Jimmy Slyde facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jimmy Slyde
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James "Jimmy Slyde" Godbolt receives an award for tap-dancing from the NEA, 2006
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| Born |
James Titus Godbolt
October 2, 1927 |
| Died | May 16, 2008 (aged 80) Hanson, Massachusetts, U.S.
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| Occupation | Tap dancer |
| Years active | 1948–2008 |
Jimmy Slyde, born James Titus Godbolt (October 2, 1927 – May 16, 2008), was a famous American tap dancer. He was even called the "King of Slides"! He mixed his amazing tap dancing with jazz music.
Jimmy was a very popular tap dancer in the 1900s. He performed in many nightclubs and shows in America. He also became famous in Europe, even living in Paris for a while. In the 1980s, he starred in musicals and won many awards. His special dance move was called "the slide."
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Becoming a Tap Dancer
Jimmy Godbolt was born in Atlanta, Georgia. When he was three, his family moved to Boston. As a child, his mom wanted him to play the violin. He even went to the Boston Conservatory of Music to get better at it.
But right across the street from the Conservatory was Stanley Brown's dance studio. Jimmy loved to visit and watch amazing tap dancers there. He saw legends like Bill "Bojangles" Robinson and Charles "Honi" Coles.
When Jimmy was twelve, he decided to quit violin lessons. With his mom's permission, he started taking tap lessons at Brown's studio. His mom wanted him to do something active besides sports.
At the studio, he learned from Stanley Brown himself. He also learned from a student teacher named Eddie "Schoolboy" Ford. Eddie taught Jimmy his famous "slide" move. Jimmy then met another dancer who was good at slides, Jimmy "Sir Slyde" Mitchell. They decided to team up and perform together.
A Career of Slides and Rhythm
In the 1940s, Jimmy Mitchell and Jimmy Godbolt started performing. They called themselves the Slyde Brothers. This is how James Godbolt got his famous stage name, Jimmy "Slyde."
Their shows included exciting tricks, like those done by the famous Nicholas Brothers. But their special move was always the slide. One dance writer, Sally Sommer, described his slides. She said he would slide across the stage "as fast and smooth as a skier." Then he would stop, do quick tap steps, and finish with a triple turn.
Their act was a huge success! They were invited to perform with famous big bands of that time. These included Count Basie, Duke Ellington, and Louis Armstrong. Their tap dancing became part of the bands' songs. They would tap for a while, then the band would play, and they would switch back and forth.
Challenges and Success in Europe
Unfortunately, Jimmy Slyde became popular when rock and roll music was taking over. This meant that big band music and tap acts were not as popular in America anymore. Jimmy tried to find work in other cities like San Francisco and Hollywood. He looked for jobs in shows and movies, but work was hard to find.
In the 1960s, he worked for a short time as a dance teacher for the Crosby Brothers. Then, in 1966, Jimmy Slyde got an invitation to perform in Europe. He went to the Berlin Jazz Festival with other great dancers. The audience loved them! They were even called "Harlem's All-Star Dancers."
In the 1970s, Jimmy moved to Paris, France. There, he worked closely with dancer Sarah Petronio. She helped him get back into dancing and creating new shows. They became dance partners in jazz concerts called "It's About Time." They performed with some of Europe's best jazz musicians.
Returning to the Spotlight
After living and performing in Paris, Jimmy Slyde came back to America. He appeared in a show called Black and Blue in 1985. This show later moved to Broadway in New York in 1989, and he performed in it there too. He was even nominated for a Tony Award for his performance!
After this, tap dancing started to become popular again. Jimmy Slyde stayed in the United States and became very busy, just like in his early career. He performed in several movies and shows. These included The Cotton Club (1984), Motown Returns to the Apollo (1985), Round Midnight (1986), and the movie Tap (1989). In Tap, he performed with famous dancers like Gregory Hines and Sammy Davis Jr..
In the 1990s, Jimmy Slyde started holding weekly jam sessions. These were at a jazz nightclub in New York called La Cave. These sessions became a place for learning. Young, new tap dancers would come to practice and create new steps. Older, experienced dancers would help and teach them. Some of the dancers he mentored included Savion Glover and Roxane Butterfly.
Awards and Recognition
Jimmy Slyde received many important awards for his amazing talent.
- He won the Choreographer's Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts several times (1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1993).
- In 1999, he received a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts.
- He won the Charles "Honi" Coles Award in 2001.
- In 2002, he received the Hoofer Award from the American Tap Dance Federation.
- He also received an honorary doctorate degree from Oklahoma City University in 2002.
- In 2003, he earned a fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
- He received a Dance Magazine Award in 2005.
Jimmy Slyde's Legacy
Jimmy Slyde passed away on May 16, 2008, at the age of 80. He died at his home in Hanson, Massachusetts. He was known as a fantastic rhythm tap dancer. He had perfect timing and amazing musicality. This was partly because he learned music early in life.
His slides made it look like he could float across the floor without effort. His slides were a key part of his musical style. They allowed him to play with the beat, slowing down and speeding up. They were like silent moments or long notes in music.
Jimmy Slyde was often the last dancer to perform. This was because he could always outshine any dancer who came before him. But he was also a humble person. He loved being part of the tap dancing community. He focused on the sounds that tap dancing could make. He called it "a translating thing."
Younger dancers learned a lot from him. They saw him as one of the greatest. Savion Glover, a famous tap dancer, even called him "the Godfather of tap." He said Jimmy Slyde was "one of the true masters of the art form."
