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Irving Ashby
Irving Conrad Ashby (December 29, 1920 – April 22, 1987) was an African-American jazz guitarist. Ashby was born in Somerville, Massachusetts and started playing guitar when he was nine. His career started in 1940 when he became a member of Lionel Hampton's band, and he played on Hampton's hit "Flying Home". In 1947, he took over for Oscar Moore in the Nat King Cole Trio. He then briefly replaced Charlie Smith, a drummer, in the Oscar Peterson Trio, producing a line-up (piano, guitar, bass) similar to the Cole Trio's; the substitution of a guitarist for a drummer continued until 1958. After leaving the Peterson Trio, Ashby concentrated on session work, which included recording with Norman Granz, Sheb Wooley, LaVern Baker, Howard Roberts, B.B. King, Louis Jordan, and Pat Boone. In addition to guitar, Ashby played the upright bass. Ashby died in April 1987 in Perris, California, at the age of 66. Discography * ''Memoirs'' (Accent, 1977) As sideman With Nat King Cole * ''194 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Somerville, Massachusetts
Somerville ( ) is a city located directly to the northwest of Boston, and north of Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a total population of 81,045 people. With an area of , the city has a density of , making it the most densely populated municipality in New England and the List of United States cities by population density, 16th most densely populated incorporated municipality in the country. Somerville was established as a town in 1842, when it was separated from Charlestown, Massachusetts, Charlestown. In 2006, the city was named the best-run city in Massachusetts by ''The Boston Globe''. In 1972, 2009, and 2015, the city received the All-America City Award. It is home to Tufts University, which has its campus along the Somerville and Medford, Massachusetts, Medford border. History Early settlement The territory now comprising the city of Somerville was first settled by Euro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Howard Roberts
Howard Mancel Roberts (October 2, 1929 – June 28, 1992) was an American jazz guitarist, educator, and session musician. Early years Roberts was born in Phoenix, Arizona to Damon and Vesta Roberts, and began playing guitar at the age of 8 - a Gibson manufactured $18 Kalamazoo student model acoustic given to him by his parents at Christmas. He took lessons from Horace Hatchett who commented to Roberts’ father that Roberts, at the age of 15, “...has his own style of playing and there's nothing else I can show him. He plays better than I do.” By the time he was 15 he was playing professionally locally, predominantly blues based music, where he learned from a number of black musicians, trumpeter Art Farmer being among that group. In 1992 Roberts was quoted in "The Independent Newsletter" by Steve Voce saying he considered that early experience to be “the most valuable” to him in his development as a player.Sallis, James. "Middle Ground: Herb Ellis, Howard Roberts, Jim Hall ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form of jazz characterized by fast tempos, virtuosic technique, and advanced harmonies. Parker was an extremely brilliant virtuoso and introduced revolutionary rhythmic and harmonic ideas into jazz, including rapid passing chords, new variants of altered chords, and chord substitutions. Primarily a player of the alto saxophone, Parker's tone ranged from clean and penetrating to sweet and somber. Parker acquired the nickname "Yardbird" early in his career on the road with Jay McShann. This, and the shortened form "Bird", continued to be used for the rest of his life, inspiring the titles of a number of Parker compositions, such as "Yardbird Suite", "Ornithology", "Bird Gets the Worm", and "Bird of Paradise". Parker was an icon for the hipster ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amos Milburn
Joseph Amos Milburn (April 1, 1927 – January 3, 1980) was an American rhythm-and-blues singer and pianist, popular in the 1940s and 1950s. He was born in Houston, Texas, and died there 52 years later. One commentator noted, "Milburn excelled at good-natured, upbeat romps about booze and partying, imbued with a vibrant sense of humour and double entendre, as well as vivid, down-home imagery in his lyrics." Life and career Milburn was born in Houston, one of thirteen children. By the age of five, he was playing tunes on the piano. He enlisted in the United States Navy when he was fifteen and earned thirteen battle stars in the Philippines. He returned to Houston and organized a sixteen-piece band playing in clubs in the city. He was managed by William and Geneva Church. Milburn was a polished pianist and performer and in 1946 attracted the attention of a woman who arranged a recording session with Aladdin Records in Los Angeles. Milburn's relationship with Aladdin lasted e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lucille (album)
''Lucille'' is the fifteenth album by blues artist B. B. King. It is named for his famous succession of Gibson guitars, currently the Signature ES-355. Track listing Personnel *B.B. King - guitar, vocals *Irving Ashby - guitar *David "Leather Sax" Allen, Jr. - bass guitar *Lloyd Glenn - piano * Jessie Sailes - drums *Maxwell Davis - leader, organ *Bobby Forte, Bob McNeely, Cecil McNeely - saxophone *Melvin Moore - trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ... *John Ewing - trombone ;Technical *Jim Lockert - engineer *Pauline Rivelli - cover photography References {{Authority control 1968 albums B.B. King albums Albums produced by Bob Thiele BluesWay Records albums ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mundell Lowe
James Mundell Lowe (April 21, 1922 – December 2, 2017) was an American jazz guitarist who worked often in radio, television, and film, and as a session musician. He produced film and TV scores in the 1970s, such as the ''Billy Jack'' soundtrack and music for '' Starsky and Hutch'', and worked with André Previn's Trio in the 1990s. Career The son of a Baptist minister, Lowe grew up on a farm in Shady Grove, Mississippi, near Laurel. He started playing guitar when he was eight years old, with his father and sister acting as his first teachers. When he was thirteen, he began running away from home to play in bands. Occasionally his father would find him, bring him home, and warn him about the dangers of whiskey. At sixteen, Lowe worked in Nashville on the ''Grand Ole Opry'' radio program. He was a member of the Jan Savitt orchestra before serving in the military during World War II. At basic training, he became friends with John Hammond, who organized weekend jam sessions. He ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meade Lux Lewis
Anderson Meade Lewis (September 4, 1905 – June 7, 1964), known as Meade Lux Lewis, was an American pianist and composer, remembered for his playing in the boogie-woogie style. His best-known work, "Honky Tonk Train Blues", has been recorded by many artists. Biography Anderson Meade Lewis was born in Chicago, though some sources state Louisville, Kentucky, on September 4, 1905 (September 3 and 13 have also been cited as his date of birth in sources). In his youth he was influenced by the pianist Jimmy Yancey. His father, a guitarist who made two recordings of his own, introduced Meade to music and arranged for him to have violin lessons. He gave up the violin at age 16, shortly after his father's death, and switched to the piano. The nickname "Lux" was given to him by his boyhood friends. He would imitate a couple of characters from a popular comic strip in Chicago, ''Alphonse and Gaston'', and stroke an imaginary beard as part of the routine. His friends started calling him th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Illinois Jacquet
Jean-Baptiste "Illinois" Jacquet (October 30, 1922 – July 22, 2004) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, best remembered for his solo on "Flying Home", critically recognized as the first R&B saxophone solo. Although he was a pioneer of the honking tenor saxophone that became a regular feature of jazz playing and a hallmark of early rock and roll, Jacquet was a skilled and melodic improviser, both on up-tempo tunes and ballads. He doubled on the bassoon, one of only a few jazz musicians to use the instrument. Early life Jacquet's parents were Creoles of color, named Marguerite Trahan and Gilbert Jacquet,The Sons and Daughters of Jean Baptiste Jacquet (1995) When he was an infant, his family moved from Louisiana to Houston, Texas, and he was raised there as one of six siblings. His father was a part-time bandleader. As a child he performed in his father's band, primarily on the alto saxophone. His older brother Russell Jacquet played trumpet and his other brother Linton pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly inspired by jazz instrumentalists, pioneered a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills. After a turbulent childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem, where she was heard by producer John Hammond, who liked her voice. She signed a recording contract with Brunswick in 1935. Collaborations with Teddy Wilson produced the hit "What a Little Moonlight Can Do", which became a jazz standard. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Holiday had mainstream success on labels such as Columbia and Decca. By the late 1940s, however, she was beset with legal troubles and drug abuse. After a short prison sentence, she performed at a sold-out conce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Erroll Garner
Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 – January 2, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His instrumental ballad "Misty", his best-known composition, has become a jazz standard. It was first recorded in 1956 with Mitch Miller and his orchestra, and played a prominent part in the motion picture ''Play Misty for Me''. Scott Yanow of Allmusic calls him "one of the most distinctive of all pianists" and a "brilliant virtuoso." He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6363 Hollywood Blvd. His live album ''Concert by the Sea'' first released in 1955, sold over 1 million copies by 1958, and Yanow's opinion on the album is that it "made such a strong impression that Garner was considered immortal from then on." Life and career Garner was born, along with twin brother Ernest in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on June 15, 1921, the youngest of six children. He attended George Westinghouse High School (as did fellow pianists Billy Stra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ernie Freeman
Ernest Aaron Freeman (August 16, 1922 – May 16, 1981) was an American pianist, organist, bandleader, and arranger. He was responsible for arranging many successful rhythm and blues and pop records from the 1950s to the 1970s. Birth and family Freeman was born in Cleveland, Ohio. His parents were Ernest Freeman Sr. and Gertrude Freeman (née Richardson). He had a brother, Art Freeman, that was in music and recording and sometimes collaborated with Ernest Freeman. Freeman's wife was Isabelle Freeman (née Collier), who also collaborated with him in some songs. Freeman had a daughter Janis. Career In 1935 he began playing in local Cleveland area nightclubs, and also formed a classical music trio for local social functions with his father and his sister Evelyn. Around 1939, he and Evelyn formed a new band, The Evelyn Freeman Swing Band, with fellow teenagers from Cleveland Central High School. Evelyn played piano, while Ernie played saxophone and also began writing arrangement ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jackie Davis
Jackie Davis (December 13, 1920 – November 2, 1999) was an American soul jazz singer, organist and bandleader. He is notable for his contributions in bringing the Hammond organ to the forefront of jazz and pop, preceding the better-known Jimmy Smith by several years. Life and career Davis was born and grew up in Jacksonville, Florida, and started playing piano at the age of ten, before studying music at Florida A&M. He experimented with jazz on the pipe organ, before switching to the Hammond. He was influenced by Wild Bill Davis and Bill Doggett, and after a spell backing Louis Jordan, he started fronting his own jazz groups. His solo career began in earnest after a residency at the Club Harlem in Philadelphia in 1951, and from there he began touring across the US, with the Hammond now being his trademark. He notably preceded Jimmy Smith in using the instrument in small jazz combos. Regular touring led to a recording contract with Capitol, with whom he recorded several alb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
