Charles Frank “Chuck” Mangione, the unmistakable flugelhorn virtuoso, died peacefully in his sleep on July 22 at his home in Rochester. He was 84.
Mangione’s family confirmed his passing in a statement reported by Democrat and Chronicle.
The Upstate New York native was born Nov. 29, 1940 and was raised in a music-filled household. His father ran Mangione’s Market, a local grocery store connected to their in northeast Rochester home, and regularly hosted jazz greats for dinner. One guest, turned mentor, was Dizzy Gillespie, who gifted young Chuck one of his signature upturned trumpets.
Mangione was a graduate of the Eastman School of Music (B.M. 1963) and a lifelong Western NY resident. He was one of Rochester’s most celebrated musical figures, having released more than 30 albums, won two Grammy Awards and was nominated 14 times over a decades-long career that blended jazz, pop and orchestral music into a sound unmistakably his own.
Chuck Mangione plays his flugelhorn at the Landmark Theater as part of his, “The Hat’s Back,” concert featuring some 100 musicians. March 25, 1994. Gene Page | syracuse.com archive photoGene Page | syracuse.com archive photo
His 1977 hit “Feels So Good” propelled him into stardom, reaching the Billboard Top 10 and helping the album of the same name go double platinum. The track remains a staple on jazz and soft rock playlists, with more than 20 million streams on Spotify and 420,000 monthly listeners worldwide.
Mangione returned to Eastman to teach and direct its jazz ensemble, helping shape what became a top-tier jazz program. He was later inducted alongside Cab Calloway into the Rochester Music Hall of Fame.
He also composed music for two Olympic Games: “Chase the Clouds Away” for the 1976 Summer Games in Montreal, and “Give It All You Got,” which he performed live at the closing ceremony of the 1980 Winter Games in Lake Placid.
Chuck Mangione performing at CW Baker High School, Baldwinsville. April 22, 2001. Gary Walts | syracuse.comGary Walts | syracuse.com
He performed several times in the Central New York area, including the Syracuse Jazz Fest and a jazz clinic for music students at Baker High School in Baldwinsville.
Later in life he became a familiar pop-culture figure through his recurring animated role as himself on “King of the Hill,” often segueing into “Feels So Good” in comedic fashion.
“Chuck was more than a global icon. He was one of our own,” said Marc Iacona and John Nugent, producers of the Rochester International Jazz Festival told RochesterFirst. “From the soaring flugelhorn melodies that made the world ‘Feel So Good’ to the countless ways he championed his hometown, Chuck’s influence was profound, personal and lasting.”
Mangione is survived by his daughters, Nancy Piraino and Diana Smith; a sister, Josephine Shank; his brother and longtime collaborator, Gap Mangione; three grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. His wife, Rosemarie, died in 2015.
Funeral services will be private, according to the family.
