prodigY - Craig’s Tween trio
In 1968 Craig led his youthful jazz combo, The Craig Hundley Trio, to victory at The Hollywood Bowl. Followed by a Billboard #5 Jazz Album, “Arrival of a Young Giant”.
On Labor Day, 1968:
At 7am, Craig interviewed by Barbara Walters, & performed on “The Today Show.”
At 12noon, performed live on the “Jerry Lewis Telethon.”
At 8pm, won the crown on the finale of “NBC Primetime Showcase.” (Winner, tied with Sly and the Family Stone)
At 11:30, The Trio opened for 30 min on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.”
Craig and the Trio became a sensation in the late 1960s and 1970s, appearing regularly on “The Jonathan Winters CBS Show,” interviewed by Regis Philbin, and often Co-Hosting “The Mike Douglas Show.”
Craig made a name as a teen concert pianist, performing Bartók, Tchaikovsky, and later Bach and Steve Reich in concert with Michael Tilson Thomas. His own modernized adaptation of Gershwin's “Rhapsody in Blue” was showcased with major symphonies and on network primetime broadcasts.
The trio consisted of Craig on piano, J.J. Wiggins on bass, and Gary Chase on drums. Later adding Larry Carlton on guitar, Mayuto on Brazilian percussion.
Their first album (1968) was titled “Arrival of a Young Giant.” It featured Craig’s signature twist of taking beloved classical pieces (Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, Chopin) and transforming them into pop songs and Great American Songbook.
The second album (1969) was “Craig Hundley Plays with the Big Boys” and included an big band arranged by Don Sebesky, with guests Bud Shank, Larry Carlton and Lee Ritenour on guitars.
A third orchestral album (1970) was “Rhapsody In Blue.” All 3 records were released by World Pacific Records. All three were produced by Dick Bock, who also produced Chet Baker, the Crusaders, and Ravi Shankar.
In the 1970s he composed dozens of his own songs and performed with batteries of modular synthesizers and Blaster Beam his “LIVE OCTOPHONIC” multimedia pieces.
Craig’s trio co-headlined concerts with Sly and the Family Stone, & with Deep Purple at Madison Square Garden. As Guest Star with Bill Cosby at Notre Dame University, Pat Boone & Debbie Boone across America, & Johnny Mathis throughout the states.
Complete list of Craig’s 100+ music contributions in TV/Film: IMDb.me/craighuxley
Prodigy meets President:
Los Angeles Times front page… 1965
At age 11 Craig exchanged letters with President Lyndon Johnson (LBJ), which led to his being flown to Washington D.C. with CA Governor Brown.
Craig was chaperoned by Senator Pierre Salinger (who had the prior year been JFK’s Press Secretary.)
Craig met with the President, sat on the Senate floor, and appeared on TV and radio news delivering his on-screen report each day. He offered his youthful bird’s-eye view of the Inauguration on ABC TV primetime news.
All photography © Craig Huxley
