Clifton Luther Jackson (July 19, 1902 – May 24, 1970) was an American stride pianist.

Career

Jackson was born in

Culpeper, Virginia Culpeper (formerly Culpeper Courthouse, earlier Fairfax) is an incorporated town in Culpeper County, Virginia, United States. The population was 20,062 at the 2020 census, up from 16,379 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Culpeper C ...

, United States. After playing in

Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

, Jackson moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1923, where he played with Lionel Howard's Musical Aces in 1924, and recorded with

Bob Fuller Bob Fuller (December 31, 1898 – unknown) was an American blues and jazz saxophonist and clarinetist, best known for his recordings accompanying female singers of the 1920s. Born and raised in New York City, Fuller toured the United States ...

and

Elmer Snowden Elmer Chester Snowden (October 9, 1900 – May 14, 1973) was an American banjo player of the jazz age. He also played guitar and, in the early stages of his career, all the reed instruments. He contributed greatly to jazz in its early days as b ...

. He led his own ensemble, the Krazy Kats, for recordings in 1930, and following this group's dissolution he played extensively as a solo pianist in

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gen ...

s in New York. During this time he also accompanied singers such as

Viola McCoy Viola McCoy (c. 1900 – c. 1956) was an American blues singer who performed in the classic female blues style during a career that lasted from the early 1920s to the late 1930s. Life and career Her birth name may have been Amanda Brown (a na ...

, Lena Wilson,

Sara Martin Sara Martin (June 18, 1884 – May 24, 1955) was an American blues singer, in her time one of the most popular of the classic blues singers. She was billed as "The Famous Moanin' Mama" and "The Colored Sophie Tucker". She made many recordings, ...

, Martha Copeland, Helen Gross, and

Clara Smith Clara Smith (March 13, 1894 – February 2, 1935) was an American classic female blues singer, billed as the "Queen of the Moaners", although she had a lighter and sweeter voice than many of her contemporaries. Clara Smith was not related to ...

. He recorded with

Sidney Bechet Sidney Bechet (May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. He was one of the first important soloists in jazz, and first recorded several months before trumpeter Louis Armstrong. His erratic tempe ...

in 1940-41, and recorded as a soloist or leader in 1944-45, 1961, and 1969. As house pianist at Cafe Society from 1943 until 1951 he was a success; he also toured with

Eddie Condon Albert Edwin Condon (November 16, 1905 – August 4, 1973) was an American jazz banjoist, guitarist, and bandleader. A leading figure in Chicago jazz, he also played piano and sang. Early years Condon was born in Goodland, Indiana, the son of J ...

in 1946. He also played with

Garvin Bushell Garvin Bushell ''(né'' Garvin Lamont Payne; September 25, 1902 – October 31, 1991) was an American woodwind multi-instrumentalist. Biography Bushell was born in Springfield, Ohio, to Alexander Payne, Jr. (1875–1908) and Effie Penn ''( ...

(1950), J.C. Higginbotham (1960), and Joe Thomas (1962).

Musical style

As shown by many of his 1944-1945 solo piano recordings, such as " Limehouse Blues", Jackson was one of the most powerful stride piano players. His style was also marked by a contrapuntal-like bass work. His many left hand techniques are found explained in detail in Riccardo Scivales's method, ''Jazz Piano: The Left Hand'' (Bedford Hills, New York: Ekay Music, 2005).

Personal life

Jackson was married to the singer Maxine Sullivan from 1950, until his death from

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

in 1970.

Discography

As leader

* ''Uptown and Lowdown'' (Prestige, 1961) * ''Carolina Shout!'' (Black Lion, 1973) * ''Cliff Jackson and His Crazy Kats 1930'' (Retrieval, 1981) * ''Recorded in New York 1926–34'' (Jazz Oracle, 2003)

As sideman

, ''Bechet of New Orleans'' (RCA Victor, 1965) *

Bunny Berigan Roland Bernard "Bunny" Berigan (November 2, 1908 – June 2, 1942) was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader who rose to fame during the swing era. His career and influence were shortened by alcoholism, and ended with his early demise at the ...

, ''1935–1936'' (Classics, 1993) *

, ''The Eddie Condon Concerts'' (Chiaroscuro, 1972) * Eddie Condon, ''The Town Hall Concerts Vol. Four'' (Jazzology, 1989) *

The Delfonics The Delfonics were an American R&B/soul vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Delfonics were most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Their most notable hits include " La-La (Means I Love You)", " Didn't I (Blow Your Mind Thi ...

, ''La La Means I Love You'' (Philly Groove, 1968) * Helen Gross, ''1924–1925'' (Document, 1988) *

Coleman Hawkins Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November 21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes "Bean", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.Yanow, Scot"Coleman Hawkins: Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved December 27, 2013. One of the first p ...

, ''Years Ago'' (Prestige, 1964) *

Rosa Henderson Rosa Henderson (November 24, 1896 – April 6, 1968) was an American jazz and classic female blues singer and vaudeville entertainer of the Harlem Renaissance era. Life and career Born Rosa Deschamps in Henderson, Kentucky, she is remembered as ...

, ''Complete Recorded Works in Chronological Order Vol. 4'' (Document, 1995) *

Alberta Hunter Alberta Hunter (April 1, 1895 – October 17, 1984) was an American jazz and blues singer and songwriter from the early 1920s to the late 1950s. After twenty years of working as a nurse, Hunter resumed her singing career in 1977. Early life Hu ...

, Lucille Hegamin, Victoria Spivey, ''Songs We Taught Your Mother'' (Prestige, 1962) * Lonnie Johnson, '' Idle Hours'' (Prestige, 1987) *

Jimmy Rushing James Andrew Rushing (August 26, 1901 – June 8, 1972) was an American singer and pianist from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948. Rushing was known as " Mr. Five by ...

, ''The Jazz Odyssey of Jimmy Rushing'' (Philips, 1957) *

Al Sears Albert Omega Sears (February 21, 1910 – March 23, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and bandleader, sometimes credited as Big Al Sears. Sears was born in Macomb, Illinois, United States. His first major gig came in 1928 when he r ...

, ''

Things Ain't What They Used to Be "Things Ain't What They Used to Be" is a 1942 jazz standard with music by Mercer Ellington and lyrics by Ted Persons. Background In 1941 there was a strike against the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, of which Duke Ellington ...

'' (Swingville, 1961) *

, ''Harlem Banjo'' (Riverside, 1960)

References

Bibliography

Leonard Feather Leonard Geoffrey Feather (13 September 1914 – 22 September 1994) was a British-born jazz pianist, composer, and producer, who was best known for his music journalism and other writing. Biography Feather was born in London, England, into an u ...

and Ira Gitler, ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz''.

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

, 1999, , p. 345. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Cliff 1902 births 1970 deaths American jazz pianists American male pianists People from Culpeper, Virginia 20th-century American pianists Jazz musicians from Virginia 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Black Lion Records artists