Sonny Parker (musician)
Encyclopedia
Sonny Parker was an American blues
and jazz
singer, dancer, and drummer.
Parker was raised in Chicago by a vaudeville
duo known as Butterbeans & Susie. He led a band at the Cotton Club in Cincinnati in 1948 which included King Kolax
as one of his sidemen, and recorded with Kolax in Los Angeles
later that year. He became a member of Lionel Hampton
's ensemble in 1949, where he remained for the rest of his career. His time with Hampton included appearances in the film Lionel Hampton and His Orchestra (1949) and on Hampton's recordings from this time. He toured Europe with Hampton several times between 1953 and 1955.
In May 1955, during a concert at Valenciennes
, France
, Parker had a brain hemorrhage, from which he did not recover. He died of a stroke
in 1957.
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and 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...
singer, dancer, and drummer.
Parker was raised in Chicago by a vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
duo known as Butterbeans & Susie. He led a band at the Cotton Club in Cincinnati in 1948 which included King Kolax
King Kolax
King Kolax was a United States jazz trumpeter.-Biography:...
as one of his sidemen, and recorded with Kolax in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
later that year. He became a member of Lionel Hampton
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Leo Hampton was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. Like Red Norvo, he was one of the first jazz vibraphone players. Hampton ranks among the great names in jazz history, having worked with a who's who of jazz musicians, from Benny Goodman and Buddy...
's ensemble in 1949, where he remained for the rest of his career. His time with Hampton included appearances in the film Lionel Hampton and His Orchestra (1949) and on Hampton's recordings from this time. He toured Europe with Hampton several times between 1953 and 1955.
In May 1955, during a concert at Valenciennes
Valenciennes
Valenciennes is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It lies on the Scheldt river. Although the city and region had seen a steady decline between 1975 and 1990, it has since rebounded...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Parker had a brain hemorrhage, from which he did not recover. He died of a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
in 1957.