George "Pee Wee" Erwin (May 30, 1913 – June 20, 1981) was an American

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 m ...

trumpeter.

Biography

He was born in

Falls City, Nebraska Falls City is a city and county seat of Richardson County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 4,133 at the 2020 census, down from 4,325 in 2010 and 4,671 in 2000. History Falls City was founded in the summer of 1857 by James Lane, Jo ...

, United States. Erwin started on trumpet at age four. He played in several

territory band Territory bands were dance bands that crisscrossed specific regions of the United States from the 1920s through the 1960s. Beginning in the 1920s, the bands typically had 8 to 12 musicians. These bands typically played one-nighters, six or seven n ...

s before joining the groups of

Joe Haymes Joseph Lawrence Haymes (February 10, 1907 – July 10, 1964) was an American jazz bandleader and arranger. Life and career Born in Marshfield, Missouri, United States, Haymes relocated with his family to Springfield, Missouri, after his railroad ...

(1931–33) and

Isham Jones Isham Edgar Jones (January 31, 1894 – October 19, 1956) was an American bandleader, saxophonist, bassist and songwriter. Career Jones was born in Coalton, Ohio, United States, to a musical and mining family. His father, Richard Isham Jone ...

(1933–34). He then 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 ...

, where he was prolific as a studio musician, performing on radio and in recording sessions. He played with

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader known as the "King of Swing". From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing big bands in the United States. His conc ...

in 1934-35, then with Ray Noble in 1935; the next year he rejoined Goodman, taking

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 ...

's empty chair. In 1937, he again followed Berigan, this time in

Tommy Dorsey Thomas Francis Dorsey Jr. (November 19, 1905 – November 26, 1956) was an American jazz trombonist, composer, conductor and bandleader of the big band era. He was known as the "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" because of his smooth-toned trombo ...

's orchestra, where he remained until 1939. Erwin led his own

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 ...

in 1941-42 and 1946. In the 1950s, he settled in

New Milford, New Jersey New Milford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 16,341,Dixieland jazz Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ...

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, and in the 1960s formed his own trumpet school with

Chris Griffin Christopher “Chris” Cross Griffin is a fictional character from the animated television series, '' Family Guy''. He is the second of three children of Peter and Lois Griffin and is also the older brother of Stewie Griffin and the younger b ...

; among its graduates was Warren Vaché. Erwin played up until the year of his death, recording as a leader for

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stu ...

in the 1950s and issuing six albums in 1980 and 1981, the last two years of his life.

Scott Yanow Scott Yanow (born October 4, 1954) is an American jazz reviewer, historian, and author. Allmusic Biography/ref> Biography Yanow was born in New York City and grew up near Los Angeles. Since 1974, he was a regular reviewer of many jazz styles a ...

, Pee Wee Erwinat

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

In May 1981, Erwin performed at the

Breda Breda () is a city and municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Brabant. The name derived from ''brede Aa'' ('wide Aa' or 'broad Aa') and refers to the confluence of the rivers Mark and Aa. Breda has ...

Jazz Festival in the Netherlands, weeks before his death in

Teaneck, New Jersey Teaneck () is a township in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a bedroom community in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 39,776, reflecting an increase of 516 (+1.3%) f ...

, at the age of 68.

Discography

*1953: ''The Land of Dixie'' ( Brunswick) *1955: ''Accent on Dixieland'' (

Urania Urania ( ; grc, , Ouranía; modern Greek shortened name ''Ránia''; meaning "heavenly" or "of heaven") was, in Greek mythology, the muse of astronomy, and in later times, of Christian poetry. Urania is the goddess of astronomy and stars, ...

) *1956: ''Dixieland at Grandview Inn'' (

Cadence In Western musical theory, a cadence (Latin ''cadentia'', "a falling") is the end of a phrase in which the melody or harmony creates a sense of full or partial resolution, especially in music of the 16th century onwards.Don Michael Randel (199 ...

) *1958: ''Oh, Play That Thing!'' (

) *1959: ''Down by the Riverside'' (United Artists) *1980: ''In New York'' (Qualtro) *1980: ''Swingin' That Music'' ( Jazzology) *1980: ''Pee Wee in Hollywood'' (Qualtro) *1990: ''Dixieland Ramble'' (Broadway Intermission) – contains radio transcriptions probably from the 1950s and a 1965 live session) *2000: ''Dr. Jazz'' ( Storyville) – with Vic Dickenson, all tracks recorded in 1952

References

External links

Pee Wee Erwin: Complete Fifties Recordings
A complete listing on the Worlds Records website. {{DEFAULTSORT:Erwin, Pee Wee 1913 births 1981 deaths American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters People from New Milford, New Jersey 20th-century American musicians 20th-century trumpeters People from Falls City, Nebraska Jazz musicians from Nebraska 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians

Biography

Discography

References

Further reading

External links