Kenneth Lyons Kersey (April 3, 1916 – April 1, 1983) was a Canadian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

pianist who spent most of his life working in the United States.

Early life

Kersey was born in

Harrow, Ontario Harrow is a community located in the town of Essex, Essex County, Ontario, Canada. History First known as ''Munger's Corners'' after John Munger, the first postmaster, the town was renamed by John O'Connor in 1857 for the exclusive Harrow Sch ...

, on April 3, 1916 into a musical family. He studied piano and trumpet while attending the

Detroit Institute of Musical Arts The Detroit Institute of Musical Arts (DIMA) was a music conservatory in Detroit, Michigan that was actively providing higher education in music from 1914-1970. History The Detroit Institute of Musical Arts was founded by several Michigan based mu ...

Later life and career

In 1936, Kersey moved to New York City, where he played with

Lucky Millinder Lucius Venable "Lucky" Millinder (August 8, 1910 – September 28, 1966) was an American swing and rhythm-and-blues bandleader. Although he could not read or write music, did not play an instrument and rarely sang, his showmanship and musical ...

, Billy Hicks,

Frankie Newton Frankie Newton (William Frank Newton, January 4, 1906 – March 11, 1954) was an American jazz trumpeter from Emory, Virginia, United States. He played in several New York City bands in the 1920s and 1930s, including those led by Sam Wooding, Chic ...

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 si ...

Roy Eldridge David Roy Eldridge (January 30, 1911 – February 26, 1989), nicknamed "Little Jazz", was an American jazz trumpeter. His sophisticated use of harmony, including the use of tritone substitutions, his virtuosic solos exhibiting a departure from t ...

Red Allen Henry James "Red" Allen, Jr. (January 7, 1908 – April 17, 1967) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist whose playing has been claimed by Joachim-Ernst Berendt and others as the first to fully incorporate the innovations of Louis Armstr ...

, and

Cootie Williams Charles Melvin "Cootie" Williams (July 10, 1911 – September 15, 1985) was an American jazz, jump blues, and rhythm and blues trumpeter. Biography Born in Mobile, Alabama, Williams began his professional career at the age of 14 with the Yo ...

. In 1942, he replaced

Mary Lou Williams Mary Lou Williams (born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs; May 8, 1910 – May 28, 1981) was an American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer. She wrote hundreds of compositions and arrangements and recorded more than one hundred records (in 78, 45, and ...

as Andy Kirk's pianist; Kirk recorded his composition "Boogie Woogie Cocktail". He was in the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

from 1943 to 1945, where he sometimes played trumpet in military bands, then played from 1946 to 1949 with the

Jazz at the Philharmonic Jazz at the Philharmonic, or JATP (1944–1983), was the title of a series of jazz concerts, tours and recordings produced by Norman Granz. Over the years, "Jazz at the Philharmonic" featured many of the era's preeminent musicians, including Loui ...

touring ensembles. He continued to perform with such musicians as Eldridge and Allen, as well as

Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record "Confessin' That I Love You" ...

Edmond Hall Edmond Hall (May 15, 1901 – February 11, 1967) was an American jazz clarinetist and bandleader. Over his career, Hall worked extensively with many leading performers as both a sideman and bandleader and is possibly best known for the 1941 cha ...

, Sol Yaged, and

Charlie Shavers Charles James Shavers (August 3, 1920 – July 8, 1971) was an American jazz trumpeter who played with Dizzy Gillespie, Nat King Cole, Roy Eldridge, Johnny Dodds, Jimmie Noone, Sidney Bechet, Midge Williams, Tommy Dorsey, and Billie Holiday. He ...

. Kersey retired from music in the late 1950s, because of medical problems that have described as a "bone ailment" or "a stroke and related cardiovascular problems". He recorded twelve tunes as a bandleader: four for

Savoy Records Savoy Records is an American record company and label established by Herman Lubinsky in 1942 in Newark, New Jersey. Savoy specialized in jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. In September 2017, Savoy was acquired by Concord Bicycle Music. ...

in 1946, two for

Clef Records Clef Records was an American jazz record label founded by Norman Granz in 1946. It became part of Verve Records, which Granz created in 1956. Clef recordings were, in the mid 1950s, licensed to Columbia (UK) who issued 78rpm discs with a special w ...

in 1949, two for Circle Records in 1950, and four for Foxy Records in 1951 which featured

Hot Lips Page Oran Thaddeus "Hot Lips" Page (January 27, 1908 – November 5, 1954) was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and bandleader. He was known as a scorching soloist and powerful vocalist. Page was a member of Walter Page's Blue Devils, Artie Sh ...

and

Paul Quinichette Paul Quinichette (May 17, 1916 – May 25, 1983) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He was known as the "Vice President" or "Vice Prez" for his emulation of the breathy style of Lester Young, whose nickname was "The President", or simply "P ...

as sidemen. Kersey died in New York City on April 1, 1983.

Discography

As leader

*''Piano Styles of Ken Kersey'' (

Savoy Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south. Savo ...

, 1946; EP)

As sideman

With

*''

All the Cats Join In ''All the Cats Join In'' is a song written by Ray Gilbert, Eddie Sauter and Alec Wilder, and first recorded by Benny Goodman. It later was a track on an LP with the same title by trumpeter Buck Clayton. Benny Goodman Curiously, Goodman recor ...

'' (Columbia, 1956) With

*''Jazz at the Savoy Cafe, Boston'' (Savoy, 1949) With

Jimmy Hamilton Jimmy Hamilton (May 25, 1917 – September 20, 1994) was an American jazz clarinetist and saxophonist, who was a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Biography Hamilton was born in Dillon, South Carolina, United States, and grew up in Phi ...

*''Clarinet in Hi Fi'' (1955) With

Jonah Jones Jonah Jones (born Robert Elliott Jones; December 31, 1909 – April 29, 2000) was a jazz trumpeter who created concise versions of jazz and swing and jazz standards that appealed to a mass audience. In the jazz community, he is known for his w ...

*''Jonah Jones Sextet'' (Bethlehem, 1954) With

*''Horn o' Plenty'' (Bethlehem, 1955)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kersey, Ken 1916 births 1983 deaths Canadian jazz pianists 20th-century Canadian pianists