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Living Savoy Musicians?

Posted: Mon Jan 30, 2006 10:44 pm
by Shorty Dave
Got a question for everyone here. Do you know of any musicians that played at the Savoy Ballroom and are still alive? And what band did they play with? I know Earl May played at the Savoy with Lucky Millinder's Band and Cat Anderson's Band. I head that Frank Foster, Joe Wilder and Clark Terry did, too, but don't know what band(s).

Who else???

Thanks!

Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 2:00 am
by Mr Awesomer
http://www.savoyballroom.com/exp/bandst ... icians.htm

Pretty extensive list of who played there... but not complete in terms of who they may have been playing with at the time... though some are easy to figure out.

Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 7:17 am
by Shorty Dave
That's GREAT! Thanks!!! (now who's alive???)

Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 10:23 am
by Mr Awesomer
Shorty Dave wrote:(now who's alive???)
Good luck with that one. I've lost track.

Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 12:57 pm
by julius
Jay McShann, at age 96 or so, is the only person I recognize from that list who is still alive.

Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 1:28 pm
by djstarr
Interesting; Buddy Rich and Woody Herman died in the same year [1987].

I heard Buddy Rich perform several times in Seattle when I was in college in the early 80's; I also got to hear Count Basie and Ella Fitzgerald perform at the Seattle Opera House around 1980; I wish I was as familiar with their music then when I heard them as I am now.

Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2006 1:19 am
by Roy
Franz Jackson is still alive in Chicago, played with the Roy Eldrige Orchestra, and the Fats Waller big band at the Savoy between 1938 and 1943.

Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2006 9:10 am
by CafeSavoy
One candidate might be Rusty Mason. I'm not sure if he played at the Savoy but he played during the swing era and then after the war with bands that played the savoy such as Buddy Johnson, Lucky Millinder, and Tiny Bradshaw.

Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 7:22 am
by Greg Avakian
Rusty is a definition of cool. When he couldn't play the piano anymore, he picked up sax because he couldn't live without playing music. I have his phone number somewhere if you want to get in touch with him.

I don't know what you're planning, but I'm going to say thanks in advance ...and I can't wait to be there when it happens!

Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2006 9:14 pm
by Roy
If your trying to put together some Savoy musicians and need contact info I just came across this new web site for Franz Jackson:

http://franzjackson.com/home.html

Posted: Mon Feb 06, 2006 6:53 am
by CafeSavoy
Franz Jackson is sweet. I have a couple of his cds and Steven Mitchell uses him in his swing walk class. I'm sorry i missed him at the chicago exchange.

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 8:08 pm
by Shorty Dave
Thanks for your help, guys! I'm surprised there are so few that people can think of. It closed in 1958, so anyone in their mid-70s who's still kickin' might have been there for the tail end of things <shrug>

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2006 11:40 pm
by caab
Maybe Billy Taylor (pianist)? He's still alive and was in NY and played with people who did play the Savoy, but I don't know if he actually played there himself.