Charles Frank Mangione, November 29, 1940 – July 22, 2025) was an American flugelhorn player, trumpeter and composer. He came to prominence as a member of Art Blakey’s band in the 1960s, and later co-led the Jazz Brothers with his brother, Gap, achieving international success in 1978 with his jazz-pop single “Feels So Good”. He released more than 30 albums, beginning in the 1960s. He also appeared in various television shows, including a recurring role on King of the Hill.
Mangione was born … in Rochester, New York, where he grew up. His parents were jazz enthusiasts who owned a grocery store . . . While at elementary school Mangione began music lessons, beginning with piano, but later switching to trumpet after watching the film Young Man with a Horn. With his pianist brother, Gap, he started a band in high school and played in sessions with Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis.
Mangione played with Art Blakey’s band in the 1960s. He and his brother led the Mangione Brothers Sextet/Quintet, who recorded three albums for Riverside Records before Mangione branched out with other work. One of his compositions for the Mangione Brothers Sextet, “Something Different”, was recorded by Cannonball Adderley on Adderley’s 1961 album African Waltz. . . .Mangione attended the Eastman School of Music in Rochester from 1958 to 1963 where he started playing the flugelhorn. He then joined Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, filling the trumpet chair previously held by Clifford Brown, Freddie Hubbard, Kenny Dorham, Bill Hardman, and Lee Morgan.
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[His] song “Feels So Good” became a rare instrumental Top Ten hit, reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1978.
Mangione’s composition “Chase the Clouds Away” was used at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec. His composition “Give It All You Got” was the theme to the 1980 Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid, New York. . . .
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In 2009, Gerry Niewood and Coleman Mellett, two members of Mangione’s band, were killed in the crash of Colgan Air Flight 3407 outside of Buffalo, New York.
Mangione retired in 2015 and sold his copyrights to Primary Wave in 2024.
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Mangione’s wife, Rosemarie, died in 2015. He had two daughters, Nancy and Diana, and was a great-grandfather.
On July 22, 2025, Mangione died in his sleep at his Rochester home. He was 84
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuck_Mangione
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OTHER NOTABLE MUSICIANS’ DEATHS
Posting for my Veteran/singer/songwriter/musician friend Troy Hoss: Heavy on my heart so here goes: This is a very real problem … 22 Veterans a day surrender to their demons. #SuicideAwareness | Call Veteran’s Hotline: 988 #1 or 844-647-1354
Warning Signs of Suicide – National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or if you want to discuss, call the old numbers at 800-273-TALK or 800-273-8255 for English and 888-628-9454 for Spanish. Learn the signs of someone who may be contemplating suicide.
If you want to know more about any of the musicians we lost, please check them out at http://www.wikipedia.com
August 2025
6: Eddie Palmieri, 88, American pianist and composer; Aida Tağızada, 91, Azerbaijani academic and musicologist.
5: Selçuk Alagöz, 81, Turkish singer; Col Joye, 89, Australian Hall of Fame singer and business manager (Bee Gees, Andy Gibb); Nancy King, 85, American jazz singer.
4: Jane Morgan, 101, American singer (“Fascination”, “The Day the Rains Came”, “Two Different Worlds”); Terry Reid, 75, English rock singer (Peter Jay and the Jaywalkers).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Morgan
2: Ross Ariffin, 63, Malaysian composer and record producer; Howie Tee, 61, English-born American DJ and record producer.
1: Arif Babayev, 87, Azerbaijani singer; David Roach, 59, American singer (Junkyard), cancer; Jeannie Seely, 85, American singer (“Don’t Touch Me”, “I’ll Love You More (Than You Need)”, “Wish I Didn’t Have to Miss You”), intestinal infection.
July 2025
31: Jesto, 40, Italian rapper, heart attack; Flaco Jiménez, 86, American musician (Texas Tornados, Los Super Seven); Erik Wunder, 42, American multi-instrumentalist (Cobalt, Man’s Gin).
29: Paul Mario Day, 69, English singer (Iron Maiden, More, The Sweet), cancer; Livio Macchia, 83, Italian singer and musician (I Camaleonti).