Jeter-Pillars Orchestra was an American jazz troupe, led by altoist James Jeter and tenor-saxophonist

Hayes Pillars Hayes Pillars (April 30, 1906, North Little Rock, Arkansas - August 11, 1992, Richmond Heights, Missouri) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and bandleader. Pillar began playing as a teenager, and played locally in Little Rock and Jackson, Te ...

Career

Jeter and Pillars were previously members of Alphonso Trent's big band. After that outfit split in 1933 they formed the group, which subsequently became the house band at the Club Plantation in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, their home base for the next decade. Most of the Jeter-Pillars band served as musicians during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, several recruited into the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

by Len Bowden, who also had a band in St. Louis prior to the war. Joining the Navy in September 1942 were James Cannady, guitarist and arranger for Jeter-Pilars; Roy Torian, a trombonist who had been treasurer of the Musicians Equity Association in St. Louis, the "race sub-local of the American Federation of Musicians"; Merrill Tarrant, trumpet; Sykes Smith, trumpet; and Charles Pillars, saxophone, who with his brother, Hayes Pillar, was co-leader of Jeter-Pilars. Elbert Claybrook, trumpet, had also been with Jeter-Pillars but had taken a job at Scullin Steel Mills prior to enlisting. All were sent to

Camp Robert Smalls Camp Robert Smalls was a United States Naval training facility, created pursuant to an order signed April 21, 1942 by Frank Knox, then Secretary of the Navy, for the purpose of training African-American seamen at a time when the USN was still se ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, for basic training. Charles Pillars, Torian, Cannady, Smith, and Tarrant remained at Camp Smalls as players in the Ships Company A Band, which also included players from civilian bands led by

Jimmie Lunceford James Melvin Lunceford (June 6, 1902 – July 12, 1947) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and bandleader in the swing era. Early life Lunceford was born on a farm in the Evergreen community, west of the Tombigbee River, near Fulton, Mi ...

Charlie Spivak Charlie Spivak (February 17, 1907 – March 1, 1982) was an American trumpeter and bandleader, best known for his big band in the 1940s. Early life The details of Spivak's birth are unclear. Some sources place it in Ukraine in 1907, and that h ...

George Hudson George Hudson (probably 10 March 1800 – 14 December 1871) was an English railway financier and politician who, because he controlled a significant part of the railway network in the 1840s, became known as "The Railway King"—a title conferr ...

, the Carolina Cotton Pickers, Don Albert, and Fats Waller, among others."Willie Smith of Lunceford Crew Is among Others Starred Here." ''

Chicago Defender ''The Chicago Defender'' is a Chicago-based online African-American newspaper. It was founded in 1905 by Robert S. Abbott and was once considered the "most important" newspaper of its kind. Abbott's newspaper reported and campaigned against Jim ...

'', May 15, 1943: p. 19 The Jeter-Pillars Orchestra served as a training ground for up-and-coming jazz players including trumpeters

Harry "Sweets" Edison Harry "Sweets" Edison (October 10, 1915 – July 27, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and a member of the Count Basie Orchestra. His most important contribution was as a Hollywood studio musician, whose muted trumpet can be heard bac ...

and

Peanuts Holland Herbert Lee "Peanuts" Holland (February 9, 1910 – February 7, 1979) was an American jazz trumpeter best known for his contributions in swing jazz. Early life Born in Norfolk, Virginia, Holland learned to play trumpet at the Jenkins Orphanage ...

, bassist

Jimmy Blanton James Blanton (October 5, 1918 – July 30, 1942) was an American jazz double bassist. Blanton is credited with being the originator of more complex pizzicato and arco bass solos in a jazz context than previous bassists. Nicknamed "Jimmie," Bla ...

, drummers Jo Jones,

Sid Catlett Sidney "Big Sid" Catlett (January 17, 1910 – March 25, 1951) was an American jazz drummer. Catlett was one of the most versatile drummers of his era, adapting with the changing music scene as bebop emerged. Early life Catlett was born in Eva ...

and

Kenny Clarke Kenneth Clarke Spearman (January 9, 1914January 26, 1985), nicknamed Klook, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A major innovator of the bebop style of drumming, he pioneered the use of the ride cymbal to keep time rather than the hi-ha ...

, guitarist

Floyd Smith Floyd Robert Donald Smith (born May 16, 1935, in Perth, Ontario) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre and coach. Biography Smith grew up in Galt, Ontario, playing junior hockey with the Galt Black Hawks. He made his National Ho ...

, tenor-saxophonist Jimmy Forrest, and alto saxophonist

Chris Woods Christopher Charles Eric Woods (born 14 November 1959) is an English football coach and former professional footballer, who is goalkeeping coach for the Scotland national team. As a player, he was a goalkeeper who played in the Football Leag ...

. In the late 1940s, the group toured the Far East for the USO, before breaking up. The Jeter-Pillars Orchestra recorded four sides for

Vocalion Records Vocalion Records is an American record company and label. History The label was founded in 1916 by the Aeolian Company, a maker of pianos and organs, as Aeolian-Vocalion; the company also sold phonographs under the Vocalion name. "Aeolian" was ...

in 1937. The recordings were: * "Lazy Rhythm" (their theme song) * "I Like Pie, I Like Cake" * "

Make Believe Make believe, also known as pretend play, is a loosely structured form of play that generally includes role-play, object substitution and nonliteral behavior. What separates play from other daily activities is its fun and creative aspect rather t ...

" * "I'll Always Be In Love With You"

References

External links

* American jazz ensembles from Missouri Musical groups established in 1933 Musical groups disestablished in the 1940s 1933 establishments in Missouri 1940s disestablishments in Missouri {{jazz-stub

Career

References

Further reading

External links