BIRTHDAYS
1967   "Adamski", vocals, b. U. K. né: Adam Tinley.
1929   Freddie Assunto, Trombone, b. Jennings, LA, USA. d. April 21, 1966. With his brother Frank, they formed the 'Dukes of Dixieland' orch. Later, their father Jacob joined the band too.
1926   Delois Barrett, vocals, b. Chicago, IL, USA. Member: 'Barrett Singers'
1909   Olvind Bergh, Violin/Leader, b. Hamar, Norway, d. Jan. 25, 1987
1907   Connee Boswell, Vocal, b. New Orleans, LA, USA, d. Oct. 11, 1976. Cancer. The Boswell Sisters were probably the most famous vocal group of the late 1920s and the 1930s. Later, Connee became a hit 'singles' act. The sisters were Martha, (also played piano), and Helvethia (known publically just as "Vette", also played banjo, guitar and violin), and Connee who also could play these instruments, and in addition wrote the arrangements for the trio's beautiful syncopated harmonies. Besides their records for Brunswick, the ladies also recorded with Bunny Berigan, the Dorseys, Mannie Klein and Larry Binyon. The sisters toured to Britain (where they recorded with Ambrose), and to Holland (where they recorded with the The Ramblers). Another wonderful singer, Ella Fitzgerald, once told interviewers: "Who influenced me? There was only one - Connee Boswell. She was doing things that no one else was doing at the time." The ladies also appeared in some early Hollywood musicals including "The Big Broadcast of 1932", Moulin Rouge" and "Transatlantic Merry Go Round". In the 1950s (Connee was now a solo act), she had a leading role in Jack Webb's "Pete Kelley's Blues" film.
1914   Edward "Corky" Cornelius, left-handed Trumpet player, b. Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, (raised in Binghamton, New York). d. August 3, 1943. (kidney ailment). His father was a drummer who played in early Texas dance hall bands and used the same nickname as his son, In the 1930s, young Corky began his career playing in the Les Brown, Frank Dailey and Buddy Rogers orchestras. . In the spring of 1939, he joined the Benny Goodman orchestra, which at that time also featured drummer Gene Krupa (b: Jan. 15, 1909 - d: Oct. 16, 1973). In the fall of 1939, Krupa left Goodman to form his own band, and Cornelius went along with him, Other members of Krupa's band included Sam Donahue on sax, Shorty Sherok's trumpet, and singer Irene Daye. Daye and Corky became warm friends, and they were married in the early 1940s when Corky left Krupa to join the Casa Loma Orchestra In 1943, Daye quit performing to raise their daughter, but following Corky's untimely death later that year, she had to resume her career.
1863   Gussie Lord Davis, Afro-American songwriter, b. Cincinnati, OH, USA.
1910   Rabon Delmore, guitar/vocals, b. Elkmont, AL, USA, d. Dec. 4, 1952. Member: 'The Delmore Brothers' and 'The Brown's Ferry Four'
1974   Joe Deninzon, violin, St. Petersburg, Russia. Due to discrimination against Jews in his native land, Joe's father, Vladmir Deninzon, brought the family to the USA while Joe was still quite young. In the U.S., Vladmir, an excellent violinist, became a member of the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra. Joe was thus inspired by both the Classical, and 'Pop' music that was so prevalent. This duality of musical interests in apparent in the work of 'Stratospheerius', the group that Joe later formed.
1914   Baron Elliott, Leader/Reeds, b. Pittsburgh, PA, USA. né: Charles Craft. Sammy Nestico was in the trombone chair (and did the arranging) while Billy May was playing the trumpet. Vocalist Lisa Kirk later went on to achieve success on the Broadway stage.
1951   Barry Finnerty, Guitar, b. San Francisco, CA, USA.
1929   Clarence Ford, Tenor-Bass sax, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. Played with Fats Domino
1949   John Frost, C&W vocals, b. Eagleville, TN, USA. Member: "The Four Guys,"
1924   Tommy Goodman, piano/composer, b. Mew York (Brooklyn), NY, USA. né: Thomas Alan Goodman. Not related to Benny. Studied Yale; Juilliard;Eastman and Paris Conserv.
1903   Brad Gowans, Trombone/valve trombone/clarinet/cornet/alto sax/arranger, b. Billerica, MA, USA. d. Sept. 8, 1954, Los Angeles, CA, USA. né: Arthur Bradford Gowans.. During his career, Gowans wrote arrangements for recordings by saxman Bud Freeman and singer Lee Wiley. He invented the Valide, a combination slide/valve trombone that never caught on. He very often recorded as a sideman, including sessions with Red Nichols' Red Heads as early as 1926. As a leader, he recorded four obscure titles in 1926, 1927 and 1934) plus a full album for Victor in 1946. Early in his long career, Brad first alternated between clarinet and valve trombone. As a very young man he played with Perley Breed's Orchestra, the Rhapsody Makers Band, and Tommy DeRosa's New Orleans Jazz Band. In 1926, he played cornet in violinist Joe Venuti's group, then with Jimmy Durante's Jazz Band. During 1927-'29, he played with both the Mal Hallett and Bert Lown Orchestras. In 1936, during the great world wide economic Depression, Gowans had to temporarily work outside of music before finally joining Bobby Hackett. In 1938, he worked in Boston first with Frank Ward, and then joined trumpeter Wingy Manone as a valve trombonist, before rejoining Bobby Hackett. In 1939-'40, he became a member of Bud Freeman's Summa Cum Laude Band, after a very stint with Joe Marsala. Following this, Gowans became one of the regulars at Nick's, a New York city Dixieland Jazz club, where he played with various very well known Chicago Jazzmen. In 1945-'46, after working with Ray McKinley's big band and pianist Art Hodes, he recreated the 'Original Dixieland Jazz Band' (playing clarinet) for a series of recordings. In 1945-'46, after again briefly leaving music, he played with Max Kaminsky, and then with the Jimmy Dorsey Big Band. Between 1949-'50, he worked with Nappy Lamare. With the ending of the Big Band era, Gowans freelanced in both California and Las Vegas, NV. In January 1954, while playing with Eddie Skrivanek's 'Sextet from Hunger', he collapsed and never recovered, passing away eight months later.
1954   Paul Gregg, C&W vocals, b. New York, NY, USA. Best recalled release: "Restless Heart"
1899   Ronnie Gubertini, Drums, b. England, UK. d. 1960s
1917   "Little" Sammy Hopkins, piano, b. Plaquemine, LA, USA.
1927   Ferlin Husky, C&W vocals/guitar, b. Flat River, MO, USA. Had a career under three different names; as a "honky tonk" singer with the name of 'Terry Preston', then a country comic named 'Simon Crum', and finally as Ferlin Husky in the 1950s.
1949   Percy Jones, bass/songwriter, b. England. - Brand X / Brian Eno / The Liverpool Scene
1968   Montell Jordan, R&B vocals, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA.
1915   Toivo Karki, Piano, accordion, leader, composer, arranger, b. Pirkkala, Finland
1918   Lester Koenig, producer/label owner (Contemporary Records), d. Nov. 20, 1977. Lester Koenig, had worked as an assistant producer at Paramount Pictures, in Hollywood, CA. During the infamous 1947 U. S. Congressional Hearings to Investigate Un-American (Communist) Activities, Senator Joseph McCarthy carelessly implicated some prominent Hollywood film personages, including Koenig. This resulted in the "Blacklisting" of these men who then found it very difficult to obtain work. As a student as Dartmouth University, Koenig, had written a jazz column for the school newspaper. Seeking a suitable investment opportunity, Koenig considered reverting to his earlier role as a record producer. While attending a 1949 New Years eve party, Koenig heard Ward Kimble and The Firehouse Five Plus Two, the band that was playing at the affair. That evening, he asked Kimble if he could record the group, and the result was a pair of 'Good Time Jazz' vinyl LPs. With the success of that first release, Koenig rented a small vacant store near the Paramount Studios, and placed a sign in the window -"Good Time Jazz Record Company." He and an assistant would stand at a long work table, where they packed and shipped the two new 10" vinyl 78 RPM records. (Retail price: 79 cents!) From the early 1950s through the late 1960s, the company enjoyed great success. Among their stable of stars were such people such as Howard Rumsey and his Lighthouse All-Stars, Shelly Manne, Curtis Counce, the late Barney Kessel and Art Pepper. Each of these artists released many titles for Contemporary. When Koenig died in 1977, his son, John, operated the firm until 1983. Today, the GTJ label is owned by a Bay Area concern, Fantasy Inc. Thankfully, Fantasy has sustained the founder's vision, keeping much of his valuable material in their current catalog - including the original Ward Kimball FH5+2 recordings. (Thank you Fantasy.)
1912   Lou Levy, founder of 'Leeds Music Publ'g', b. New York (Manhattan), NY, USA, d. 1995. In 1935, Levy established 'Leeds Music' with his friends lyricist Sammy Cahn and composer Saul Chaplin. In addition to "discovering" those two men, Levy also "found" such other composing talents as Richard Adler and Jerry Ross, Bob Dylan, Charles Strouse, and Henry Mancini. Additionally, he either discovered, managed, or developed the careers of such artists as Eddie Fisher, Les Paul, Woody Herman, the Ames Brothers, Petula Clark, Steve Lawrence, Bobby Darin, Connie Francis, and the Andrew Sisters. It was Lou Levy who supplied Frank Sinatra with "I'll Never Smile Again", "All or Nothing At All", and "Strangers in the Night". For English singer Petula Clark, he came up with her huge hits "Downtown" and "Call Me". The Everly Brothers got in touch with Levy, and he gave them "Let It Be Me", and when Tom Jones called, Levy supplied him with "It's Not Unusual", and many others. Levy also published 'The Beatles' first American hit, "I Want to Hold Your Hand."
CAUTION: Do not confuse with Jazz pianist Lou Levy b. March 5, 1928, d. Jan. 23, 2001.
1942   Ken Lewis, guitar/singer/songwriter, b. Birmingham, England, d. Oct 30, 1962. né: James Hawker. Member: 'Ivy League', a group formed in 1964 in Birmingham, England, with John Carter (né: John Shakespeare, b. Birmingham, England.) and Ken Lewis (né: James Hawker), and Perry Ford (né: Bryan Pugh) completed the trio. Carter and Lewis had written for Mike Sarne and had fronted 'Carter-Lewis And The Southerners' with a young Jimmy Page.
1902   Paul Lingle, Piano, b. Denver, CO, USA, d. Oct 30, 1962, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. Worked with his father cornetist Curt Lingle on the Chatauqua Vaudeville circuit 1915-1917, during which time he took interest in music of Scott Joplin, Jelly Roll Morton and other 'Ragtimers'. Worked with Jimmy Grier's orch. in 1926 and with many other bands. Had own band in San Francisco 1928; In 1929 worked for Warner Bros films as pianist for Al Jolson in 'Sonny Boy' and in 'Mammy'. In 1930s, staff piano at station KPO San Francisco. He became a legend in the 1940s working in nightclubs and winning the acclaim of such jazzmen as Bunk Johnson, Turk Murphy, even Leadbelly. In 1952, he moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, opened his own tuition studio and organized a jazz band there.
1938   Phyllis Litoff, vocals/director, b. New York, NY, USA, d. July 7, 2002, (Brain Cancer). A Club and Theatre singer, she is best recalled as the Director of The Belleayre Music Festival which attracted many leading Jazz, Broadway pop, and classical musicians.
1946   Vic Malcolm, guitar, b. Newcastle Upon Tyne, England. Member group: 'Geordie', whose personnel included Brian Gibson - drums, Tom Hill - bass, Brian Johnson - vocals, and Vic Malcolm - guitar. A 'Geordie' is the familiar name for the people of Tyneside and their pleasant sing-song dialect. When U.S. president Jimmy Carter visited the area, the locals were delighted to learn that his forebears had been Geordies.
1923   Hubert Long, C&W promoter/talent agent, b. Poteet, TX, USA. d. Sept, 7, 1972, USA.
1944   Ralph McTell, vocals, b: Great Britain
1931   Jaye P. Morgan, "Pops" Vocalist, b. Mancos, CO, USA. née: Mary Margaret Morgan
1948   John Michael Osborne, lead vocals, b. Aston, (suburb of) Birmingham, England. (aka: Ozzie Osbourne.) Member group: 'Black Sabbath'.
1918   Patrick Joseph Riccio, Reeds/flute, b. Port Arthur, Ontario, Canada
1952   Duane Roland, guitar/composer, b. Jeffersonville, IN. USA. Original and last Member of original group: Molly Hatchet. At age 7, his family moved to Florida. It was a musical home, his dad was an occasional guitarist, and his mom was a concert pianist. Duane originally played drums in his first (high school) band, before gravitating to the guitar. He became a very important part of 'Molly Hatchet'.
1908   Klaus Salmi, Trombone/Leader, b. Helsinki, Finland
1951   Nicky Stevens, vocals, b. Carmarthen, England. née: Sandra Stevens. - Brotherhood Of Man
1909   Dana Suesse, Composer,piano, b. Kansas City, MO, USA, d. Oct. 16, 1987, New York, NY, USA
1894   Doug Suggs, piano, b. St. Louis, MO, USA
1902   Joe 'Brother Cornbread' Thomas, Clarinet, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. d. Feb. 18, 1981, USA
1949   Mickey Thomas, vocals, b. Cairo, GA, USA. - Jefferson Starship
1930   Andy Williams, Pops vocalist. b. Wall Lake, IA, USA. né: Howard Andrew Williams. After a tragic incident in which his wife murdered a lover, Andy became, - and still is, involved with 'Christian' Music.
1932   Webster Young, b. Trumpet, b. Columbia, SC, USA, d. Dec. 13, 2003.
         Notable Events occuring this date include:
1948.    Dick Reinhart, (Western Swing) vocalist, died. Age: 41
1951.    Cyril Blake, trumpet, died
1955.    "Cow Cow" Davenport, piano, vocals, died in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.
1961.    Lew Childre, 'Grand Ole Opry' star, died in Foley, AL, USA. Age: 60
1967.    One of the original Dixielanders, Peter E. Bocage died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 80.
1967.    Peter E. Bocage, cornet, died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 80.
1973.    Emile Christian, trombone, bass trombone, clarinet, bassax, bass, composer, died in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.
1977.    "Porkchop" (né: Eddie Hines), drums, died in Chicago, IL, USA. Age: 79
1978.    William Grant Still, arranger, died in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Age: 83
1978.    Walt Yoder, bassist, died in Los Angeles, CA, USA.
1986.    Trumpeter Thomas Jefferson died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 66.
1986.    Bob Howard, vocals, piano, died. (b. June 20, 1906)
1989.    Jimmy Shirley, guitar, died in New York (Harlem), NY, USA. Age: 76
2001.    Thomas "Grady" Martin, (C&W) sessions guitarist/leader, died (heart attack). Age: 72
2001.    Dee Barton, drums, trombone, composer, died in Brandon, Mississippi, USA
2005.    Lennart Jansson, alto and baritone sax, died, Sweden. né: Lennart Joel Harald Jansson.
         Songs Recorded/Released this date include:
1942     Juke Box Saturday Night, - Glenn Miller Orch.
1942     Mr. Five By Five, - Freddie Slack Orch.
1948     Here Comes Santa Claus, - Gene Autry
1948     White Christmas, - Bing Crosby
1948     Lavender Blue, - Sammy Kaye
1955     Cry Me A River, - Julie London
1955     Memories Are Made Of This, - Dean Martin
1966     That's Life, - Frank Sinatra Voc.
1966     I'm Losing You, (I Know), - The Temptations
1983     Joanna, - Kool and The Gang
1983     Running With The Night, - Lionel Richie
1983     Talking In Your Sleep, - Romantics
1988     Armageddon It, - Def Leppard
1988     Put A Little Love In Your Heart, - Annie Lennox
1988     All This Time, - Tiffany