Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Fletcher Smith was born on September 22, 1913 in Lincoln, Nebraska and was orphaned by the age of eight. He and his siblings moved in with their grandfather who had a nine-room house. When the Lloyd Hunter Serenaders came through Lincoln and there was a guitar player there named Finney. He asked Finney to teah him to play if he could get his uncle to buy him a banjo. He wrote out a chart of chords and gave him lessons when he came back.
Smith played for Cootie Williams in 1943 and in the following years with Slim Gaillard, King Perry, Varetta Dillard, Jimmy Rushing, Big Maybelle, Linda Hopkins, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Stick McGhee, Mickey Baker, Percy Mayfield, and Geechie Smith. In the Fifties he performed with Earl Bostic, Percy Mayfield, Benny Carter, Billy Eckstine, Lionel Hampton, Les Hite, and the Ink Spots, among others.
Under his own name, Fletcher Smith’s Squares and Fletcher Smith’s band, he played in the 1950s and recorded several singles such as Mean Poor Gal, Ting Ting Boom Scat or Shout, Shout, Shout. He recorded extensively as a sideman and toured most of the United States with various organizations. During the early 1970s he was a popular artist in Paris, France performing with the Golden Gate Quartet. From 1981 to 1991 he was featured in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Upon his return to Los Angeles, he became one of the mainstays of the Southern California music scene, he continued playing and honing his book of tunes and arrangements until his death. Pianist and bandleader Fletcher Smith died on August 15, 1993 in Los Angeles, California.
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WYCLIFFE GORDON & ERIC REED WORKSHOP
The duo will present a workshop for musicians and jazz lovers at the Hammonds House Museum. Registration is required. To reserve your spot, click HERE.
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WYCLIFFE GORDON & ERIC REED
Wycliffe Gordon and Eric Reed are veteran members of the Wynton Marsalis Septet and original members of Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. Wycliffe Gordon has had an impressive career touring the world performing hard-swinging straight-ahead jazz, receiving great acclaim from audiences and critics alike. His unmatched modern mastery of the plunger mute and his exceptional technique and signature sound, has solidified Gordon a place in musical history known as one of the top trombonists of his generation.
When you think of hard-driving swing, daring expression, sophistication and elegance in artistry, formidable technique and a thunderous sound, there are only a very small handful of contemporary pianists you think of and one of them is most assuredly Eric Reed. But don’t think of him as just a pianist; Eric is one of his generation’s most advanced thinkers in music.
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GEORGE COLLIGAN QUARTET
George Colligan Quartet Featuring Devasate’ Phelps
Jazz pianist and Portland State University Professor, George Colligan has made a name for himself not only as an impressive, world-class performer, but also as a mentor and collaborator with younger musicians on the Portland jazz scene. George will be hosting an intimate evening at The 1905 with some of the most talented, young musicians in Portland.
He will be joined by versatile drummer and band leader, Cory Limuaco, virtuoso bassist, Robert Rodriguez, and extraordinary pianist and promising vocalist, Devasate’ Phelps.
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