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Johnny Helms
John Newton "Johnny" Helms (February 10, 1935 – March 27, 2015) was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, and music educator from Columbia, South Carolina. He performed with Chris Potter, Tommy Newsom, Bill Watrous, Red Rodney, Woody Herman, Sam Most, and the Clark Terry Big Band among others. In 1989, he was featured along with Terry and Oscar Peterson as part of ''Clark Terry and Friends at Town Hall'' during the JVC Jazz Festival. Influences and early career Helms displayed a talent for music at a young age and was invited to perform with the University of South Carolina Band while in the ninth grade at Columbia High School. An early stylistic influence was trumpeter Chet Baker, but as his style matured, Helms became a devotee of the great jazz trumpet player Clifford Brown and easily mastered the hard bop style and phrasing that was part of Brown's legacy. Helms was an avid supporter of jazz saxophonist Chris Potter who had the opportunity to learn his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. It is the center of the Columbia metropolitan statistical area, which had a population of 829,470 in 2020 and is the 72nd-largest metropolitan statistical area in the nation. The name Columbia is a poetic term used for the United States, derived from the name of Christopher Columbus, who explored for the Spanish Crown. Columbia is often abbreviated as Cola, leading to its nickname as "Soda City." The city is located about northwest of the geographic center of South Carolina, and is the primary city of the Midlands region of the state. It lies at the confluence of the Saluda River and the Broad River, which merge at Columbia to form the Congaree River. As the state capital, Columbia is the s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Carolina Educational Television
South Carolina Educational Television (branded as South Carolina ETV, SCETV or simply ETV) is a state network of Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) member television stations serving the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is owned and operated by the South Carolina Educational Television Commission, an agency of the state government which holds the licenses for all of the PBS member stations licensed in the state. The broadcast signals of the eleven television stations cover almost all of the state, as well as parts of North Carolina and Georgia. The network's primary operations are located on George Rogers Boulevard in Columbia, across from Williams-Brice Stadium on the campus of the University of South Carolina; SCETV operates satellite studios in Spartanburg, Sumter and Rock Hill. History The state network began in 1957, after the South Carolina General Assembly authorized a study in the use of instructional television in the state's public schools. A studio was opened i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Derek Smith (musician)
Derek Smith (17 August 1931 – 19 August 2016) was a British jazz pianist. Biography Born in London, his father Sidney was an Inland Revenue employee. His mother, Lillian, made the decision that he was to take up piano lessons. He was influenced by jazz pianist Art Tatum after listening to his recordings in the 1940s. Smith played his first professional gig when he was fourteen. Someone rolled a piano out into the street, and he played for the VE Day celebrations in May, 1945. Over his parents' protestations, he joined John Dankworth's band when Cleo Laine was the female vocalist, and with many other British jazz musicians, including Kenny Graham and Kenny Baker. Smith also began performing and recording for the BBC, but soon realised the place for him professionally, was America. Smith immigrated to the United States with no job awaiting him. Fourteen days after arriving in New York, he recorded with the Modern Jazz Quartet. One of his first engagements was working with h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ross Tompkins
Ross Tompkins (May 13, 1938 – June 30, 2006) was an American jazz pianist who was a member of ''The Tonight Show'' Band. Biography Tompkins attended the New England Conservatory of Music, then moved to New York City, where he worked with Kai Winding (1960–67), Eric Dolphy (1964), Wes Montgomery (1966), Bob Brookmeyer/ Clark Terry (1966), Benny Goodman (1968), Bobby Hackett (1965–70), and Al Cohn and Zoot Sims (1968–72). He moved to Los Angeles in 1971, playing with Louie Bellson, Joe Venuti, and Red Norvo in the 1970s and Jack Sheldon in the 1980s. He was best known for his longtime association with The Tonight Show Band, led by Doc Severinsen, on the television program ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson''. He was a member of the band from 1971 until Carson's retirement in 1992. He recorded for Concord Jazz as a leader in the second half of the 1970s. Tompkins died of lung cancer at the age of 68. Discography As leader * ''A Pair to Draw To'' (Concord Jazz, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Pizzarelli
John Paul Pizzarelli Jr. (born April 6, 1960, in Paterson, New Jersey) is an American jazz guitarist and vocalist. He has recorded over twenty solo albums and has appeared on more than forty albums by other recording artists, including Paul McCartney, James Taylor, Rosemary Clooney; his father, jazz guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli; and his wife, singer Jessica Molaskey. Early life The son of swing guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, John Pizzarelli was born in Paterson, New Jersey. He started on guitar when he was six and played trumpet through his college years. He attended Don Bosco Preparatory High School, an all-boys Catholic school. In his teens, he performed with Benny Goodman, Les Paul, Zoot Sims, Slam Stewart, and Clark Terry. Pizzarelli attended the University of Tampa and William Paterson University, though he has said that his most important teacher was his father from 1980 to 1990. During the 1980s, he established himself as a jazz guitarist and a vocalist. He released his de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Johnny Frigo
Johnny Frigo (December 27, 1916 – July 4, 2007) was an American jazz violinist, bassist and songwriter. He appeared in the 1940s as a violinist before working as a bassist. He returned to the violin in the 1980s and enjoyed a comeback, recording several albums as a leader. Biography Frigo was born in Chicago and studied violin for three years beginning at age seven. In high school he started to play double bass in dance orchestras. In 1942 he played with Chico Marx's orchestra and performed a comedy routine on violin with Marx on piano. He entered the United States Coast Guard during World War II and played in a band on Ellis Island with Al Haig and Kai Winding. After a brief turn at active service near the end of the war he moved to New Jersey. He toured with Jimmy Dorsey's band from 1945 to 1947, later forming the Soft Winds trio with Dorsey's guitarist Herb Ellis and pianist Lou Carter. During this time he wrote the music and lyrics to "Detour Ahead", which has been recorded ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ed Soph
Ed Soph (born March 21, 1945, in Coronado, California) is an American jazz drummer and educator. Biography Soph was raised in Houston, Texas. He enrolled at North Texas State University (University of North Texas) in 1963 as a music major but switched his concentration to English during his sophomore year. While at North Texas, he performed with the One O'Clock Lab Band, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and Stan Kenton. He graduated in 1968 and joined Woody Herman on a recommendation from Cannonball Adderley. He moved to New York City in 1971 and began performing and recording freelance. Soph has worked with Clark Terry, Bill Watrous, Bill Evans, Marvin Stamm, Randy Brecker, Joe Henderson, Pat LaBarbera, Bill Mays, Cedar Walton, Dave Liebman, Chris Potter, Carl Fontana, and Slide Hampton. He pursued a teaching career while working on the faculty at the Jamey Aebersold Jazz Workshop, the National Stage Band Camp and the University of Bridgeport. He returned to Texas in 1987 and taug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Andy Simpkins
Andrew Simpkins (April 29, 1932 – June 2, 1999) was an American jazz bassist. Born in Richmond, Indiana, he first became known as a member of the group The Three Sounds, with which he performed from 1956 to 1968.allmusic biography/ref> After that, until 1974, he was a member of pianist George Shearing's group, and from 1979 to 1989 toured with singer Sarah Vaughan. Throughout and after that time, during which he settled in Los Angeles, Simpkins became respected as a top-quality bassist and widely known as a solid and reliable studio musician. He performed with singers Carmen McRae and Anita O'Day, instrumentalists Gerald Wiggins, Monty Alexander, Buddy DeFranco, Don Menza, and Stéphane Grappelli, and many others. He recorded three albums as a leader. He also played acoustic bass on the 1997 covers album '' In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy'' by artist Pat Boone. Simpkins died of stomach cancer in Los Angeles. Discography With The Three Sounds *1958: ''Introducing the 3 So ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bill Crow
William Orval Crow (born December 27, 1927) is an American jazz bassist. Among other work, Crow was the long-term bassist in saxophonist Gerry Mulligan's bands in the 1950s and 1960s. Early life Crow was born on December 27, 1927, in Othello, Washington, but spent his childhood in Kirkland, Washington. In fourth grade, he took up the trumpet and in the sixth grade he switched to baritone horn. He played drums in his high school swing band. He joined the Army in 1946, where he played the baritone horn in the 2nd Army Band and drums in a Service Club band. He remained in the army until 1949. After leaving the Army, he played drums and valve trombone while a student at the University of Washington. Later life and career In 1950, Crow moved to New York City, playing the valve trombone and drums. On a summer job in Tupper Lake NY at the Altamont Hotel he taught himself to play the string bass. Within two years of starting to play the bass, he played with Teddy Charles and was with S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jimmy Heath
James Edward Heath (October 25, 1926 – January 19, 2020), nicknamed Little Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s an ... leader. He was the brother of bassist Percy Heath and drummer Albert Heath. Biography Heath was born in Philadelphia on October 25, 1926.[ Allmusic biography] His father, an auto mechanic, played the clarinet, performing on the weekends. His mother sang in a church choir. The family frequently played recordings of big band jazz groups around the house. Heath's sister was a pianist, while his brothers were bassist Percy Heath (older) and drummer Albert Heath (his youngest sibling). During World War II, Heath was rejected for the draft for being below the minimum weight. Heath origin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
