Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Robert Deane Kincaide was born on March 18, 1911 in Houston, Texas but raised in Decatur, Illinois. He began playing professionally and working as an arranger in the early 1930s, working with Wingy Manone in 1932, then took a job with Ben Pollack from 1933 to 1935.
He arranged for Benny Goodman on the side before joining Bob Crosby’s group in 1935. Deane went on to work with Woody Herman and Manone again and by the end of the decade he worked briefly with Tommy Dorsey. In the first half of the 1940s he worked with Joe Marsala, Glenn Miller, Ray Noble, and Muggsy Spanier.
Serving in the United States Navy during World War II, he played in a ship’s band on the USS Franklin. He joined Ray McKinley’s band in 1946, working with him until 1950. From the 1950s until the early 1980s Kincaide worked primarily as an arranger for television. Arranger and saxophonist Deane Kincaide passed away at the age of 91 in St. Cloud, Florida on August 14, 1992.
Share a dose of a Houston arranger to inspire inquisitive minds to learn about musicians whose legacy lends their genius to the jazz catalog…
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Ray Ellington was born Henry Pitts Brown on March 17, 1916 in Kennington, London, England, the youngest of four children of a Black father and Russian Jew mother. His father died when he was four years old, and was raised as a strictly Orthodox Jew, attending the South London Jewish School before entering show business at the age of twelve, when he appeared in an acting role on the London stage.
Ellington’s first break came in 1937 when he joined Harry Roy and His Orchestra as the band’s drummer, replacing Joe Daniels. His vocal talents were put to good use, from the time of his first session when he recorded Swing for Sale. Called up in 1940 he joined the Royal Air Force as a physical training instructor where he served throughout the war. He played in various service bands including RAF Blue Eagles.
Post military service, Ray resumed his career, fronting his own group, playing at The Bag O’Nails club. By early in 1947, he rejoined the Harry Roy band for a few months, later forming The Ray Ellington Quartet the same year. Specializing in jazz, he experimented with many other genres throughout the show’s history and his musical style was heavily influenced by the comedic jump blues of Louis Jordan.
His band was one of the first in the UK to feature the stripped-back guitar/bass/drums/piano format that became the basis of rock and roll. His band was also one of the first groups in Britain to prominently feature the electric guitar and use an amplified guitar produced and introduced by their guitar player, Lauderic Caton.
Drummer, singer, bandleader Ray Ellington, best known for his appearances on The Goon Show from 1951 to 1960, passed away of cancer on February 27, 1985.
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Three Wishes
When asked what his three wishes would be, Billy Taylor told Nica he would wish for:
- “Wish I had the time to do all the things that I’m interested in.”
- “Wish I had the time to spend with all the people and things I care about.”
- “I wish I had the time.”
*Excerpt from Three Wishes: An Intimate Look at Jazz Greats ~ Compiled and Photographed by Pannonica de Koenigswarter
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Woody Witt was born on March 16, 1969 and raised in Omaha, Nebraska. He started on the clarinet in fourth grade, switching his focus to saxophone the following year. Becoming a professional musician at the age of 16, he studied at the University of Houston, earning a Master’s degree in Jazz Studies from the University of North Texas, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music.
The tenorist has recorded over thirty compact discs as a sideman and recorded twelve sessions as a leader. He has collaborated with Randy Brecker, Tim Hagans, Jim Rotondi, James Moody, David Liebman, Tim Armacost,Conrad Herwig, Joe LoCascio, Larry Ham, Mark Levine, Louis Hayes, Adam Nussbaum, Billy Hart, Nancy King and Gabrielle Stravelli. He has worked with the Houston Symphony, and has been featured on major third-stream works that blend together jazz and classical music.
He won the 2010 Chamber Music America French American Cultural Exchange grant and the 2014 International Jazz Saxophone Competition in Taiwan. Since 1999 Woody has been the artistic director of Houston’s jazz club, Cezanne, and now owns the club.
As an educator Witt has taught at Houston Community College since 2000, is an Affiliate Artist at the University of Houston, and has conducted countless master classes and workshops throughout the United States, Europe, Brazil and Asia.
Tenor saxophonist, composer and educator Woody Witt continues to expand his musical creativity.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Vinnie Burke, born Vincenzo Bucci on March 15, 1921 in Newark, New Jersey, played violin and guitar early in life, but he lost the use of his little finger in a munitions factory accident and switched to double bass.
In the second half of the 1940s he played with Joe Mooney, Tony Scott, and Cy Coleman. He would go on to play with the Sauter-Finegan Orchestra, Tal Farlow, Marian McPartland, Don Elliott, Vic Dickenson, Gil Mellé, Bucky Pizzarelli, John Mehegan, Chris Connor, Eddie Costa, and Bobby Hackett.
From 1956 into the 1980s he led his own band and led small combos. Bassist Vinnie Burke, who recorded four albums as a leader, passed away on February 1, 2001.
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