Chuck Mangione, one of the most successful musicians to come out of Rochester, has died at age 84.
“The family of Chuck Mangione is deeply saddened to share that Chuck peacefully passed away in his sleep at his home in Rochester, New York on July 22, 2025,” his family wrote in a statement July 24.
A jazz composer and virtuoso flugelhorn and trumpet player, Charles Frank "Chuck" Mangione was born here on Nov. 29, 1940.
He grew up in a musical home in northeast Rochester where his father, a grocery store operator, exposed him and older brother Gap to jazz greats of the 1950s, including Dizzy Gillespie.
Gillespie became a family friend and was one of the A-list performers who would join the Mangiones for dinner whenever he was in Rochester. Gillespie also was one of Chuck Mangione’s biggest influences.
While he and pianist Gap were students at Franklin High School, they formed a jazz combo called the Jazz Brothers.
Gillespie was so impressed by teenage Mangione’s musical prowess that he gave him one of his trademark upswept trumpets.
After graduating in 1958, Mangione studied at the Eastman School of Music, earning a bachelor’s degree in music in 1963 and later returning to teach and direct the Eastman Jazz Ensemble. He also received an honorary doctorate from the school.
His early work with the Jazz Brothers laid the foundation for his solo career, during which released more than 30 albums that sold millions of copies and received numerous awards. He was nominated for 14 Grammys and won two — in 1977 for best instrumental composition for "Bellavia” and in 1979 for best pop instrumental performance for “Children of Sanchez.”
The latter, a movie soundtrack, also won a Golden Globe.
Chuck Mangione songs
Mangione’s biggest commercial success came in 1978 with the single “Feels So Good,” which reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
The 1977 LP “Feel So Good” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard albums chart, bested only by the “Saturday Night Fever” soundtrack.
The song was frequently referenced on Mike Judge’s animated TV series “King of the Hill” (which first aired in 1997 on Fox), where Mangione had a recurring voice-acting role as himself.
Mangione composed “Give it All You Got,” the theme song for the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, and performed it during the closing ceremonies to an audience of several hundred million viewers.
“Chuck’s love affair with music has been characterized by his boundless energy, unabashed enthusiasm, and pure joy that radiated from the stage,” his family’s statement reads. “His appreciation for his loyal worldwide fans was genuine as evidenced by how often he would sit at the edge of the stage after a concert for however long it took to sign autographs for the fans who stayed to meet him and the band.”
The family noted that he also worked to inspire a new generation of musicians by using high school bands as his orchestra or scheduling children’s matinee concerts where kids in the audience would be invited to bring their instruments and join him onstage.
In 2009, Mangione donated some of his music memorabilia to The Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. Among the items: his signature brown felt hat, scores to his most important works, photos, albums and even an animation cell from “King of The Hill.”
In 2012, he was inducted into the Rochester Music Hall of Fame.
His love for Rochester was deep, his niece Ardis Mangione-Lindley said, hence the song, "Rochester, My Sweet Home."
"He's been to every major city in this country, yet he always came back to Rochester," she said. "He was born and raised here, and he died here."
Beyond music, Mangione was a lifelong New York Yankees fan and played the National Anthem at Yankee Stadium as well as several MLB All-Star games.
“Another highlight was working out with the New York Yankees at their spring training camp at the invitation of his friend and fan, George Steinbrenner,” his family wrote.
His obituary states that he was predeceased by his wife, Rosemarie; parents Frank and Nancy Mangione; and brother-in-law Fred Shank.
He is survived by his daughters, Nancy Mangione-Piraino (Lee Piraino) and Diana (Mike) Smith; brother Gap (Janet) Mangione; sister Josephine Shank; grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews, cousins and friends.
The family will hold a private service to celebrate his life.
"To honor his memory and continue his legacy, please enjoy listening to your favorite Chuck songs," the obituary reads.
