October 23           BIRTHDAYS 1905     William Alsop, Alto Sax/ clarinet, b. West Philadelphia, PA, USA 1921     Betty Bennett, Vocals, b. Lincoln, NE, USA. Her pianist mother had a Jazz band in 1920s. Betty Married guitarist Mundell Lowe. 1969(?)     Pauline Black, vocals, b. Coventry, Warwickshire, England. Member group: 'The Selector'. The first recording of The Selector had Compton Amanor on guitar Charley Anderson on bass, Charley 'H' Bembridge on drums, Pauline Black on vocals, Desmond Brown on Hammond organ, Neol Davies on guitar, and Arthur 'Gaps' Hendrickson on vocals. Pauline is a female, who had to disguise herself as a man in order to get some gigs for 'The Selector'.. She is the lead singer in 'The Selector", a group that disbanded in the 1980s. The Selector specialized in "two-tone Ska" music, which was an amalgam of Caribbean Ska, Rocksteady, and Reggae. ('Rocksteady' is a slower, more intense version of 'ska'.) It was honed into the multi-racial sound of '2-Tone' by bands such as 'The Specials' and 'The Selecter' - both of which came from Coventry, England. (The expression arose from the name of the recording company, - 'Two Tone Records'/Chrysalis.) The band's name, 'Selector' references an idiomatic Jamaican expression, which is known elsewhere as DJ (disc jockey). . The style is characterized by one person - the vocalist - singing and the other person -the DJ/Selector - "Toasting" Jamaican style. "Toasting", "chatting", or "DJing" is the act of talking (or chanting) over a rhythm or beat. initially developed in Jamaica, West Indies during the 1960s. This led to the earliest forms of what is now known as 'dancehall' in Jamaica, and as "hip hop (rapping)" in the USA. 1854     James A. Bland, Afro-American composer, b. New York (Flushing), NY, USA. 1968     Duane Mack "Junior" Bryant Jr., Fiddle/Mandolin/Guitar/vocals, b. Pecos, TX, USA. Member: "Ricochet", a Contemporary Country group formed in 1994 and comprised of Heath Wright (Lead Singer/Guitar, né: Perry "Heath" Wright, b. April 22, 1967, Vian, OK, USA),    Junior Bryant (Fiddle/Mandolin/Guitar/(High Tenor)Steel Guitar Vocals, né: Duane Mack Bryant, b. October 23, 1968, Pecos, TX, USA),     Jeff Bryant (Drums, né: Jeffrey Park Bryant, b. Dec. 27, 1962, Pecos, TX, USA. left 8/99),    Greg Cook (Bass Guitar/(Bass) Vocals, né: Gregory Charles Cook, b.January 28, 1965, Vian, OK, USA ),    Eddie Kilgallon (Keyboards/Guitar/Sax/(Baritone) Vocals, né: Edward James Kilgallon, b. May 12, 1965,East Greenbush, NY, USA ),    Teddy Carr (Steel Guitar, né: Teddy Sloan Carr, b. July 4, 1960, Lafayette, TN, USA. left July 2000),     Shannon Farmer (Steel Guitar, b. joined July 2000), and Tim Chewning (Drums, b. joined August 1999). 1937     Johnny Carroll, (Rockabilly) vocals/keyboards, b. Cleburne, TX, USA. 1930     Wilson Anthony "Boozoo" Chavis, zydeco accordion/vocals, b. Church Point, LA, USA. His mother and stepfather were a tenant farmers. His mother also ran several unregulated and unlicensed horse circuits ('bush tracks') and Boozoo spent his whole life following in her footsteps as a jockey, trainer, and a breeder of race stallions. His mother later opened a dance hall where 'Boozoo's' father played the accordion, often accompanied by Creole fiddler, Morris "Big" Chenier, and his nephew, Clifton. In the early 1950s, Boozoo began to achieve local popularity playing the button, diatonic accordion (or Cajun one-note pulled in each direction) and performing French "la la" music (a precursor to zydeco). His first recording, "Paper In My Shoe" (Folk Star 1197), was a self-composed novelty number with a good dance beat. It had great appeal to the rural poor who could identify with a singer so down and out that couldn't afford to sole his own shoes. It was also the very first "Zydeco" hit. However, Chavis, distrustful of the music industry, refused to record again until 1984, devoting his attention to raising champion racehorses in Shrevesport and Lafayette, Louisiana, and in Texas. Interviewed for the 1990 book The New Folk Music, Chavis explained his distrust of the music industry: "I got gypped out of my record. I get frustrated sometimes. I love to play, but, when I get to thinking about 1955... They stole my record. They said that it only sold 150,000 copies. But, my cousin, who used to live in Boston, checked it out. It sold over a million copies. I was supposed to have a gold record." 1927     William "Sonny" Criss, Alto Sax, b. Memphis, TN, USA. d. Nov 19, 1977, Los Angeles, CA, USA. 1935     Jimmy Dale, arranger/composer/piano/organ, b. London, England, UK (moved to Canada in 1947). né: James Edwin Dale. Dale studied piano for two years with Alma Allen at the RCMT, and later privately studied theory and composition in Toronto with Gordon Delamont. He first worked as a musician in various Toronto dance bands and pit orchestras, and in 1957-'58 worked with Peter Appleyard. In the early 1960s, Dale found work as a Canadian Broadcasting Company rehearsal pianist, and subsequently rose to music director for the shows 'A la carte', and 'In Person'. In 1969, he went to Hollywood where he worked as music director for 'The Smothers Brothers Show' (CBS TV 1969), 'The Andy Williams Show' (NBC TV, 1969-'71), and 'The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour' (CBS TV, 1971-'73. In 1972, he received an Emmy nomination for this show). He commuted for the last Sonny and Cher season, since he had already returned to Toronto in 1972. In 1975, he briefly returned to Hollywood, this time as music director of 'The Cher Show'. Dale would spend his remaining years working in Canada. During 1974-'87, he played piano as a member of Rob McConnell's 'Boss Brass'. He later helped such stars as Peggy Lee, Coleman Hawkins, and George Coleman in their Toronto nightclub engagements, as well as playing piano for recordings by Appleyard, and Guido Basso He also has written arrangements for recordings by such Pop singers as Bobby Vinton, Tommy Ambrose, Denyse Angé:, Mary Lou Collins, Keath Barrie, Cecile Frenette, and for instrumentalists Eugene Amaro and Guido Basso. Dale orchestrated the musicals Aimee! (Charlottetown Festival 1981) and Durante (1989). In addition to writing many TV jingles and signature songs, he has also scored such TV shows as 'B.S. I Love You', 'Crunch', 'The Execution of Raymond Graham', and 'Breakfast with Les and Bess'. CAUTION: Do not confuse with: 1) C&W guitarist/singer-songwriter Jimmie Dale Gilmore, (né: James Dale Gilmore, b. May 6, 1945, Amarillo, Texas, USA). 2) Arranger/songwriter/leader Jimmy Dale (b. June 18, 1901, New York, NY, USA) See our June 18 calendar. 1939     Charlie Foxx, vocals, b. Greensboro, NC, USA. Worked with his sister, Inez (Charlie & Inez Foxx). 1933     Carol Fran, piano/vocals, b. Lafayette, LA, USA. 1921     L. C. Green, guitar, b. Minter City, MS, USA. 1940     Eleanor "Ellie" Greenwich, Songwriter, b. Long Island, NY, USA. . aka: Ellie Gay, Ellie Gee: 1935     Frank Hewitt, piano, d. Sept 5, 2002 (complications from cancer). Largely unrecognized by the general public, Frank was a bebop pianist whose main influences were Elmo Hope, Thelonious Monk, and Bud Powell. Frank is sometimes compared with "C" Sharpe in having influenced a generation of New York City musicians . From the mid-1950s until his passing, Hewitt was a mainstay on the NYC Jazz scene . As a sideman, he played with such notable musicians as Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, John Coltrane, Howard McGhee, Cecil Payne, Arthur Prysock, and appeared frequently with Clarence "C" Sharpe. 1949     Tristan Honsinger, cello, b. Burlington, Vermont, USA Strictly speaking, Tristan is not Jazz oriented, but rather interested in improvisational music. As a child he studied the Classical cello, and his mother had hopes of forming a trio with Tristan, his brother and sister. By age 12, Tristan was already giving concerts. In 1969, after his studies at Boston's pretigious New England Conservatory, he moved to Montreal, Canada to avoid the U. S. Military Draft. It was in Canada that he became interested in improvisational music. In 1978, Tristan moved to Europe, where he currently operates from Amsterdam in the Netherlands. 1936     Lew Houston, steel guitarist, b. Barber County, USA, d. June 4, 2001, Plattsburg, MO, USA. né: Lew Houston Childree. aka: Lew Childree. He was C&W singer Conway Twitty's steel guitar picker, in the Conway Twitty band called "The Lonely Blue Boys". Occasionally appearing with the band was a singer named Kitty. Kitty met Lew, and soon became Kitty Houston. Kitty Houston is still active, and working with a "girl" trio. However, Lew and Kitty must have divorced, since upon Lew's death, his newspaper obit (Ozark Alabama News) observed that he was " survived by his wife Helga Houston/Childree, a daughter, Cheryl Brown of Maryland; a son, John Houston of Kansas; his Mother Louise Childree of Ozark; his sister, Nancy Hobbs of Ozark, his brother Eugene Childree of Pheonix City, Alabama, four grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren". (Please note that the "Ozark Alabama News" may have gotten it's information from either The Southern Star and The Dothan Eagle.) (CAUTION: DO NOT CONFUSE WITH -"Doc" Lew Childre b. C&W trombone/trumpet/drums/vocals, b. Nov. 1, 1901, Opp, AL, USA. d. Dec. 3, 1961.) 1927     Theard Johnson, vocals, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. (recorded on Mercury label) 1929     Geoffrey William Kitchen, reeds/leader/composer/arranger, b: Melbourne-Vic, Australia. Worked with Bud Baker; Geoff Bland; Bruce Clark; Keith Cox; Bob Gibson Ford; Ivan Hutchinson; Frank Johnson's Fabulous Dixielanders; Tony Newstead's band; 'Splinter' Reeves 1952; Dick Tattam; Max Wally; Media Sound Jingle Prod. Co; Formed Jazz Foundations 1976 1933     Gary McFarland, Vibes/Composer/arranger, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA. d. Nov 3, 1971 New York, NY, USA. 1929     Finney Mo, singer-songwriter/(street) dancer, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. As a youngster, Finney, with his brothers and friends, often took their shoeshine boxes down town and did "Street Dancing" for tips. Subsequently, Finney and two friends formed "The Three Hepcats", a group that mostly pantomimed Louis Jordan, and appeared in 'Regal Beer' advertisements They mostly worked in Texas, St. Louis, and New Orleans. Eventually, Finney Returned to Texas, where he learned to play the drums. Since finding a band to hire him as a drummer was not easy (he was too well known as a dancer), Finney formed his own band which included Bob Lamar, James Fisher, "Boston" Smith, "Cat Man" Flemmings, "Herbie K.", Claude Jefferson, Bobby Saunders, "Red" King, and Clarence "Nappy Chin" Evans (guitar) . With Finney on Drums and Vocals, the band recorded a few sides during the 1950s-'60s for such labels as Dello, Duchess and Jello Jim. 1922     Bernard Peiffer, composer/piano, b. Epinal, France, d. Sept 7, 1976, Philadelphia, PA, USA. 1931     Phillips, Marvin, vocals/tenor sax, b.Guthrie, OK, USA. Member: 'Marvin & Johnny' 1956     Dianne Reeves, Jazz vocals, b. Detroit, Michigan, USA. She comes from a very musical family. Her father (who died when she was just age 2) was also a singer, and her mother (Vada Swanson) was a nurse and trumpet player. Her cousin George Duke is a well known piano/keyboard player and producer. Dianne first took piano lessons as a child, and later studied voice with a female teacher, -where she discovered that she wanted to be a vocalist. Her love of Jazz vocals came about when her uncle, Charles Burell, bassist with the Denver Symphonic Orchestra, gave her a bunch of Jazz records, - everything from from Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday to Sarah Vaughan. 1947     Greg Ridley, Bass, b. Cumberland, England, UK. Member: 'Spooky Tooth' 1927     Lallemand "Fats" Sadi, Vibes/percussion, b. Andenne, Belgium 1919     Samuel "Sammy" Sharp, trumpet/trombone/leader/arranger, b: Jerusalem, Israel. Some of the men with whom Sammy played include Ron Moyle; w/Colin Smith. In 1934, he relocated to England, where he played with Ambrose; Geraldo; Ivy Benson; Wally Hadley; Henry Hall (on the Queen Mary); Harry Roy; Lew Stone; Ret. In 1946 to Perth, Australia, and played with Sylvia Caporn; Ray Le Cornu; Roy Coates; Harry Bluck the Jazz Jamborees (1948); Horry King; Jim Beeson; Keith Whittle, and Brian Bursey. 1892     "Speckled Red", piano, b. Monroe, LA, USA ( Hampton, GA). d. Jan. 2, 1973, St. Louis, MO, USA. - né: Rufus Perryman His brother, Willie Perryman, is better-known as "Piano Red". 1937     Yvonne Staples, vocals, b. Chicago, IL, USA. 1926     Jean Warland, Acoustic bass/Composer/arranger, b. Brussels, Belgium. At age 4 he was already playing the accordion. In 1948, he was a member of the Bill Alexandre septet playeing at "Boeuf-Sur-Le-Toit", --according to "Melody Maker" the first European bebop group at that period. In the 1940s, he also played with the Toots Thielemans Quartet, and with Francis Coppieters and John Ward (1949). He also played in of the orchestras of Jean Omer,    Fud Candrix,  Francis Bay, Jean Robert,    Gus DeLoof,  Bobby Naret,    Stan Brenders, and Jack Sels. During the 1950s, he worked mainly as a session man, and played with Stéphane Grappelli, Michel Legrand, Léo Souris, and Sacha Distel. In Paris, France. He also played with the orchestra of Jacques Helian, where he met the Belgian, Sadi, Edmond Harnie, Janot Morales as well as drummer Kenny Clarke, with whom he started a long time collaboration. There are also Jazz concerts and recordings with the Kenny Clarke Sextet, and with Lee Morgan, Martial Solal, J.J. Johnson, Lucky Thompson, Allen Eager, Henri Renaud et Billy Byers. Toured with Catherina Valente in Japan, Latin America and at the Olympia in Paris. In 1962, Warland joined the radio orchestra R.I.A.S. Big Band in Berlin and signed a recording contract with Telefunken. From 1967 to the end of 1992, he was in Köln, Germany playing with the big band of the WDR ( West Deutsche Rundfunk). During his time in Köln, he recorded for Gigi Campi with the 'Kenny Clarke / Francy Boland Big Band', played in some concerts with Dizzy Gillespie and Mike Longo, and worked in the small group with Francy Boland and Kenny Clarke plus guests like Don Byas, Sadi, Ronnie Scott, Johnny Griffin, Tony Coe, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis etc. Also recorded with the WDR Big Band, along with the band's guests including Bob Brookmeyer, Manny Albam, Terry Gibbs, Bill Holman, Buddy De Franco, Phil Woods, Sal Nestico, Al Cohn, Benny Bailey, Carmen McRae, Milt Jackson, Cedar Walton et Hank Jones. Among the drummers regularly appearing with the WDR Big Band included Grady Tate, Mel Lewis, Adam Nussbaum, Jeff Hamilton, John Van Holen, John Riley, Louie Bellson, Terry Clarke and Dennis Mackrell. Back in Belgium, he played with Mary Kay, Nathalie Loriers, Sadi, Michel Herr, Richard Rousselet, Toots, Félix Simtaine, Al Goyens and the BRT Big Band. Some of Warlands compositions were played a.o. by 'ACT Big Band'. In January 1993 he created 'Sax No End' as a tribute to the music of Belgian composer/arranger Francy Boland, and in 1997, at the 'Jazz Middelheim Festival' (Antwerp), he led the 'Brussels Jazz Orchestra', again in a tribute to Francy Boland. In 1998, he received the 'Prize of the Jury of the Belgian "Djangos d'Or"' for his career achievements. In 1999, he formed a couple of groups, including the "Take A Train Sextet" as a tribute to Duke Ellington, with members Richard Rousselet (tp), Fabrice Alleman (sax), Jean-Pol Danhier (tb), Michel Herr (p) and Frédéric Jacquemin (drs). He also formed "Sax Port" with Richard Rousselet (tp), Fabrice Alleman (sax), Michel Herr (p) and Frédéric Jacquemin (drs) and a German sax section. 1945     Ernst James "Ernie" Watts, Tenor/alto Sax/flute, b. Norfolk, VA, USA. 1959     "Weird" Al Yankovic, musical comedian (vocals)/accordion/harmonica, b. Lynwood, CA, USA. né: Alfred Matthew Yankovic. 1956     Dwight Yoakam, singer/songwriter, b. Pikeville, KY, USA 1913     Roy Emile Zimmerman, piano, b. New Orleans, LA, USA. - Fate Marable helped start him in music.           Notable Events on this date include: 1950.    Al Jolson, vocals/actor, died in San Francisco, CA, USA. Age: 64 (né: Asa Yoelson) 1960.    Porter Kilbert, sax, died in Chicago, IL, USA. Age: 39. Worked with Red Saunders 1967.    Connie Immerman, club owner, died in New York, NY, USA. Age: 74. In the 1920s/1930s, he owned "Connie's Inn", -Harlem, NYC) 1969.    Tommy Edwards, singer-songwriter, died in Henrico County, VA, USA. Age: 47. Best recalled for tune: "It's All In The Game" 1976.    Frank Thomas Jr., vocals, died in Chicago, IL, USA. Age: 39 1976.    Leonard Lee, vocals, died in New Orleans, LA, USA. Age: 40. Member: 'Shirley & Lee' 1978.    "Mother" Maybelle Carter, guitar/vocals, died in Nashville, TN, USA. Age: 69 1984.    James C. Petrillo, Pres. Amer. Federation of Musicians union, died in Chicago, IL, USA. Age: 92 1985.    Merle Watson, guitar, died in Lenoir, NC, USA. Age: 36 1985.    Joe Banashak, label owner (Instant/Minit), died in Atlanta, GA, USA. Age: 62 1986.    Esquerita (né: Eskew Reeder Jr.), piano, died in New York (Harlem), NY, USA. 1987.    Ted Taylor, singer-songwriter, died in Lake Charles, LA, USA. Age: 53 1987.    Gene Rodgers, piano/arranger, died in St. Albans, NY, USA. Age: 77 1989.    Lena Spencer, co-owner of 'Caffe Lena', died in Schenectady, NY, USA. Age: 66 . On May 20, 1960, Lena and Bill Spencer opened "Caffe Lena", America's oldest continuously operating folk coffeehouse. 1993.    Preston Fulp, guitar, died in Winston Salem, NC, USA. 1999.    "The Grand Ole Opry" Country Music show celebrated its 75th Birthday. Dolly Parton and Vince Gill, were the hosts. 2001.    Russell "Rusty" Kershaw, (Cajun/Blues singer-songwriter/guitarist, died. Age: 63. (Younger brother of Doug Kershaw.)           Songs Recorded/Released this date include: 1945   "Tea For Two", Gene Krupa Orch. (Recording date) 1965   "1-2-3 ", - Len Barry 1965   "Rescue Me ", - Fontella Bass 1965   "Ain't That Peculiar ", - Marvin Gaye 1965   "Respect ", - Otis Redding 1971   "Desiderata ", - Les Crane 1971   "Theme From Shaft ", - Issac Hayes 1971   "Imagine ", - John Lennon 1976   "You Don't Have To Be A Star (To Be In My ", - Marilyn McCoo, & Billy Davis Jr. 1976   "Tonight's The Night (Gonna Be Alright) ", - Rod Stewart 1982   "Truly ", - Lionel Richie 1982   "Rock This Town ", - Stray Cats