Teddy Wilson
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| Teddy Wilson | |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Theodore Shaw Wilson |
| Born | November 24, 1912 Austin, Texas, US |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. New Britain, Connecticut, US |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Associated acts | Louis Armstrong, Earl Hines, Billie Holiday, Lester Young, Lena Horne, Benny Goodman |
Theodore Shaw "Teddy" Wilson (November 24, 1912 – July 31, 1986)[1] was an American jazz pianist. Described by critic Scott Yanow as "the definitive swing pianist",[2] Wilson's sophisticated and elegant style was featured on the records of many of the biggest names in jazz, including Louis Armstrong, Lena Horne, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, and Ella Fitzgerald. With Goodman, he was one of the first black musicians to appear prominently with white musicians. In addition to his extensive work as a sideman, Wilson also led his own groups and recording sessions from the late 1920s to the 1980s.
Biography
Wilson was born in Austin, Texas, on November 24, 1912. He studied piano and violin at Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama. After working in Speed Webb's band, with Louis Armstrong, and also understudying Earl Hines in Hines's Grand Terrace Cafe Orchestra, Wilson joined Benny Carter's Chocolate Dandies in 1933. In 1935, he joined the Benny Goodman Trio (which consisted of Goodman, Wilson and drummer Gene Krupa, later expanded to the Benny Goodman Quartet with the addition of Lionel Hampton). The trio performed during the big band's intermissions. By joining the trio, Wilson became one of the first black musicians to perform prominently in a racially integrated group.
Jazz producer and writer John Hammond was instrumental in getting Wilson a contract with Brunswick, starting in 1935, to record hot swing arrangements of the popular songs of the day, with the growing jukebox trade in mind. He recorded fifty hit records with various singers such as Lena Horne, Helen Ward and Billie Holiday, including many of Holiday's greatest successes. During these years, he also took part in many highly regarded sessions with a wide range of important swing musicians such as Lester Young, Roy Eldridge, Charlie Shavers, Red Norvo, Buck Clayton, and Ben Webster.
Wilson formed his own short-lived big band in 1939, then led a sextet at Café Society from 1940 to 1944. He was dubbed the "Marxist Mozart" by Howard "Stretch" Johnson due to his support for left-wing causes: he performed in benefit concerts for The New Masses journal and for Russian War Relief, and he chaired the Artists' Committee to elect Benjamin J. Davis.[3] In the 1950s, Wilson taught at the Juilliard School. Wilson can be seen appearing as himself in the 1955 motion picture The Benny Goodman Story. He also worked as music director for the Dick Cavett Show.
Wilson lived quietly in suburban Hillsdale, New Jersey, in the 1960s and 1970s.[4] He performed as a soloist and with pick-up groups until the final years of his life, including leading a trio with his sons Theodore Wilson on bass and Steven Wilson on drums.[5]
Wilson died in New Britain, Connecticut, on July 31, 1986; he was 73. He is buried at Fairview Cemetery in New Britain. In addition to Theodore and Steven, Wilson had three more children, William, James (Jim) and Dune.
Select discography
- 1944: Teddy Wilson Sextet (The Onyx Club New York Original Live Recordings)
- 1949: Teddy Wilson Featuring Billie Holiday
- 1952: Runnin' Wild (MGM)
- 1952: Just A Mood - Teddy Wilson Quartet Starring Harry James & Red Norvo (Columbia EP B-1569/5-1277)
- 1956: I Got Rhythm
- 1956: Pres and Teddy
- 1954-56: Teddy Wilson Trio With Jo Jones (Complete Recordings)
- 1959: "Gypsy" in Jazz
- 1972: With Billie in Mind
- 1972: Moonglow (Black Lion)
- 1973: Runnin' Wild (Recorded live at the Montreux Festival) (Black Lion)
- 1976: Live at Santa Tecla
- 1980: Teddy Wilson Trio Revisits the Goodman Years
- 1990: Air Mail Special
As sideman:
- 1933–1942: Billie Holiday, The Quintessential Billie Holiday (Volumes 1-9)
- 1935: Mildred Bailey, Mildred Bailey and Her Alley Cats[6]
- 1935–1939: Benny Goodman, The Complete RCA Victor Small Group Recordings
- 1938: Benny Goodman, The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Yanow, Scott. Teddy Wilson Biography," URL accessed 14 April 2012.
- ↑ Denning, Michael: The Cultural Front: The Laboring of American Culture in the Twentieth Century (New York: Verso, 1996), 317.
- ↑ Staff. "Jersey Is Home To Teddy Wilson; One Son Is a Teacher", The New York Times, July 1, 1973. Accessed April 9, 2011. "Mr. Wilson settled in Hillsdale 10 years ago, when he and his present wife, were married."
- ↑ Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians: Biography Retrieved 4 May 2013.
- ↑ Album Notes by Roy Hemming for Decca Jazz CD Mildred Bailey GRD-644, pg 5
External links
- Articles with hCards
- 1912 births
- 1986 deaths
- Musicians from Austin, Texas
- People from Hillsdale, New Jersey
- Swing pianists
- Mainstream jazz pianists
- African-American musicians
- American jazz pianists
- Tuskegee University alumni
- Juilliard School faculty
- Verve Records artists
- Columbia Records artists
- American jazz educators
- Benny Goodman Orchestra members
- 20th-century pianists
- 20th-century American musicians
- Musicraft Records artists
