by Britt Ryan | Oct 13, 2020 | Today in Music History
Jazz pianist Art Tatum (1909-1956) was said to be so good that even such classical virtuosos as Vladimir Horowitz and Sergei Rachmaninoff came to see him play. Born in Toledo, Ohio, in 1909, Tatum, though legally blind and largely self-taught, became known as one of...
by Britt Ryan | Oct 12, 2020 | Today in Music History
Considered one of the top jazz drummers of the early days, Tubby Hall (real name: Alfred) was born in Sellers, Louisiana, on this day in 1895. He joined Sugar Johnny’s Creole Orchestra in 1917 before going off to serve in the Army during World War I. Hall later played...
by Britt Ryan | Oct 11, 2020 | Today in Music History
Born in Pittsburgh on this day in 1919, the great drummer/bandleader Art Blakey earned his place on many lists of the top jazz drummers ever (this list has the “polyrhythmic percussion powerhouse” at #1). As the longtime leader of The Jazz Messengers, Blakey also left...
by Britt Ryan | Oct 10, 2020 | Today in Music History
Monk. Thelonious Monk. Born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, in 1917, the legendary pianist and composer was “one of the prime creators — the creator, he said — of modern jazz, i.e., bebop, alongside Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, in the early 1940s, most famously...
by Britt Ryan | Oct 9, 2020 | Today in Music History
You probably already knew John Lennon got his middle name from Sir Winston Churchill, right? Born in Liverpool on this day in 1940, John Winston Lennon became at least as famous as the revered British prime minister, not to mention “more popular than Jesus.” Here’s...
by Britt Ryan | Oct 8, 2020 | Today in Music History
He was born Park Frederick Adams III in Highland Park, Michigan, on this day in 1930, but the jazz world knew him as Pepper. Considered one of the most accomplished baritone soloists in jazz history, Pepper Adams (1930-1986) played in big bands and small ensembles,...
