Elmer Snowden
Elmer Snowden | |
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Birth name | Elmer Chester Snowden |
Born | (1900-10-09)October 9, 1900 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
Died | May 14, 1973(1973-05-14) (aged 72) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
Genres | Jazz |
Instrument(s) | Banjo, guitar |
Elmer Chester Snowden (October 9, 1900 – May 14, 1973)[1] was an American banjo player of the jazz age. He also played guitar and, in the early stages of his career, all the reed instruments. He contributed greatly to jazz in its early days as both a player and a bandleader, and launched the careers of many top musicians.
Biography
Elmer Snowden was born in Baltimore, Maryland, United States,[1] to Gertude Snowden, and had a brother, James. His mother worked as a laundress, but by the time of the 1917 World War I draft registration, a month before his 17th birthday, he was already listing his occupation as "musician," while living with his mother,[2] and the 1920 Federal Census lists him still living at home, employed as a "musician in a dance hall."[3]
Snowden was the original leader of the Washingtonians, a group he brought to New York City from the capital in 1923.[1] Unable to gain a booking, Snowden sent for Duke Ellington,[1] who was with the group when it recorded three test sides for Victor that were never issued. Ellington eventually took over leadership of the band,[4] which contained the nucleus of what later became his orchestra.[1]
Snowden was also a renowned band leader – Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, Bubber Miley, "Tricky Sam" Nanton, Frankie Newton, Benny Carter, Rex Stewart, Roy Eldridge and Chick Webb are among the musicians who worked in his bands.[1]
Very active in the 1920s as an agent and musician,[1] Snowden at one time had five bands playing under his name in New York, one of which was led by pianist Cliff Jackson. Most of his bands were not recorded, but a Snowden band that included Eldridge, Al Sears, Dicky Wells and Sid Catlett appeared in a Vitaphone Varieties short film, Smash Your Baggage (1932).[5]
Although Snowden continued to be musically active throughout his life, after the mid 1930s, with the retirement of his long-time musical partner Bob Fuller, his career was one of relative obscurity in New York. He continued to play through to the 1950s, but outside the limelight.[1] After a dispute with the musicians' union in New York, he moved to Philadelphia, where he taught music, counting among his pupils pianist Ray Bryant, his brother, bassist Tommy Bryant, and saxophonist Sahib Shihab, originally known as Edmond Gregory.
Snowden was working as a parking lot attendant in 1959 when Chris Albertson, then a Philadelphia disc jockey, came across him. In 1960, Albertson brought Snowden and singer-guitarist Lonnie Johnson together for two Prestige albums, assembled a quartet that included Cliff Jackson for a Riverside session, Harlem Banjo, and, in 1961, a sextet session with Roy Eldridge, Bud Freeman, Jo Jones, and Ray and Tommy Bryant—it was released on the Fontana and Black Lion labels.
In 1963, his career boosted, Snowden appeared at the Newport Jazz Festival. He then moved to California to teach at the University of California, Berkeley, and played with Turk Murphy as well as taking private students for lessons in guitar and banjo. He toured Europe in 1967 with the Newport Guitar Workshop.
In 1969, Snowden moved back to Philadelphia, where he died on May 14, 1973.[1]
Discography
- Harlem Banjo (Riverside, 1960) with Cliff Jackson, Tommy Bryant, Jimmy Crawford
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2317. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
- ^ "Ancestry - Sign In". Interactive.ancestry.com. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
- ^ "Ancestry - Sign In". Interactive.ancestry.com. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
- ^ Carr, Ian; Fairweather, Digby; Priestley, Brian; Alexander, Charles (26 October 2018). The Rough Guide to Jazz. Rough Guides. ISBN 9780312278700. Retrieved 26 October 2018 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Elmer Snowden (1900-1973)". Red Hot Jazz Archive. 13 April 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2020.
External links
- Elmer Snowden ephemera and artifacts, Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University
- v
- t
- e
- Harlem Jazz, 1930
- Ellingtonia, Vol. One
- Ellingtonia, Vol. Two
- Braggin' in Brass: The Immortal 1938 Year
- The Blanton–Webster Band
- Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band
- Smoke Rings
- Liberian Suite
- Great Times!
- Masterpieces by Ellington
- Ellington Uptown
- The Duke Plays Ellington
- Ellington '55
- Dance to the Duke!
- Ellington Showcase
- Historically Speaking
- Duke Ellington Presents...
- The Complete Porgy and Bess
- A Drum Is a Woman
- Studio Sessions, Chicago 1956
- Such Sweet Thunder
- Studio Sessions 1957 & 1962
- Ellington Indigos
- Black, Brown and Beige
- Duke Ellington at the Bal Masque
- The Cosmic Scene
- Happy Reunion
- Jazz Party
- Anatomy of a Murder
- Festival Session
- Blues in Orbit
- The Nutcracker Suite
- Piano in the Background
- Swinging Suites by Edward E. and Edward G.
- Unknown Session
- Piano in the Foreground
- Paris Blues
- Featuring Paul Gonsalves
- Midnight in Paris
- Studio Sessions, New York 1962
- Afro-Bossa
- The Symphonic Ellington
- Duke Ellington's Jazz Violin Session
- Studio Sessions New York 1963
- My People
- Ellington '65
- Duke Ellington Plays Mary Poppins
- Ellington '66
- Concert in the Virgin Islands
- The Popular Duke Ellington
- Far East Suite
- The Jaywalker
- Studio Sessions, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967, San Francisco, Chicago, New York
- ...And His Mother Called Him Bill
- Second Sacred Concert
- Studio Sessions New York, 1968
- Latin American Suite
- The Pianist
- New Orleans Suite
- Orchestral Works
- The Suites, New York 1968 & 1970
- The Intimacy of the Blues
- The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse
- Studio Sessions New York & Chicago, 1965, 1966 & 1971
- The Intimate Ellington
- The Ellington Suites
- This One's for Blanton!
- Up in Duke's Workshop
- Duke's Big 4
- Mood Ellington
- Duke Ellington at Fargo, 1940 Live
- Black, Brown, and Beige
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1944
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1946
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1947
- Ellington at Newport
- Dance Concerts, California 1958
- Dance Dates, California 1958
- Newport 1958
- Jazz at the Plaza Vol. II
- Duke Ellington at the Alhambra
- Live at the Blue Note
- Hot Summer Dance
- The Great Paris Concert
- A Concert of Sacred Music
- In the Uncommon Market
- Soul Call
- Yale Concert
- 70th Birthday Concert
- Togo Brava Suite
- Live at the Whitney
- Third Sacred Concert
- Eastbourne Performance
- Blue Rose
- Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book
- Side by Side
- Back to Back
- The Great Summit
- First Time! The Count Meets the Duke
- Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
- Money Jungle
- Duke Ellington & John Coltrane
- Serenade to Sweden
- Ella at Duke's Place
- The Stockholm Concert, 1966
- Ella and Duke at the Cote D'Azur
- Francis A. & Edward K.
- It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing
- "African Flower"
- "All Too Soon"
- "Azure"
- "Black and Tan Fantasy"
- "Black, Brown and Beige"
- "C Jam Blues"
- "Come Sunday"
- "Cotton Tail"
- "Creole Love Call"
- "Day Dream"
- "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue"
- "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me"
- "Don't Get Around Much Anymore"
- "Drop Me Off in Harlem"
- "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo"
- "Echoes of Harlem"
- "Everything but You"
- "I Ain't Got Nothin' but the Blues"
- "I Didn't Know About You"
- "I Got It Bad (and That Ain't Good)"
- "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart"
- "I'm Beginning to See the Light"
- "I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So"
- "In a Mellow Tone"
- "In a Sentimental Mood"
- "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)"
- "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'"
- "Just Squeeze Me (But Please Don't Tease Me)"
- "The Mooche"
- "Mood Indigo"
- " Prelude to a Kiss"
- "Rocks in My Bed"
- "(In My) Solitude"
- "Sophisticated Lady"
- Queenie Pie (unfinished opera)
by Billy Strayhorn |
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by Juan Tizol |
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members
- Hayes Alvis
- Cat Anderson
- Ivie Anderson
- Harold Ashby
- Alice Babs
- Shorty Baker
- Butch Ballard
- Art Baron
- Aaron Bell
- Louie Bellson
- Joe Benjamin
- Barney Bigard
- Lou Blackburn
- Jimmy Blanton
- Wellman Braud
- Lawrence Brown
- Harry Carney
- Johnny Coles
- Willie Cook
- Buster Cooper
- Kay Davis
- Wild Bill Davis
- Wilbur de Paris
- Bobby Durham
- Mercer Ellington
- Rolf Ericson
- Jimmy Forrest
- Victor Gaskin
- Peter Giger
- Tyree Glenn
- Paul Gonsalves
- Sonny Greer
- Fred Guy
- Jimmy Hamilton
- Otto Hardwick
- Shelton Hemphill
- Rick Henderson
- Al Hibbler
- Johnny Hodges
- Major Holley
- Charlie Irvis
- Quentin Jackson
- Hilton Jefferson
- Herb Jeffries
- Freddie Jenkins
- Money Johnson
- Herbie Jones
- Wallace Jones
- Taft Jordan
- Al Killian
- Queen Esther Marrow
- Wendell Marshall
- Murray McEachern
- Louis Metcalf
- James "Bubber" Miley
- Harold "Geezil" Minerve
- Ray Nance
- Tricky Sam Nanton
- Oscar Pettiford
- Eddie Preston
- Russell Procope
- Junior Raglin
- Betty Roché
- Ernie Royal
- Al Sears
- Joya Sherrill
- Willie Smith
- Elmer Snowden
- Rex Stewart
- Billy Strayhorn
- Billy Taylor
- Clark Terry
- Juan Tizol
- Norris Turney
- Ben Webster
- Arthur Whetsel
- Cootie Williams
- Nelson Williams
- Skippy Williams
- Booty Wood
- Jimmy Woode
- Britt Woodman
- Sam Woodyard