William Alexander "Sonny" Greer (December 13, c. 1895 – March 23, 1982) was an American jazz drummer and vocalist, best known for his work with Duke Ellington.

Biography

Greer was born in Long Branch,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

, United States, and played with Elmer Snowden's band and the Howard Theatre's orchestra in Washington, D.C., before joining Duke Ellington, whom he met in 1919. He was Ellington's first drummer, playing with his quintet, the Washingtonians, and moved with Ellington into the Cotton Club. As a result of his job as a designer with the Leedy Drum Company of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

, Greer was able to build up a huge

drum kit A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

worth over a then-considerable $3,000, including chimes, a gong,

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...

, and vibes. Greer was a heavy drinker, as well as a pool-hall hustler (when he needed to retrieve his drums from the pawnbroker), and in 1950, Ellington responded to his drinking and occasional unreliability by taking a second drummer, Butch Ballard, with them on a tour of

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. This enraged Greer, and the consequent argument led to their permanent estrangement. Greer continued to play, mainly as a freelance drummer, working with musicians such as Johnny Hodges, Red Allen,

J. C. Higginbotham J. (Jack) C. Higginbotham (May 11, 1906 – May 26, 1973) was an American jazz trombonist. His playing was robust and swinging. Biography He was born in Social Circle, Georgia, United States, and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. In the 1930s a ...

, Tyree Glenn, and Brooks Kerr, as well as appearing in films, and briefly leading his own band. Greer featured in the 1958 black-and-white photograph by Art Kane known as " A Great Day in Harlem". He was part of a tribute to Ellington in 1974, which achieved great success throughout the United States. Greer died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

on March 23, 1982 at Lenox Hill,

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

, and is interred in Woodlawn Cemetery in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

, New York City.

Discography

With Duke Ellington * ''Duke Ellington'' (RCA Victor, 1957) * ''The Duke in London'' (Decca, 1957) * ''At the Cotton Club'' (RCA Camden, 1958) * ''Caravan'' (RCA Victor, 1958) * ''Jazz Cocktail'' (Columbia, 1958) * ''Johnny Come Lately'' (RCA Victor, 1967) * ''The Duke Elington Carnegie Hall Concerts, January 1943'' (Prestige, 1977) With Johnny Hodges * '' Castle Rock'' (Norgran, 1955) * ''

Creamy Creamy were a Faroese-Danish teen-pop duo, composed of Rebekka Mathew and Rannva Joensen. Their 1999 debut album, ''Creamy'', made when the pair were just thirteen years of age, was composed of euro-pop versions of children’s songs. In 200 ...

'' (Norgran, 1955) With others * Bernard Addison, ''High in a Basement'' (77 Records, 1961) *

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and Singing, vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and se ...

, ''Town Hall'' (RCA Victor, 1957) *

Earl Hines Earl Kenneth Hines, also known as Earl "Fatha" Hines (December 28, 1903 – April 22, 1983), was an American jazz pianist and bandleader. He was one of the most influential figures in the development of jazz piano and, according to one source, " ...

, ''Once Upon a Time'' (Impulse!, 1966) *

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles ...

, ''Lionel Hampton'' (RCA Victor, 1958) * Lonnie Johnson, ''Playing with the Strings'' (JSP, 2004) * Brooks Kerr, ''Soda Fountain Rag'' (Chiaroscuro, 1974) * Oscar Pettiford, ''Oscar Rides Again'' (Proper, 2008) * Rex Stewart, Cootie Williams, ''Tea and Trumpets'' (His Master's Voice, 1955) * Victoria Spivey, ''The Queen and Her Knights'' (Spivey, 1965) * Josh White, ''Sings Ballads, Blues'' (Elektra, 1957)

References

Bibliography

*Ian Carr, Digby Fairweather & Brian Priestley. ''Jazz: The Rough Guide''.

External links

* Sonny Greer— brief biography by Scott Yanow, for Allmusic (also contains a discography
Sonny Greer
a
Drummerworld.com
*
Sonny Greer recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The DAHR provides some of these original recordings, free of charge, via audio streaming, along with ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Greer, Sonny 1890s births 1982 deaths People from Long Branch, New Jersey Swing drummers American jazz drummers Duke Ellington Orchestra members 20th-century American drummers American male drummers American male jazz musicians 20th-century American male musicians