Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Tony Lee, born Anthony Leedham Lee on July 23, 1934 in Whitechapel, London, England. He learned the rudiments of the piano from his elder brother, Arthur, who was self-taught and preferred to use the black keys rather than the white. As a consequence, he became fluent in keys such as G flat and B natural, before moving on to more standard keys, leaving him with the ability to transpose effortlessly his entire repertoire into any key.

He played as a regular for many years with his trio comprising bassist Tony Archer and drummer Martin Drew or Terry Jenkins at The Bull’s Head in Barnes, South West London, a few miles from his home in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey.

During a visit by tenor saxophonist Billy Mitchell who came to play at the Bull’s Head, both Mitchell and Lee got on so well together that the Bull’s Dan Fleming organized for both of them a 1984 U.S. tour. Despite his sketchy knowledge of musical theory, he was a complete master of his instrument, and blessed with large hands, stretching an 11th with ease, all played in a lyrical style, and swinging like a garden gate. He was arguably the greatest British exponent of the Erroll Garner piano style, though his playing embraced a much wider compass.

He appeared on at least two recordings with Phil Seamen, a live recording featuring U.S. bassist Eddie Gómez, and a solo debut, Electric Piano, earned many comparisons to the works of Burt Bacharach. Lee led at least four other album sessions, including Tony Lee Trio, probably the quintessential album of his career.

His 40-year association with bassist Tony Archer in the Tony Lee Trio, also had them playing together in the sextet The Best of British Jazz formed in the early 1970s with drummer Jack Parnell, trumpeter Kenny Baker, trombonist Don Lusher and tenor saxophonist Betty Smith.

Pianist Tony Lee, influenced by Errol Garner, Oscar Peterson, and Art Tatum, passed away on March 2, 2004 in Esher, Surrey, England.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Paul Moer was born Paul Moerschbacher on July 22, 1916 in Meadville, Pennsylvania. He attended the University of Miami, graduating in 1951, and following this moved to the West Coast. There he frequently played on the jazz scene with Benny Carter, Vido Musso, Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, Bill Holman, and Shorty Rogers.

He did extensive work in Los Angeles, California studios as a pianist and an arranger. In the late 1950s, Paul led his own trio with Jimmy Bond and Frank Butler. In 1960 he toured Australia with Benny Carter and also recorded with Charles Mingus, Jack Montrose, John Graas, Paul Horn from 1960 to ‘63, then with Ruth Price, and Buddy DeFranco.

As a sideman he recorded with Jack Montrose, John Graas, Paul Horn, Jimmy Witherspoon, Dave Pell, Jack Sheldon, Emil Richards, Paul Whiteman, Rosemary Clooney, and Maynard Ferguson. Playing little after the 1960s, he made a comeback with a release in 1991 of Elmo Hope tunes and released his final album, Get Swinging, in 2005. Pianist Paul Moer passed away on June 9, 2010.

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Three Wishes

Three wishes were requested of Walter Perkins and he replied to Pannonica with: 

1. 1. “Happiness for my brothers. All of them.”

   2. “To get a sound out of those drums that has never been heard before. ”

   3. “More cooperation between our brothers.”

*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…

Chuck Hedges was born in Chicago, Illinois on July 21, 1932 and began playing clarinet while attending a military school. He received formal training under Claude Bordy and learned to play jazz on his own.

After studying at Northwestern University, Chuck joined George Brunis’s ensemble in 1953, remaining with Brunis through the end of the decade. He was active on the Dixieland revival scene in the 1960s, playing regularly at clubs in Chicago and Milwaukee, Wisconsin into the 1990s.

Working with Wild Bill Davison for most of the 1980s, he also worked with Alan Vaché and Johnny Varro. He with Ray Leatherwood, Gene Estes, Eddie Higgins, Bob Haggart, Duane Thamm, John Bany, Dave Baney, Charles Braugham, Howard Elkins, Jack Wyatt, Jim Vaughn, John Sheridan, Henry “Bucky” Buckwalter, Gary Meisner, Dave Sullivan, Mike Britz, and Andy LoDuca.

Clarinetist Chuck Hedges released several albums as a leader in the 1990s and 2000s before passing away on June 24, 2010.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Arnold Fishkind, sometimes credited as Arnold Fishkin was born July 20, 1919 in Bayonne, New Jersey. Growing up in Freeport, Long Island, he met and began a lifelong friendship with Chubby Jackson. At age 7, he began learning the violin, and played in The Musical Aces, a local band of budding musicians. By age 14 he was playing bass.

His first professional gig with Bunny Berigan in 1937. In the early Forties, he played with Jack Teagarden, Van Alexander, and Les Brown, however, his career was interrupted by three years of military service during World War II.

The mid-1946 saw Arnold meeting and playing with pianist Lennie Tristano in New York City, but by the fall he left to go to Hollywood to play with Charlie Barnet. During this experience, he played alongside Stan Getz. In 1947 he returned to New York City, where for the next two years he again played with Tristano, and from 1949 to 1951 he recorded with Lee Konitz and on Johnny Smith’s Moonlight in Vermont. He also continued to play with Barnet and played with Benny Goodman.

In the 1950s he became a successful session musician, for radio on Across the Board, television on The Steve Allen Show, and pop musicians including Frankie Laine. His career at ABC lasted fifteen years and included appearances in the Andy Williams Show in 1961. Fishkind became well known enough during this time to be mentioned by Jack Kerouac in his novel Visions of Cody.

With rock and roll decimating the market for jazz musicians in New York City, he moved from New York City back to California, where he found work with Dean Martin and Bob Hope television shows. He also had a few jobs substituting on the Tonight and Merv Griffin television shows, as well as some recording and film work. He toured with Les Brown and Lena Horne. He continued to record into the 1980s, playing with, among others, Frank Scott.

During his career, he performed swing and bebop jazz, television, jingles, and even western-themed music, working with Eartha Kitt, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Hasselgard, Peanuts Hucko, Charlie Parker, Shorty Rogers, Coleman Hawkins, Hank Jones, Howard McGhee, Miles Davis, Butch Stone, and Jerry Wald. Although there is no mention in the record from whom he learned bass, he gave as his primary influence Jimmy Blanton. Bassist Arnold Fishkind, who never recorded as a leader, passed away on September 6, 1999 in Palm Desert, California.

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