-25 ved Wayback Machine. (May 5, 2004)

5 – Unscheduled Departures
8 – M.A.P.S. (Bob Mann, Kenny Ascher, Don Payne, Allen Schwartzberg)

• Scott Whitfield, Diamonds for Nat, New York, Summit Records (April 12 & 13, 2005)
• Rod Stewart, Thanks for the Memory: The Great American Songbook, Volume IV, J-Records (Oct. 18, 2005)
• Steve Tyrell, The Disney Standards, Walt Disney Records (2006)

10 – When She Loved Me (Ascher, klaverinstrument)
14 – Baby Mine, (Ascher, klaverinstrument & string arrangements)

• Steve Tyrell, Back To Bacharach, Koch Records (2008)

4 – One Less Bell To Answer (piano, Ascher; arr Bacharach; strings arr, Ascher)
11 – Close To You (Ascher, piano)
12 – A House Is Not A Home (Ascher, piano)

• The Birdland Big Band, The Lew Anderson Tribute Concert (live), I.E.G. Inc. (June 1, 2007)
• Tommy Igoe and the Birdland Big Band, Live from New York (DVD) I.E.G. Inc. (Jan 1, 2009) (OCLC 271753259)
• Andy Farber and His Orchestra, This Could be the Start of Something Big (2009)
• Tommy Igoe and the Birdland Big Band, Eleven (11-11-11)