Specs Powell
Encyclopedia
Gordon "Specs" Powell was a jazz drummer
and percussionist who began in the swing
era. He also worked in the Bebop
and Hard bop
idioms.
Born in New York, he started out on piano but became exclusively a drummer in the late 1930s. He worked with Edgar Hayes (1939), Benny Carter
(1941-42), Ben Webster
, and others early in his career. He started working as a staff musician for CBS
in 1943. He was lead drummer on The Ed Sullivan Show
in the early 1960s. That said his only album as a leader was in 1957 (Movin' in-Roulette). He remained active until the 1970s and was honored by the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 2004.
Jazz drumming
Jazz drumming is the art of playing percussion in jazz styles ranging from 1910s-style Dixieland jazz to 1970s-era jazz-rock fusion and 1980s-era latin jazz...
and percussionist who began in the swing
Swing (genre)
Swing music, also known as swing jazz or simply swing, is a form of jazz music that developed in the early 1930s and became a distinctive style by 1935 in the United States...
era. He also worked in the 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...
and Hard bop
Hard bop
Hard bop is a style of jazz that is an extension of bebop music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz which incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gospel music, and blues, especially in the saxophone and piano...
idioms.
Born in New York, he started out on piano but became exclusively a drummer in the late 1930s. He worked with Edgar Hayes (1939), Benny Carter
Benny Carter
Bennett Lester Carter was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. He was a major figure in jazz from the 1930s to the 1990s, and was recognized as such by other jazz musicians who called him King...
(1941-42), Ben Webster
Ben Webster
Benjamin Francis Webster , a.k.a. "The Brute" or "Frog," was an influential American jazz tenor saxophonist. Webster, born in Kansas City, Missouri, was considered one of the three most important "swing tenors" along with Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young...
, and others early in his career. He started working as a staff musician for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
in 1943. He was lead drummer on The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
in the early 1960s. That said his only album as a leader was in 1957 (Movin' in-Roulette). He remained active until the 1970s and was honored by the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 2004.
Selected Discography
- Jess StacyJess StacyJess Stacy was an American jazz pianist who gained prominence during the Swing era.-Early life:Stacy was born Jesse Alexandria Stacy in Bird's Point, Missouri, a small town across the Mississippi River from Cairo, Illinois. In 1918 Stacy moved to Cape Girardeau, Missouri...
: And friends (Commodore, 1944) - Teddy WilsonTeddy WilsonTheodore Shaw "Teddy" Wilson was an American jazz pianist whose sophisticated and elegant style was featured on the records of many of the biggest names in jazz, including Louis Armstrong, Lena Horne, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.-Biography:Wilson was born in Austin, Texas in...
: All Stars Sextet (Storyville, 1945) - Red NorvoRed NorvoRed 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...
: Town Hall Concert (Commodore, 1945) - Erroll GarnerErroll GarnerErroll 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...
:Erroll Garner Trio (Columbia, 1956) - Specs Powell and His Orchestra:Movin' in (Roulette, 1957)
- Shirley ScottShirley ScottShirley Scott was an American hard bop and soul-jazz organist. She was most known for working with her husband, Stanley Turrentine, and with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis...
:Soul Song (Atlantic, 1968) - Billy ButlerBilly ButlerWilliam Butler was an English professional footballer who was most famously a winger for Bolton Wanderers in the 1920s....
: Guitar Soul ! (Prestige, 1969) - Reuben WilsonReuben WilsonReuben Wilson is a jazz organist. He performs soul jazz and acid jazz, and is best known for his title track "Got To Get Your Own"He was born in Mounds, Oklahoma and his family moved to Pasadena when he was 5....
: Set Us FreeSet Us FreeSet Us Free is the fifth album by American organist Reuben Wilson recorded in 1971 and released on the Blue Note label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Thom Jurek awarded the album 4 stars and stated "it's a wildly textured and seamless aural meld of gritty B-3 jams, smooth yet psychedelic soul,...
(Blue Note, 1971)