--- title: Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Dead at 96 description: Once called the “James Joyce of jive”, Hendricks was best known for an improvisation technique known as vocalese canonical: https://time.com/5035942/jon-hendricks-jazz-singer-dead-at-96/ author: Entertainment Weekly article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-11-23T03:25:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T18:20:33.765Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Dead at 96 og:description: Hendricks was famed for his vocal improvisations and riffs og:url: https://time.com/5035942/jon-hendricks-jazz-singer-dead-at-96/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcec645fddb30849a/6988e6d122fb855b81e23c86/gettyimages-832143088.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Jon Hendricks At Lincoln Center og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Dead at 96 twitter:description: Hendricks was famed for his vocal improvisations and riffs twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcec645fddb30849a/6988e6d122fb855b81e23c86/gettyimages-832143088.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Has Died at 96 > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [Maureen Lee Lenker / EW](https://time.com/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Maureen Lee Lenker / EW Nov 23, 2017 3:25 AM UTC  American Jazz musician Jon Hendricks tips his hat during a Jazz at Lincoln Center press conference on Feb. 1, 2000. American Jazz musician Jon Hendricks tips his hat during a Jazz at Lincoln Center press conference on Feb. 1, 2000.Jack Vartoogian—Getty Images by [Maureen Lee Lenker / EW](https://time.com/author/entertainment-weekly/) ## Maureen Lee Lenker / EW Nov 23, 2017 3:25 AM UTC Jon Hendricks, a jazz singer best known for his work with 1950s vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, has died, according to the [New York ](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/22/obituaries/jon-hendricks-96-who-brought-a-new-dimension-to-jazz-singing-dies.html?%5Fr=0)[_Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/22/obituaries/jon-hendricks-96-who-brought-a-new-dimension-to-jazz-singing-dies.html?%5Fr=0). He was 96. Once called the “James Joyce of jive” by _Time_ magazine, Hendricks was best known for a technique known as vocalese (an invention credited to Eddie Jefferson), where singers take well-known jazz instrumental pieces and riff off of their titles to create stories that match the musical melodies in their intricacies. Hendricks both conducted his own vocal improvisations, as well as adding words to those of others. He often took songs recorded by famous jazz ensembles like the Count Basie Orchestra and added words to make unique pieces of his own, as with “[Jumpin’ at the Woodside](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZixDe61eHQ).” He rose to fame in 1957 with the success of _Sing a Song of Basie_ recorded with fellow musician Dave Lambert, and they rounded their trio with Annie Ross, launching them to even greater success. In Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, he served as the main lyricist and on-stage spokesman. The group was known for their unique scat singing, showmanship, and harmonization. The trio split in 1962 and Hendricks continued to work as a lyricist and even guested on a song with a new rock band named The Warlocks, who eventually renamed themselves the Grateful Dead. Born in 1921 in Newark, Ohio, Jon Carl Hendricks was one of 14 children. He studied law on the G.I. Bill following World War II, but he quickly moved to New York City and turned to ghostwriting lyrics for Tin Pan Alley to stay afloat. In addition to his singing career, Hendricks taught jazz at the University of Toledo and worked as a music critic. He is survived by daughter Aria Hendricks. _This_ [_article_](http://ew.com/music/2017/11/22/jon-hendricks-dead-jazz-singer-dies-96/) _originally appeared on_ [_ew.com_](http://ew.com)_._ Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Dead at 96 ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5035942/jon-hendricks-jazz-singer-dead-at-96/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5035942/jon-hendricks-jazz-singer-dead-at-96/"},"headline":"The Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Has Died at 96","datePublished":"2017-11-23T03:25:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T18:20:33.765Z","description":"Once called the “James Joyce of jive”, Hendricks was best known for an improvisation technique known as vocalese","url":"https://time.com/5035942/jon-hendricks-jazz-singer-dead-at-96/","keywords":["Music","Jazz","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcec645fddb30849a/6988e6d122fb855b81e23c86/gettyimages-832143088.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maureen Lee Lenker / EW"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcec645fddb30849a/6988e6d122fb855b81e23c86/gettyimages-832143088.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Jon Hendricks At Lincoln Center","caption":"Jon Hendricks At Lincoln Center","creditText":"Jack Vartoogian—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/music/","name":"Music"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5035942/jon-hendricks-jazz-singer-dead-at-96/","name":"The Legendary Jazz Singer Jon Hendricks Has Died at 96"}}]}] ```