Tag: Eddie Heywood

This is one of the newest jazz transfers on the channel, dating from the waning years of 78 rpm era, as the 45 rpm 7″ single format and 33 rpm 10″ EP and 12″ LP formats were beginning to dominate production runs.

Eddie Heywood Jr. was playing with Bessie Smith in Atlanta when he was a preteen under the tutelage of his father. He would go on to play with Benny Carter, Billie Holiday, and Coleman Hawkins in the 30s and 40s before launching a solo career.

His work in the 50s was a bit of a comeback after his long productive career as a musician was interrupted in 1947 by medical issues with his hands that prevented him from performing.

You can hear his dexterity on this pre-paralysis side from 1944:
https://youtu.be/hTt7z9PnsD8

The flip side of this disc, “Soft Summer Breeze” went to #11 on the pop charts – but I enjoy the b-side a bit more. Perhaps because it’s winter in the midwest, and with temperatures currently at 1 degree Fahrenheit, soft summer breezes seem to be a distant memory.

The beginning arpeggio of this one reminds me a bit of the beginning of “Linus and Lucy” by Vince Guaraldi from “Jazz Impressions of A Boy Named Charlie Brown” recorded in 1964. It has a similar optimistic feel but whereas the Guaraldi tune looks forward, I feel this one is more nostalgic in nature.

Included on his self-titled 1955 EmArcy LP, it was also included on his self-titled 1956 Mercury LP.

Recorded July 15 and 20, 1955.
Released on April 19, 1956.
Released as Mercury 70863

Credits:
Eddie Heywood Jr. – piano
Wendell Marshall – bass
Jimmy Crawford – drums

I found a post-war album set called “Eddie Heywood on the 88” and, (embarrassingly) not recognizing the name at first, assumed it was a popular pianist a la Eddie Duchin sort of record and put it in the sell pile. Recently I got it out and took a closer look – seeing Ray Nance and Johnny Hodges in the credits immediately piqued my interest. As I was in the middle of learning “How High The Moon” on guitar, I put this one on.

Nance’s violin starts us out with the pleasant melody – and by the time Heywood is set to go, he is literally chomping at the keys. Aaron Sachs jumps in on clarinet followed by Nance again (on trumpet now!). Don Byas takes us out, sounding decidedly more modern and giving us a taste of the bop he had been woodshedding with Coleman Hawkins, Bird, and Diz on 52nd St.

0:00 Violin (Nance)
0:40 Piano (Heywood)
1:20 Clarinet (Sachs)
1:58 Trumpet (Nance)
2:37 Tenor Sax (Byas)
3:22 Piano (Heywood)
3:33 Ensemble

Heywood’s pops (Heywood Sr.), it turns out – was a jazz pianist going way back – playing with artists like Mamie Smith, Sara Martin, Wilton Crawley, George McClennon, and Lucille Bogan for Okeh in the early 1920s. Heywood Jr. got his start playing with Benny Carter in the late 30s

The Signature label was started by Bob Thiele, an avid jazz enthusiast, in the early 1940s. Their early releases were full of jazz artists like Coleman Hawkins, Meade Lux Lewis, and James P. Johnson. Kind of reminds me of the type of stuff early Blue Note put out. Signature even went a step further and even reissued old jazz and blues classics from King Oliver, Ida Cox, Will Ezell, and Henry Brown.

Unfortunately, poor sales led the Signature label to abandon jazz in early 1947 in favor of popular vocalists and orchestras. This didn’t help matters – and the label ran aground in the late 40s. It was revived a few times over subsequent decades.

Recorded in New York City on May 2, 1944.
Released as Signature 40002 as part of the 12″ album “Heywood on the 88” (Signature R-101).

Credits:
Eddie Heywood – piano
Ray Nance – violin, trumpet
Don Byas – tenor sax
Aaron Sachs – clarinet
John Simmons – string bass
Shelly Manne – drums