The heavy-weight Jazz genius Count basie Count Basie was an incredible figure in 20th century music. His decades of playing help define the words jazz and swing His style of piano playing was to-the-point and focused on the blues, relying on simple melodIc phrases. ◆In1936 he founded the Count Basie Orchestra. By the end of the 30s the basie band was one of the most popular in the world.The heavy-weight Jazz genius — Count Basie  Count Basie was an incredible figure in 20th century music. His decades of playing help define the words “jazz”and “swing”.  His style of piano playing was to-the-point and focused on the blues, relying on simple melodic phrases.  In 1936 he founded the Count Basie Orchestra. By the end of the 30s, the Basie band was one of the most popular in the world