Coastal Jazz Association of Savannah
Hall of Fame
Continued
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| Connie Haines
Connie Haines was born in Savannah as Yvonne Marie Antoinette Ja Mais. At the age of five, she moved to Florida, seemingly born to dance where she was named Champion Charleston dancer for that state. At the ripe old age of nine, she had her own radio show on NBC, ‘Baby Yvonne Marie’, where she sang in front of a 30-piece band.
At ten she sang with Paul Whiteman’s famous orchestra, and at age sixteen she joined the band of Harry James, where she began her career as a big-band singer. She recorded with Harry James, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, and with Frank Sinatra, making hits of the big-band era such as I’ll Never Smile Again and Oh, Look at Me Now.
Haines career has spanned decades of American music, having made over 200 recordings, per-formed on radio and television, and on Broadway and at America¹s finest clubs and performing venues. She continues to keep the ‘Era of the Big Band’ alive through tireless personal appearances.
She has appeared before five U.S. Presidents and in many movies. She was, also, the first white artist to record for Motown Records, where she performed the music of Smokey Robinson. Connie, also, appeared in movies with some of the biggest names in Hollywood.
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| Joseph "Joe" Jones |
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Joseph "Joe" Jones
Through the years Savannah has had a love affair with the jazz piano, and the city boasts several pianists who can (and do) hold their own with the finest practitioners of the art of jazz piano playing. Joseph "Joe" Jones is very definitely in the first rank of pianists associated with Savannah Jazz.
Joe arrived in Savannah in 1983 with wife Deborah and family, and a reputation as a first-rate performer which was already established. In Savannah he teamed up with bassist Ben Tucker, regularly performing at "Hard-Hearted Hannah's" and other spots around Savannah and the low country. He brought with him an urbane sophistication and respect for his instrument which "married" the spontaneity of playing jazz with the schooled facility of a trained musician. He is comfortable with an astounding range of musical styles, including anything from the classical piano to country music, rhythm and blues, and cafe music. You might say that Joe knows his Art Tatum, his Hank Williams, his Oscar Peterson, and his J. S. Bach„and he knows them well. And to those giants in the musicians' Parthenon, he has added his own style„the "Joe Jones Touch."
Let us tell you a little about Joe's background. A native of Hampton, Virginia, he is an alumnus of the renowned Hampton Institute. He was pianist, arranger, and sometimes vocalist for "The Five Keys" quintet and made his early marks in the rhythm and blues field. While in the army, he was assigned to several bands, completing the prestigious Navy School of Music, and was assigned to the Army Symphony Orchestra in Stuttgart, Germany, where he played trumpet. He was also in the Orchestra's jazz contingent which featured some of today's notables, including Cedar Walton, Don Ellis, Eddie Harris, and Charlie Sanders.
After the service, he returned to Hampton, teaming up with Bill Barnwell and performing regularly at Hampton's famed "Kool Jazz Festival." During the early '60'S he traveled with Dizzy Gillespie, and in 1964 he was music director for The Three Sons.
Still later, he was band leader and organist for Otis Redding, also making appearances with jazz legends such as Dinah Washington, Sonny Stilt, Cab Calloway, and Savannah-born James Moody. He recorded an album in 1973 with bassist Esdras Ben Lubin called "In Concert" on the Strata East label, and is prominently featured on the video, "Jazz at Hannah's," done in 1990 by Georgia Public Television.
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George E. Harper, Jr.,
March 1, 1942
George E. Harper, Jr., Saxophonist, clarinetist, flutist, composer and arranger, was born on March 1, 1942 in Savannah, Georgia. The son of an Episcopal Minister, who was also a choir director, George credits his parents, especially his mother, for his interest in music.
Starting on the clarinet while in elementary school, George added the alto and tenor saxophones to his musical explorations and began delving into the Jazz idiom as early as junior high school. Upon hearing Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Sonny Stitt and John Coltrane, George decided that he was going to be a professional Jazz musician. He attended Morehouse College in Atlanta and started to seriously develop his music skills. George remained in Atlanta until 1970, when he moved to Los Angeles, where he resides today.
George Harper has recorded on several albums with various Jazz artists, among them Doug Carn (Black on Jazz Records, 1971 and 1972, ‘Spirit of the New Land’ and ‘Infant Eyes.’ His performing credits are impressive and include: Phil Rauelin, Curtis Fuller, Herbie Hancock, Hubert Laws, Jimmy Smith, Ray Charles, Henry Franklin, Billy Higgins, Eric Reed and the Clayton Hamilton Orchestra, just to name a few.
George is still very active in the Los Angeles area.
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| Kahn Keene |
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Kahn Keene
Kahn Keene began playing trombone at the age of 12 in his native Kansas City and was performing with professional orchestras by his 16th birthday. Kansas City jazz of the 20s and 30s was marked by a driving Blues beat and represented by such bands as Andy Kirk and His Clouds of Joy, featuring Mary Lou Williams on piano and Walter Page's Blue Devils and the Benny Moten Orchestra, both of which formed the background of the Count Basie Orchestra. Kahn absorbed this music and developed an intense admiration for the trombone stylings of the one-and-only Jack Teagarden.
He memorized several of Mr. T's solos note for note. In 1932 Keene moved to Chicago and shortly after his arrival was asked to replace an ailing Jack Teagarden in the Ben Pollack Orchestra. The band was amazed to hear Kahn duplicate Teagarden's solos.
After working with several bands in the Windy City, Kahn settled down with the Frankie Masters Band at the College Inn. In 1938 the Masters group headed for New York to play an engagement at the Hotel Roosevelt. During this extended gig, bandleader Masters, tenor saxophonist Carl Bean, and Kahn collaborated on a tune called "Scatterbrain" with Iyrics pinned by Johnny Burke. The Masters band recorded the tune on May 25,1939, for OkehNocalion. By November, "Scatterbrain" made the Hit Parade in the #6 position and remained in the top 10 for 13 consecutive weeks and was the #1 song for six of those weeks. The band of Van Alexander and Benny Goodman had success with the song and European groups also recorded it (including gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt).
Kahn's song writing career continued and resulted in widespread acceptance by the big bands of the day Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Lombardo, and Welk, to name a few. After leaving Frankie Masters, Kahn joined the band of Charlie Barnet where he participated in some of the band's recordings for RCA's Bluebird label in 1941. Kahn Keene entered the service in 1943 and became part of the legendary Glenn Miller Army Air Force band and recorded several originals with the Miller band, including the classic "St. Louis Blues March." After World War II, Kahn returned to the New York jazz scene. While working at the Roxy Theatre and freelancing, he landed a spot on the Steve Allen Show with the big band of Skitch Henderson.
Kahn moved to Savannah in 1957 and became first trombonist and business manager of the Savannah Symphony. He later formed the Kahn Keene Kwintet and played countless dates over the years. But Kahn's first love was the big band sound.
Thanks for the musical memories, Kahn. We've always listened to you "Keenely."
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| Herbert King |
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Herbert King
Herbert King recalls that he became "fascinated" with drums when he was "four or five" years old. Since that time he has become one of the finest percussionists produced in Savannah.
Herbert was born and educated in Savannah. He began formal study of the drums when he was thirteen years old. He credits Sam Gill, a local educator, band leader, and also a member of the Coastal Jazz Association Hall of Fame, with giving him the opportunity to play the drums at Thompkins Middle School. After graduating from high school, Herbert settled in Boston, Massachusetts, where he attended the New England Conservatory of Music. Today, Herbert King is very active as an educator and performing artist.
He has done much to further the development and understanding of jazz music.
Mr. King died in November, 2007.
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| Joseph "Kaiser" Marshall |
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Joseph "Kaiser" Marshall
1899 - 1948
Kaiser Marshall was born in Savannah on June 11, 1899. He was considered one of the most influential drummers in jazz of the 1920s and was one of the first significant big band drummers.
Marshall grew up in Boston and gigs included with singer Jules Bledsoe and Charlie Dixon. After moving to New York, he was in Ralph "Shrimp" Jones' band in 1923 and then spent a long period with Henderson (from 1924-30), appearing on many records. He is best known for his long association with Henderson. Marshall was one of the critical factors in the success of this band, the others being Coleman Hawkins, Don Redman, and at various times, Louis Armstrong, Buster Bailey, Rex Stewart, Tommy Ladnier, Jimmy Harrison, Fats Waller, Benny Morton, and Benny Carter.
Needless to say, this band was an inspirational model for virtually every Big Band in the coming Swing Era.After leaving Henderson in 1930, Marshall remained quite active and played with many bands. He led his Czars of Harmony in 1931, worked with LeRoy Smith, co-led Kaiser and Reynolds' Bostonians with Ellsworth Reynolds, and subbed in the orchestras of Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway. Marshall worked with a later version of McKinney's Cotton Pickers, with Leon Englund, headed some short-lived groups, played in Europe with Bobby Martin in 1937, was with Edgar Hayes in 1939 and from the early 1940s on mostly worked with Dixieland bands. Among his later associations were Wild Bill Davison, Art Hodes, Bunk Johnson, Sidney Bechet and Mezz Mezzrow (the latter two welcomed Marshall to some of the King Jazz recordings).
Kaiser Marshall's last gig was at Jimmy Ryan's on 52nd Street in New York, a few days before dying a sudden death at the age of 48 from complications from food poisoning on January 3, 1948.
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| Johnny Mercer |
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Johnny Mercer
(born November 18, 1909, Savannah, Georgia; died June 25, 1976, Bel-Air, California)
Our Huckleberry friend, John Herndon Mercer, is in many ways the quintessential spirit of what it's all about to hail from Savannah. A noted lyricist and songwriter, his words are attached to over 1000 songs, which are a great part of the American musical legacy.
Although renowned in New York, where he was a major force in the song writing industry (as well as writing for the musical stage); or in Hollywood, where his songs won no less than four Oscars, and where he founded Capitol Records; he nevertheless seemed to retain his "Geechie" accent (which constantly showed up in his singing style) and his Southern ways.
His Iyrics abound with images that evoke his childhood, where he would slip his patrician bonds and haunt the record shops on old West Broad Street (now Martin Luther King Blvd.), listening for hours on end to the Blues of Bessie Smith, or the freshness of Louis Armstrong no doubt developing his fine sense of rhythm and timing. His songs recall places long gone, like the old Tybrisa Pavilion, where he listened and danced to the great touring bands like Cab Calloway or Tony Pastor.
Memories of cotillions and loves long past are reflected in "Blues in the Night" or "One for My Baby" all gone now, but still in the minds of us who remember a "kinder and gentler" time. In reality, a major American poet, Mercer teamed up with the finest songwriters in America and used his words marvelously (indeed, too marvelous for words). One is constantly awed by the witty Mercer in "G.I. Jive," the droll and hip Mercer in "My New Celebrity is You," the mysterious Mercer as in "Laura," the sentimental Mercer in "Moon River," and the purely poetic Johnny Mercer of songs like "Skylark" or "Midnight Sun."
Johnny Mercer is indeed an "American Treasure," and we are proud to call him our native son.
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| Theodore "Stubby" Mitchell, Trumpet |
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Theodore “Stubby” Mitchell
Theodore “Stubby” Mitchell was a native of Benton Harbor, Michigan and came to Savannah in the late 1940s after being stationed at Fort Stewart. He was a graduate of Savannah State University in music education and taught music in local schools for a number of years.
Stubby was a major influence on a number of Savannah’s better jazz players, including the late Ken Palmer, guitarist Bruce Spradley, and trombonist Teddy Adams. In recalling Stubby, Adams referenced his skills at playing trumpet and flugelhorn. “Stubby was a devotee of Clifford Brown’s clear and clean playing style, and could play all his solos note for note,” according to Adams. Proficient at drums and keyboard and invaluable to area groups for his versatility, he was most comfortable playing horns which he did very well.
Stubby’s passing closes the book on two of Savannah’s most talented and popular musical personalities; the other being saxophonist Willie Draper who died last fall. He will be greatly missed by his many friends, co-performers, and admirers.
Stubby Mitchell, a long-time fixture on the Savannah jazz scene, died December 17, 2010.
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| James Moody |
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James Moody
James Moody was born in Savannah on March 26, 1925, spending his early youth here. The family moved to Newark, N.J.; and at the age of 16, he was given an alto saxophone by an uncle. Though he had no formal training, his natural aptitude enabled him to achieve a considerable degree of fluency by the time he was drafted into the U.S. Air Force in 1943. By this time he had also acquired a tenor sax, a present from his mother, after hearing Buddy Tate and Don Byas with the Count Basie Band. It was in the Air Force that he learned to read music, playing in a sort of unofficial band at Greensboro, N.C., where he was stationed.
Moody's career took off during the time he was stationed at the overseas Replacement Depot #10, and he heard John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie's big band play at the base. Gillespie heard Moody play and invited him to audition in New York, where, at the "Spotlight Club" on 52nd Street, he met and played with many of the emerging bop greats, including Dizzy, Kenny Clark, Thelonious Monk, Ray Brown, and Milt Jackson.
In 1949, the Gillespie band went to Europe, and Moody decided to settle in Paris for a time, largely because of his personal disgust of the persistence of racial discrimination in the United States. He was lionized in Europe, making a classic recording based on "I'm in the Mood for Love," which became "Moody's Mood for Love," a theme which continues to be his trademark today.
Throughout the 50s and early 60s, he toured extensively in the U.S., working at different times with Dinah Washington and Eddie Jefferson. He then rejoined Dizzy in 1963 and then decided to break from the road, settling in Las Vegas, accompanying some of the biggest names in American show business. He then headed back East, playing for his friend Dizzy.
In recent years James has been a frequent visitor to Europe for festivals and dub dates, and continues to delight audiences with his virtuoso sax and flute playing and his zany whimsical humor. A consummate musician and a restless explorer of the inner recesses of chord sequences, Moody sees his music as something of a spiritual quest. "Every time I play, I'm serious. I'm never a still musician, I'm always trying to keep on developing and to improve my technique on the horns." Most informed people, however, think there is very little room for improvement.
James Moody is, quite simply, a phenomenal musician and one of the nicest geniuses in jazz.
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| Joe "King" Oliver |
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Joe "King" Oliver
1885-1938
There is some doubt about the actual birthplace of King Oliver, although he was certainly raised in New Orleans. He began in music on the trombone, but then switched to cornet, doing his early work in Walter Kinchin's band, and with the Melrose Band. During his adolescence he permanently lost sight in one eye through an accident. During the years 1908 through 1917 he did parade work, "gigs" around New Orleans, and occasional tours with various bands, including "The Olympia," "The Onward Brass Band," "The Magnolia," "The Eagle," "The Original Superior," and "Allen's Brass Band." During this time he was also employed as a butler. Around "The Big Easy" he worked at the Abadie Brothers' Cabaret, with Kid Ory at "Pete Lala's," and he also led his own band at that same venue.
Joe left New Orleans c. 1917 and moved to Chicago to join clarinetist Lawrence Duhe's band and played residencies at "The Deluxe Cafe," "Pekin Cabaret," and at "Dreamland" from 1920 to May 1921. In Chicago, in 1922, Oliver led his own "Creole Jazz Band" at Lincoln Gardens, subsequently toured, and made his record debut in 1923. He then made a solo visit to New York (September 1924), and then returned to Chicago where, with his "Dixie Syncopators," he played dates in Milwaukee, Detroit, and St. Louis before working at the Savoy ballroom in New York in May 1927. During this time he toured, led his own bands for recordings, and formed bands for special occasions.
Oliver left New York and lived for a while in Nashville, Tennessee, forming a new band in 1931 which recommenced touring, where despite personnel changes, bad health (hypertension and gum disease), and other problems, he continued to lead bands until 1937. It was then that King Oliver, through the intervention of Mr. Frank Dilworth of "Dilworth Attractions," came to Savannah, where he led for a time an "all star" band, ran a fruit stall, and for a while worked as a pool room attendant on West Broad Street (now Martin Luther King Blvd.). It was Mr. Dilworth's compassionate concern which led to Oliver's settlement in Savannah, where he received medical help and the love of persons who knew of his seminal importance in jazz history. It was also Mr. Dilworth who arranged with Louis Armstrong (Oliver's protege) to have his body sent to New York, where he was buried.
Among King Oliver's many compositions are "Dippermouth Blues," "Canal Street Blues," and "Dr. Jazz." (An excellent biography on King Oliver, King Joe Oliver, is authored by Walter C. Allen and A.L. Rust and was published in 1955.)
Progress continues on plans to erect a memorial to Joe "King" Oliver, the jazz pioneer who died more than 65 years ago.
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| Kenny Palmer |
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Kenneth Palmer
Piano, Trumpet, Guitar, Sax, Composer, and ArrangerKen Palmer was an exceedingly gifted Savannah "original." The son of Kenneth Palmer, Sr., a choir master at St. John's Episcopal Church, Cantor at Mickve Israel Synagogue, and lifetime music critic with The Savannah Morning News, Kenny excelled at an early age with just about any instrument that could be played. However, piano was his first love; and it is with the piano that he is most identified in a career that has spanned several decades, playing on the jazz scene, as well as on the concert stage, and with a number of important big bands. Palmer was so deeply identified with Savannah and Savannah music, that he eschewed what undoubtedly would have been a great career as a national artist to remain in the city.
Indeed in many ways, Kenny Palmer was Savannah jazz. In addition to his talent on the piano, he was equally schooled in composition and arranging, a wonderful teacher of piano and guitar, the classics (as comfortable with Mahler as with Monk), and a quiet friend and inspiration to many younger talents getting their starts in the jazz world.
In a larger sense, Kenny Palmer was a teacher, having recognized very early on that jazz knows no color boundaries; and he is responsible for the introduction of many black artists to white audiences during a time when doing so entailed no small degree of personal courage. The list of local clubs that Ken has played is endless, but he is credited with having played the first set at the "Port Royal," which has the distinction of being the first dub to open on River Street during the late 1950's. A very fine big band musician, he has also played trumpet with the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, the Glenn Miller Band, Ray McKinley, and with the Les Elgart band. Solo piano and small ensemble jazz was Ken Palmer's passion; and for this (and much more) we are grateful.
Ken Palmer died of a heart attack Jan. 5, 1993
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| Eddie Pazant |
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Eddie Pazant
Eddie Pazant is a very versatile jazz artist. He plays saxophones, flute, clarinet, and oboe. Eddie was born in Savannah, but he grew up in Beaufort, South Carolina He showed an early interest in music and began taking clarinet lessons at the age of six. Eddie attended Virginia State College on scholarship. After college, he joined the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and remained with that group for eleven years. After leaving the Hampton band, he joined with his brother to form the Beaufort Express Band.
Eddie Pazant has played before audiences around the world. He is one of the most accomplished jazz musicians from this area. Eddie takes his place in The Coastal Jazz Association Hall of Fame as one of the significant contributors to the development of jazz from Savannah.
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| Irene Reid |
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Irene Reid
"The Lady from Savannah"
1930 - January 2008
As a child, her beautiful soprano voice filled her little church here. At the age of ten, she lead soprano in her school chorus under the direction of the late Peter Smalls.
Irene Reid went to New York in 1947. She immediately went to the famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem for their famous Amateur Night. Ms. Reid was a winner for four consecutive weeks. The late Dinah Washington, who was appearing at The Apollo at the time, personally congratulated the young singer on her talent. In winning the Amateur Night, she joined such performers as Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughn.
She began singing at numerous spots in New York City, including Basin East, The Village Gate, The Village Vanguard, and the Jazz Gallery.
From 1948 through 1950 Irene was the vocalist for Dick Vance, the big band at the Savoy Ballroom, "The Home of Happy Feet."
She joined Count Basie in 1961, soon after the departure of Joe Williams, and shared the spotlight with O.C. Smith. There were two European tours during this period with appearances in Sweden, Switzerland, England, and France.
After leaving the Basie band, Irene formed her own group, which is known today as "Ms. Irene Reid & Co.," consisting of organ, saxophone, guitar, and drums. She rarely makes appearances without her group.
Ms. Reid appeared in "The Wiz" on Broadway as "Evillene," the Bad Witch, replacing Mabel King. She has also shared stage billings with such greats as Brook Benton, Roy Hamilton, George Benson, Flip Wilson, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughn, Aretha Franklin, Etta James, Jimmy Witherspoon, and B.B. King.
Frequently in demand at international jazz festivals and the world-wide jazz scene, she has appeared at the Sonesta Beach Hotel in Bermuda and also in Hong Kong. In September 1982 Irene was featured in a two-week long, free Holland Tour Concert Series given by Dr. Billy Taylor's Jazz Mobile.
The really great jazz vocalists share something in common with their renowned instrumental counterparts. That is, they possess a truly identifiable sound and approach that cannot be mistaken for another. Known for her soulful blues, Ms. Reid has several records to her credit and has helped put Savannah on the jazz map.
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| Ben Riley |
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Ben Riley
Ben Riley was born in Savannah in 1934. Although he returned for visits periodically during his formative childhood years, he and his family moved to New York when he was only four years old.
During the first half of his career, from the mid-50s through the late 60s, many of the great figures in jazz were supported by Ben's talents, including: Sonny Rollins, Junior Mance, Ahmad Jamal, Stan Getz, Roland Hanna, Eric Dolphy, Woody Herman, John Lewis, Kenny Burrell, Walter Bishop Jr., Sonny Stitt, Billy Taylor, Kai Winding, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Johnny Griffin, and Nina Simone. But what secured him a place in jazz history was his four-year stay (1964-67) with jazz's unpredictable individualist, Thelonious Monk, recording with Monk during the Columbia Record years albums such as "It's Monk's Time," "Monk," and "Underground." The 1964 live recordings "Live at the It Club" and "Live at the Jazz Workshop" demonstrate how Ben not only swings the band, but also coats Monk's music with brilliant coloration.
The group Sphere, which was co-founded by Riley and saxophonist Charlie Rouse, featured pianist Kenny Barron and bassist Buster Williams. They have four album releases. Besides Monk, Riley has played with just about everyone worthy of his drum talents including: Randy Weston, Sonny Stitt, Stan Getz, Duke Ellington, Junior Mance, Kenny Burrell, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Johnny Griffin, Ahmad Jamal, Billy Taylor, Ray Bryant, The New York Quartet, Ron Carter, Jim Hall, Charlie Rouse, Gary Bartz, Abdullah Ibrahim, Sonny Rollins, Eric Dolphi, Woody Herman, Roland Hanna, Kai Winding, Nina Simone, Buster Williams, Ralph Moore, Sphere, Alice Coltrane, Charlie Rouse, Kenny Barron Trio, Ray Barretto ...and many more.
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| Sahib Shihab |
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Sahib Shihab
1925 - 1989
Sahib Shihab was born Edmond Gregory on June 23, 1925, in Savannah. He played several reed instruments but his early concentration was alto saxophone. His roots were in Swing, including a stint at 19 as lead alto with Fletcher Henderson from 1944-46. He also played with Roy Eldridge's big band. In 1947, he accepted the Muslim faith and took the name Sahib Shihab.
During the 1940s, he played with some of the greatest bop musicians, including Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk (1947 and 1951 - with whom he made the first recording of "'Round Midnight"), Art Blakey and Tadd Dameron .
Sahib began playing baritone saxophone in the early 1950s and it was on this instrument that he made his greatest contribution. He and Leo Parker are primarily responsible for adapting the "big horn" to bop.
Sahib moved to Europe in 1959 "for survival and peace of mind." He moved back to America in 1984, and he died on Oct. 24, 1989.
Sahib Shihab's work is documented on several recordings, including "Soul Mates" with Charlie Rouse, "Jazz Sahib," "And All Those Cats," "The Jazz We Heard Last Summer," "Summer Down" and John Coltrane's first recording as a leader, "Coltrane," (1957) and performances with Dizzy Gillespie and Tadd Dameron.
His dedication to jazz, his support of young players, and his musicianship on alto and baritone sax and flute helped influence a generation of players.
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Huxsie Scott
Huxsie Scott a native of Savannah, Georgia, is regarded as one of the greatest jazz/blues artists ever to live and perform in the Coastal Georgia area. Huxsie began her career as a jazz vocal in 1973-working with the Dixieland Cats Dixieland Band under the leadership of the late Sam Gill.
During the next 14 years, she performed with many of the area’s premiere jazz ensembles and symphony orchestras. She served as a spotlight performer for many jazz greats such as McCoy Tyner and the late Lionel Hampton. She has worked for a number of years as vocalist for the jazz legend and Savannah resident-Ben Tucker.
Her style merges jazz and gospel very skillfully.
Other performances and accomplishments include: Butch Cornell, Delbert Felix, Kenny Drew, Jr., Herbie Mann, Doug Carn, the Savannah Jazz Orchestra, Eastman School of Music, Jazz and Concert Bands, Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra and the Teddy Adams Quintet/Septet.
Huxsie continues her jazz tradition via gospel music. She has recorded three full projects and is showcased on several other recordings, including, ‘A Message from Savannah,’ the 2004 release of jazz trombonist, Teddy Adams.
Huxsie Scott was the featured performer for the Savannah based musical, Jukebox Journey. In Dec. 2003, she completed two very successful
seasons as the featured vocalist in Lost in the Fifties.
Huxsie was the 2004 Bronze medallist in the Savannah Music Festival American traditions Vocal Competition.
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| Cladys "Jabbo" Smith |
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Cladys "Jabbo" Smith
1908-1991
Cladys "Jabbo" Smith, a pioneer of the modern jazz trumpet and major influence in jazz, was born in Pembroke, Georgia (a small farming community not far from Savannah). After the death of his father he came to live in Savannah for a time, whereupon he was placed in The Jenkins Home, an orphanage in Charleston, where his mother also came to work. The Jenkins Home is renowned as a training ground for several legends in jazz, since its band regularly toured and performed as a means of raising funds to serve black youths. Another famed alumnus of The Jenkins Home is the trumpeter Cat Anderson. And it was there that Jabbo learned to play trumpet and trombone.
By the age of 16, he was working as a professional musician; and at 17 he became a member of Charlie Johnson's Paradise Band. In 1928 he joined the touring revue "Keep Shufflin" while recording with Fats Waller and with James P. Johnson's Louisiana Sugar Babes. He moved to Chicago in 1929 and began recording with a five-man group for the Brunswick label, where it was thought that he might compete successfully with Louis Armstrong's highly popular records. Rex Stewart, the cornetist with the Duke Ellington Orchestra, remembered a musical showdown between Mr. Smith and Mr. Armstrong in which Jabbo more than held his own. "He was like the angel Gabriel himself„ really blowing," Stewart told an interviewer.
Mr. Smith worked with many of the major bands of the 1930's, including Erskine Tate, Charlie Elgar, Tiny Parhamn, Duke Ellington, Fess Williams, and Claude Hopkins. He was also strongly influential on Roy Eldridge, who once described playing with him at a jam session and almost being blown off the stage by Jabbo.
In the 1950's Jabbo more or less retired from music and worked in Milwaukee for the Avis rental agency. But in 1979 he joined the cast of the musical "One Mo' Time" and toured with it. Enjoying a resurgence of his career, Mr. Smith performed in Europe, in clubs and festivals, and at the famed Village Vanguard with trumpeter Don Cherry and the Mel Lewis Orchestra A prolific composer, he wrote over 200 tunes, which he enjoyed performing at concerts at which he appeared.
Jabbo Smith was the very good friend of Mrs. Lorraine Gordon of the Village Vanguard, who continues to do much to assure his place among the giants of jazz. She attended the induction ceremonies in Savannah. A select, but impressive discography of his work is available.
Jabbo Smith died in New York City from complications of pneumonia on January 16, 1991.
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