Slam Stewart
Encyclopedia
Leroy Eliot "Slam" Stewart (September 21, 1914December 10, 1987) was an African American
jazz
bass
player whose trademark style was his ability to bow the bass (arco
) and simultaneously hum or sing an octave
higher. He was originally a violin
player before switching to bass at the age of 20.
in 1914. While attending the Boston Conservatory
, he heard Ray Perry
singing along with his violin. This gave him the inspiration to follow suit with his bass. In 1937 Stewart teamed with Slim Gaillard
to form the novelty jazz act Slim and Slam. The duo's biggest hit was "Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)
" in 1938 (see 1938 in music
).
Stewart found regular session work throughout the 1940s with Lester Young
, Fats Waller
, Coleman Hawkins
, Erroll Garner
, Art Tatum
, Johnny Guarnieri
, Red Norvo
, Don Byas
, the Benny Goodman
Sextet, and Beryl Booker
, among others. One of the most famous sessions he played on took place in 1945, when Stewart played with Dizzy Gillespie's
group (which featured Charlie Parker
). Out of those sessions came some of the classics of bebop
such as "Groovin' High" and "Dizzy Atmosphere."
Throughout the rest of his career, Stewart worked regularly and employed his unique and enjoyable bass-playing style. He died in 1987 in Binghamton, New York
.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
player whose trademark style was his ability to bow the bass (arco
Arco
-Places:*Arco, a town in Trentino, Italy*Arco, Idaho, in the United States*Arco, Minnesota, a city in the United States*ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California, home of the Sacramento Kings-Companies:...
) and simultaneously hum or sing an octave
Octave
In music, an octave is the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referred to as the "basic miracle of music", the use of which is "common in most musical systems"...
higher. He was originally a violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
player before switching to bass at the age of 20.
Biography
Stewart was born in Englewood, New JerseyEnglewood, New Jersey
Englewood is a city located in Bergen County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 27,147.Englewood was incorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of...
in 1914. While attending the Boston Conservatory
Boston Conservatory
The Boston Conservatory is a performing arts conservatory located in the Fenway-Kenmore region of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, dance and musical theater...
, he heard Ray Perry
Ray Perry
Ray Perry was an American jazz violinist and saxophonist.Perry was born in 1915 to a musical family and began playing the violin at a young age, while his brothers Joe and Bay became a baritonist and drummer, respectively...
singing along with his violin. This gave him the inspiration to follow suit with his bass. In 1937 Stewart teamed with Slim Gaillard
Slim Gaillard
Bulee "Slim" Gaillard was an American jazz singer, songwriter, pianist, and guitarist, noted for his vocalese singing and word play in a language he called "Vout"...
to form the novelty jazz act Slim and Slam. The duo's biggest hit was "Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)
Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)
"Flat Foot Floogie " was a 1938 jazz song, originally written and performed by Slim Gaillard.The original song was called "Flat Foot Floozie", with the 'floy-floy' being slang for a venereal disease...
" in 1938 (see 1938 in music
1938 in music
-Events:*January 16**Benny Goodman plays the first jazz concert at Carnegie Hall.**Béla Bartók's Sonata for two pianos and percussion is premiered in Basel....
).
Stewart found regular session work throughout the 1940s with Lester Young
Lester Young
Lester Willis Young , nicknamed "Prez", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and clarinetist. He also played trumpet, violin, and drums....
, Fats Waller
Fats Waller
Fats Waller , born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer...
, Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Randolph Hawkins was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Hawkins was one of the first prominent jazz musicians on his instrument. As Joachim E. Berendt explained, "there were some tenor players before him, but the instrument was not an acknowledged jazz horn"...
, Erroll Garner
Erroll Garner
Erroll Louis Garner was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His best-known composition, the ballad "Misty", has become a jazz standard...
, Art Tatum
Art Tatum
Arthur "Art" Tatum, Jr. was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso who played with phenomenal facility despite being nearly blind.Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time...
, Johnny Guarnieri
Johnny Guarnieri
Johnny Guarnieri was an American virtuoso jazz and stride pianist, born in New York City, perhaps best known for his big band stints with Benny Goodman in 1939 and with Artie Shaw in 1940...
, Red Norvo
Red Norvo
Red Norvo was one of jazz's early vibraphonists, known as "Mr. Swing". He helped establish the xylophone, marimba and later the vibraphone as viable jazz instruments...
, Don Byas
Don Byas
Carlos Wesley "Don" Byas was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, long-resident in Europe.- Oklahoma and Los Angeles :...
, the Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman
Benjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
Sextet, and Beryl Booker
Beryl Booker
Beryl Booker was a swing pianist of the 1950s. Born in 1922 in Philadelphia, she played with Slam Stewart's trio in 1946, and played off and on with him until 1951. She also played accompaniment for Dinah Washington. In early 1952, Booker led a quintet which played Birdland, featuring Don Elliot,...
, among others. One of the most famous sessions he played on took place in 1945, when Stewart played with Dizzy Gillespie's
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
group (which featured Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
). Out of those sessions came some of the classics of bebop
Bebop
Bebop differed drastically from the straightforward compositions of the swing era, and was instead characterized by fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that expanded on their role as tempo-keepers...
such as "Groovin' High" and "Dizzy Atmosphere."
Throughout the rest of his career, Stewart worked regularly and employed his unique and enjoyable bass-playing style. He died in 1987 in Binghamton, New York
Binghamton, New York
Binghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
.
Audio samples
Discography
Studio albums
- Slam Stewart (1971)
- Slamboree (1972)
- Fish Scales (1975)
- Two Big Mice (1977)
- Dialogue (1978)
- Shut Yo' Mouth! (1981)
- The Cats Are Swingin (1987)
- Slam Bam (2000)
Compilations
- Bowin' Singin' Slam (1945)
- Memorial Album 1914-1987 (1978)
- 1945-1946 (1997)
- Jumpin' at the Deuces
Films
- Hellzapoppin'Hellzapoppin'Hellzapoppin is a musical revue written by the comedy team of Olsen and Johnson, consisting of John "Ole" Olsen and Harold "Chic" Johnson, with music and lyrics by Sammy Fain and Charles Tobias...
(1941) - Almost MarriedAlmost Married-Cast:*Jane Frazee ... Gloria Dobson*Robert Paige ... James Manning,lll*Eugene Pallette ... Doctor Dobson*Elizabeth Patterson ... Aunt Matilda Manning*Charles Coleman ... Michael, Manning's Butler*Maude Eburne ... Mrs. Clayton...
(1942) - Boy! What a Girl!Boy! What a Girl!Boy! What a Girl! is a 1947 race film directed by Arthur H. Leonard and starring Tim Moore, with guest appearances by the Brown Dots, Slam Stewart, Sid Catlett and Gene Krupa.-Plot:...
(1947)
Sources
- [|Slam Stewart at Allmusic]
- A Slam Stewart Biography