The Minnesota jazz experience reflects a long jazz journey from the outflow of the Mississippi all the way up to its headwaters. Who knows how many hours musicians spent creating and playing this new music on that journey from New Orleans to Memphis, St. Louis, Davenport, La Crosse, and finally on up to the Twin Cities.
In 1918, Louis Armstrong made a bold statement when he told New Orleans friends he planned to play on the steamer Sidney between New Orleans and Minneapolis. The following year, he likely saw the Twin Cities for the first time. He then went on to spend some three years playing the riverboats but rarely got back up to the Twin Cities, since he preferred St. Louis, the main terminus to Chicago. It must have been quite a sight to see, and sound to hear, when those riverboats pulled up on the banks of St. Paul, with the band sitting out on the deck playing songs like Lazy Sippi Steamer. That’s Sippi, as in Mississippi….
Boyd Atkins, a New Orleans born musician, who played with Armstrong on the Sidney, settled in Minneapolis for a short time. He became the arranger and sax player at the Cotton Club and El patio in the Minneapolis suburb of St. Louis Park. Playing with Atkins were local-legends Lester Young and Harry Pettiford, brother of the famous bassist, Oscar Pettiford.
Oscar Pettiford
Oscar Pettiford was born in Okmulgee, Oklahoma in 1922. His mother was Choctaw and his father Cherokee-African. His father was known as “Doc” Pettiford. He was a veterinarian, but also a music lover. He formed a family band in the 1920s. When Oscar was three, the family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota. By the age of six, Oscar became a dancer in the family band. He played various instruments, but didn’t start playing his trademark upright bass until he was fourteen. He graduated from Minneapolis North High School and continued to play with the family band until 1941.
By the mid-1930s Oscar was attracting broad attention. He later recalled, “One night Duke Ellington heard me at an after-hours jam session and approached me to join his band. That was before Blanton. But I was fourteen or fifteen and was breaking the law playing, as it was. So I couldn’t join him. I did get to hear Blanton when I was about seventeen. When I heard him, I was in love with him right away.”
In 1942, Oscar Pettiford left Minneapolis to join Charlie Barnet’s band, and in 1943 gained wider public attention after recording with Coleman Hawkins on his The Man I Love. Before long, Pettiford was headlining at the popular Three Deuces on 52nd Street in Manhattan.
Here’s an interesting minute and a half video about Oscar’s old stomping ground, North Minneapolis:
Also, go here for a fun, short interview between Oscar and Minnesota Radio legend, Leigh Kamman.
Oscar named this song after his old friend:
That’s the great and vastly underrated Gigi Gryce on alto sax. We will catch up with Gigi a little further down the river….
Lester Young
Lester Young was born in Woodville, Mississippi in 1909. Like Oscar Pettiford, Lester Young grew up playing in the family band. The Young family band was called the New Orleans Strutters. That’s Lester on the front left, with the tenor sax.
It appears that the Young family settled in Minneapolis in 1925. Lester stayed with the band off and on until the spring of 1936, when he left for good to join the Count Basie band. That same year, Lester made his debut record, Shoe Shine Boy, with the Count Basie band for Decca.
Lester developed a special musical relationship with Billie Holiday and would go on to record many classics with “Lady Day”. This Year’s Kisses might be my favorite Billie Holiday song. Lester kicks off the song with a nice solo. This was recorded in 1937 for Brunswick. Interestingly, that’s Benny Goodman’s clarinet in the background.
Here’s Lester on the far right with the Count Basie band, who he joined for the first time in 1933. After less than two months with Count Basie and his Cherry Blossoms, Fletcher Henderson invited him to replace Coleman Hawkins, who had left for Europe. Lester accepted the offer, but after only four months decided to call it quits and joined Andy Kirk and his Clouds of Joy - love that name.
Basie’s 1930s recordings like One O’Clock Jump and Taxi War Dance brought the concept of riffing — as a vehicle for soloists and lure for dancers — to a peak. By pairing the contrasting approaches of his tenor saxophonists Lester Young (air) and Herschel Evans (earth), Basie created a great stylistic Jazz juxtaposition, resulting in some of greatest dance music of all time.
Here’s a classic, well done 1944 short film of the Prez at work with his pork pie hat:
Check out this interesting video about the singer from Jammin’ the Blues, Marie Bryant. Stick with this video, as there is some really terrific dancing throughout.
I dedicate this next wonderful song to my musical mentor, Lenni. This is really a great song, written by Billie in 1957. You can really see the affection Billie has for Lester during his solo at the 2:40 mark.
Billie would pass on only two years later, in July of 1959. Lester passed away a few months earlier than Billie on March 15th, 1959. He was only 49 years old. That same year, Charlie Mingus wrote a song in honor of Prez. I like this John McLaughlin version of that song:
Frank Morgan
Frank Morgan was born in Minneapolis in 1933. His father, Stanley Morgan, was the guitarist for the Ink Spots. Morgan’s family didn’t like living in the Twin Cities and, when Frank was seven, they all moved to Milwaukee. Due to his father’s connections, Frank grew up in the Jazz community and rose to stardom quickly.
Still a teenager, Frank was already playing professionally in California and was in the band that backed Billie Holiday at the Club Alabam on LA’s Central Avenue. Frank later said, “She used to make me cry every night.” Billie Holiday was enamored of this young sax player, who she’d catch crying when she sang her soulful songs.
Next week, we’ll take a closer look at Frank Morgan or as he was perhaps more commonly known as: A71037, his San Quentin inmate number.
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Also, find my playlist on Spotify: From Fred Astaire to Sun Ra.
Feel free to contact me at any time to talk shop. I welcome and encourage that….
Until then, keep on walking….
wow