Jimmy Slyde
Encyclopedia
Slyde was born in Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. His family then moved to Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, where he grew up. After seeing Bill Robinson
Bill Robinson
Bill “Bojangles” Robinson was an American tap dancer and actor of stage and film. Audiences enjoyed his understated style, which eschewed the frenetic manner of the jitterbug in favor of cool and reserve; rarely did he use his upper body, relying instead on busy, inventive feet, and an expressive...
perform, Slyde began tap lessons at age 12 with Stanley Brown at The New England Conservatory of Music
New England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, is the oldest independent school of music in the United States.The conservatory is home each year to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies along with 1400 more in its Preparatory School as well as the School of...
. Soon after, he formed the duo "The Slyde Brothers" with a fellow student, Jimmy "Sir Slyde" Mitchell, Slyde began touring with big bands in clubs throughout the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, performing regularly with both Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
and Count Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
. In the 1960s, after work temporarily dried up in the United States, he moved to Paris and danced in Europe for six years.
Slyde's profile in the United States revived noticeably in the 1980s. He danced in the films The Cotton Club
The Cotton Club (film)
The Cotton Club is a 1984 crime-drama, centered on a famed Harlem jazz club of the 1930s, the Cotton Club.The movie was co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, choreographed by Henry LeTang, and starred Richard Gere, Diane Lane, and Gregory Hines...
, Tap
Tap (film)
Tap is a 1989 film drama written and directed by Nick Castle. It stars Gregory Hines and Sammy Davis, Jr.-Plot:Max Washington, just released from prison after serving time for burglary, is a talented tap dancer...
, and Round Midnight
Round Midnight (film)
Round Midnight is a 1986 film directed by Bertrand Tavernier and written by David Rayfiel and Bertrand Tavernier. It tells the story of an African American tenor saxophone player in Paris in the 1950s who is befriended by an unsuccessful French graphic designer who idolizes the musician and who...
, as well as a number of television specials. He collaborated with Steve Condos
Steve Condos
Steve Condos was an American tap dancer. He was a member of the Condos Brothers, with siblings Nick and Frank....
on a program of jazz tap improvisation at the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
and performed across the United States and in South America. In 1989, Slyde received a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nomination for his Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut in the musical Black and Blue
Black and Blue
Black and Blue is the 13th British and 15th American studio album by The Rolling Stones, released in 1976. It was the band's first studio album released with Ronnie Wood as the replacement for Mick Taylor...
.
In recent years, Slyde received a number of significant honors, including the NEA National Heritage Fellowship Award (1999), the Charles "Honi" Coles Award (2001), a Guggenheim Fellowship for Choreography (2003), and an honorary Doctorate of Performing Arts from Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City University, often referred to as OCU, is a coeducational, urban, private university historically affiliated with the United Methodist Church...
.
Slyde continued performing and teaching throughout the United States late into his life, stressing the importance of mastering the basics and using sliding cascades of taps close to the floor.
The Tap Heritage Foundation has now announced the passing of Dr. Slyde on May 16, 2008. The cause of death has not yet been confirmed.
Further reading
- Frank, Rusty E. Tap! The Greatest Tap Dance Stars and Their Stories, 1900-1955. Rev. ed. New York: Da Capo Press, 1995. 259-61.