 |
|
Featured Artist |
|
|
Chick Webb |
|
|
|
Chick Webb
was one of the greatest and most influential jazz drummers of all time. He
led the Chick Webb Orchestra from 1926 to 1939 during the height of the
swing era and his mighty "Battle of the Bands" at the Savoy Ballroom in the
Harlem district of New York City were famous, epic encounters.
Chick Webb was
born in 1909 in Baltimore, Maryland. At a young age he contracted spinal
tuberculosis, leaving him with a hunchback and limited use of his legs. At
the age of three, doctors prescribed drumming as a remedy for Chick’s stiff
joints. Webb readily obliged, banging on pots, pans, and oil drums around
the house. He moved to New York City in 1924 and quickly landed jobs with
many bands. Duke Ellington got Webb several gigs at the Black Bottom Club
and the Paddock Club in New York.
In 1927, Webb
took his band to the Savoy Ballroom and quickly won over crowds with a
flashy, flamboyant, and energetic style. By 1931, Webb's Orchestra was the
Savoy Ballroom "house band". During his time at the Savoy Ballroom, the
Chick Webb Orchestra challenged and defeated bands led by the likes of
Fletcher Henderson, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington during
the famous "Battle of the Bands".
In 1935 Savoy Ballroom a young singer named Ella Fitzgerald appeared with
the band and was an instant success; she and the band formed a powerful
partnership that would go on to record 60 songs featuring Fitzgerald over
the next three years. |
By 1938,
Webb’s health began to fail him. In June of 1939, Chick Webb became
extremely frail and died with his mother and wife at his bedside on the
16th. His funeral in Baltimore contained 80 cars in the procession and more
mourners than could fit into the church. After
Webb's death, Fitzgerald fronted the the band until it finally broke up in
1942. |
|
A few of Chick
Webb's classic songs (to include a couple with Ella Fitzgerald providing the
vocals) include:
o A-Tisket, A-Tasket
o In the Groove at the Grove
o Lindyhoppers Delight
o Sing Me a Swing
Song
o Go Harlem
o Clap Hands, Here Comes Charley |
|
|
For more information about music from the swing era,
click here. |
|
|
Questions about Hepcats events? Contact Mike Richardson,
info@Luv2SwingDance.com; 859-420-2426. |
|
|
Home
|
Classes |
Dance Events |
Calendar |
FAQ |
Resources | About
Us |
Contact
|
Performance Group |
|
|
|
|
|
|
