Roy Eldridge facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Roy Eldridge
Eldridge in 1946
Background information
Birth name	David Roy Eldridge
Born	(1911-01-30)January 30, 1911 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US
Died	February 26, 1989(1989-02-26) (aged 78) Valley Stream, New York, US
Genres	Jazz, swing, big band
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	Trumpet
Associated acts	Charlie Barnet

David Roy Eldridge (born January 30, 1911 – died February 26, 1989) was an American jazz trumpeter. People often called him "Little Jazz". He was known for his advanced use of musical harmony. His trumpet solos were very skillful and different from the style of Louis Armstrong. Roy Eldridge greatly influenced Dizzy Gillespie. This makes him one of the most important musicians of the swing era and a pioneer of bebop jazz.

Roy Eldridge: A Jazz Legend

Early Life and Musical Beginnings

Roy Eldridge was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on January 30, 1911. His father, Alexander, was a wagon driver. His mother, Blanche, was a talented pianist who could play music by ear. Roy believed he got his musical talent from her.

He started playing the piano at age five. He said he could play simple blues tunes even then. Roy looked up to his older brother, Joe Eldridge, who played violin, alto saxophone, and clarinet.

Roy began playing the drums at age six and took lessons. Joe saw Roy's natural talent on the bugle, which Roy played in a church band. Joe encouraged him to play the trumpet. At first, Roy didn't practice much. But after his mother died when he was eleven, he started practicing a lot. He would lock himself in his room for hours, especially working on playing high notes.

From a young age, Roy found it hard to read music. This was a challenge for him early in his career. However, he was very good at playing melodies by ear.

Building a Career in Music

Early Bands and Traveling Shows

In his early years, Eldridge led and played in many bands. He traveled a lot across the Midwest. He was inspired by saxophonists Benny Carter and Coleman Hawkins. Roy worked hard to play the trumpet in a similar style to Hawkins's saxophone solos.

Roy left high school at sixteen and joined a traveling show. The show soon closed, leaving him in Youngstown, Ohio. He then joined another carnival show. But he returned to Pittsburgh after seeing unfair treatment because of race in Cumberland, Maryland.

Soon, Eldridge led a small band in a traveling show called "Rock Dinah." Count Basie, a famous bandleader, later said that young Roy Eldridge was "the greatest trumpet I'd ever heard." Roy continued playing with similar groups until he returned to Pittsburgh at age 17.

At 20, Eldridge led a band in Pittsburgh called "Roy Elliott and his Palais Royal Orchestra." An agent changed his name, thinking it sounded "more classy." Roy later joined the orchestra of Horace Henderson, the younger brother of Fletcher Henderson. Roy then played with other bands, including Speed Webb's band.

In Milwaukee, Roy had a famous "cutting contest" with trumpet player Cladys "Jabbo" Smith. A cutting contest was a musical challenge where musicians tried to play better than each other. Roy and Jabbo later became good friends.

Moving to New York and Chicago

Eldridge moved to New York in November 1930. He played in various bands in Harlem with musicians like Cecil Scott and Teddy Hill. During this time, he got his nickname 'Little Jazz' from saxophonist Otto Hardwick. Otto thought it was funny that Roy played so powerfully but was short.

Roy started making records and radio broadcasts on his own. His first recorded solos with Teddy Hill in 1935 became very popular. He also led his own band at the Famous Door nightclub for a short time. In July 1935, Eldridge recorded with singer Billie Holiday. He used a Dixieland-influenced style of playing.

In October 1935, Eldridge joined Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra. He played lead trumpet and sometimes sang. He was the main soloist until he left in September 1936. His powerful playing helped the band "swing" (a key part of jazz music). Many said he had become the top "hot" trumpet player, even more so than Louis Armstrong.

In 1936, Eldridge moved to Chicago and formed an octet with his brother Joe. They had nightly radio broadcasts and made recordings with Roy's long solos. In 1938, Roy quit playing music for a while because he was tired of the unfair treatment he faced in the music industry. He studied radio engineering. But he returned to music in 1939, forming a ten-piece band that played at New York's Arcadia Ballroom.

Playing with Gene Krupa's Orchestra

In April 1941, Eldridge joined Gene Krupa's Orchestra. He was one of the first black musicians to become a regular member of a white big band. This was a big step in breaking down racial barriers in music. Roy helped change Krupa's band from playing less jazzy music to true jazz.

Eldridge and singer Anita O'Day were featured in many recordings. Their song "Let Me Off Uptown" was a big hit. One of Roy's most famous solos is on the song "Rockin' Chair". Music experts described his playing on this song as powerful and emotional. He used a unique, slightly rough tone that made his playing very intense.

After some disagreements, Eldridge left Krupa's band in July 1943.

Touring and Small Group Work

After leaving Krupa's band, Eldridge played in New York. In 1944, he joined Artie Shaw's band. He faced more unfair treatment because of his race while in Shaw's band. He left in October 1945 to form his own big band, but it didn't make enough money. Roy then went back to playing in smaller groups.

After World War II, he became a key part of the Jazz at the Philharmonic tours. The organizer, Norman Granz, said Roy Eldridge showed the true spirit of jazz.

In 1950, Eldridge moved to Paris while on tour with Benny Goodman. He returned to New York in 1951 and led a band at the Birdland jazz club. From 1952 to the early 1960s, he played in small groups with musicians like Coleman Hawkins and Ella Fitzgerald. He also recorded for Norman Granz. Roy toured with Ella Fitzgerald from 1963 to 1965 and with Count Basie in 1966.

Breaking Down Racial Barriers

As a featured soloist in white bands like Artie Shaw's and Gene Krupa's, Eldridge was unusual. In the 1930s, black musicians were often not allowed to perform publicly with white bands. Artie Shaw talked about the difficulties Roy faced. He noted that Roy would get many autograph requests after a show. But later, on the bus, he couldn't even go into a restaurant to eat with the band members because of his race.

Gene Krupa once spent hours in jail and paid fines. He got into a fight with a restaurant manager who wouldn't let Eldridge eat with the rest of the band. These stories show the challenges black musicians faced and the support they sometimes received.

Later Years and Legacy

In 1969, Eldridge became the leader of the house band at Jimmy Ryan's jazz club in Manhattan. The club usually played Dixieland music. Roy tried to mix this traditional style with his own faster, bolder playing.

In 1970, Eldridge had a stroke. But he continued to lead the group at Ryan's soon after. He sometimes performed as a singer, drummer, and pianist. A writer who saw him in the late 1970s was amazed he could still hit high notes. Roy was known for inviting inexperienced players on stage to lead his band. This was often for fun and to give himself a break.

In 1971, Eldridge was added to the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame. A street sign in Queens, New York, honors him as part of the "Jazz Greats." He lived in Hollis, Queens.

Roy Eldridge home

After a heart attack in 1980, Eldridge stopped playing. He died at age 78 on February 26, 1989, in Valley Stream, New York. This was just three weeks after his wife, Viola, passed away.

Roy Eldridge's Musical Style

Influences and Unique Sound

Roy said his first big trumpet influence was Rex Stewart. But unlike many trumpet players, Roy was mostly inspired by saxophonists. He developed his solo style by playing along to recordings of Coleman Hawkins and Benny Carter. He later said he wanted to "play my trumpet like a sax."

This approach helped Roy get one of his first jobs. He auditioned by imitating Coleman Hawkins's solo on a song called "Stampede." Roy also studied the styles of other trumpet players like Loring "Red" Nichols. He said he wasn't greatly influenced by Louis Armstrong early on. But he did study Armstrong's style in 1932.

Eldridge was very skilled on his trumpet. He could play fast and clearly in both low and high notes. Jazz critic Gary Giddins said Eldridge had a "flashy, passionate, many-noted style." He could play across three octaves (a wide range of notes) and had great musical ideas, even at very fast speeds.

Roy Eldridge is often grouped with other jazz trumpeters of the 1930s and 1940s. These players, like Red Allen and Rex Stewart, chose a rougher, more energetic style over Louis Armstrong's smooth, lyrical sound. Of these, Gary Giddins called Eldridge "the most emotionally compelling, versatile, rugged, and far-reaching."

People also praised the intensity of his playing. Ella Fitzgerald once said: "He's got more soul in one note that a lot of people could get into the whole song." Roy loved using the highest notes of his instrument to express emotion. He often included them in his solos.

Eldridge was also known for his fast playing. He would often play bursts of quick notes at double speed, then return to the normal rhythm. He said he achieved this speed through hard practice. As a teenager, he would practice "eight, nine hours a day."

Critic J. Bradford Robinson described his style as showing "a keen awareness of harmony, an unprecedented dexterity, particularly in the highest register." He also noted Roy's full, slightly loud sound that "crackled at moments of high tension." Giddins added that Eldridge's sound was never perfectly pure. It always had a "vocal rasp, an urgent, human roughness."

Roy Eldridge was also a good singer. Jazz critic Whitney Balliett described him as a "fine, scampish jazz singer." He had a light, slightly rough voice and a very rhythmic way of singing.

Impact on Jazz Music

Eldridge's fast playing and his use of the trumpet's high notes greatly influenced Dizzy Gillespie. Dizzy, along with Charlie Parker, helped create bebop jazz. Songs like "Heckler's Hop," where Eldridge's high notes are very clear, were especially important for Dizzy.

Dizzy had many jam sessions and "trumpet battles" with Eldridge in New York in the early 1940s. Dizzy even said about Eldridge: "He was the Messiah of our generation." Eldridge first heard Dizzy on a 1939 recording and thought it was himself playing.

Even though Eldridge is often seen as a link between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie, he always said: "I was never trying to be a bridge between Armstrong and something." Other important musicians influenced by Roy Eldridge include Shorty Sherock and bebop pioneers Howard McGhee and Fats Navarro.

Personality Traits

People who knew Eldridge often described him as very competitive. Pianist Chuck Folds said, "I can't imagine anyone more competitive than he [Roy] was." Roy himself admitted, "I was just trying to outplay anybody, and to outplay them my way."

Trumpeter Jonah Jones said Roy was willing to "go anywhere and play against anyone." This even led to a musical challenge with his own hero, Rex Stewart. Roy could also become difficult, especially when facing people he felt were unfair because of race.

Many noted Roy's constant energy. Saxophonist Billie Bowen said Roy "could never...sit down for more than a few minutes, he was always restless." Eldridge also sometimes suffered from stage fright.

Discography

(From left) Thelonious Monk, Howard McGhee, Roy Eldridge, Teddy Hill, Minton's Playhouse, New York, around September 1947
Photograph by William P. Gottlieb

• The Big Band of Little Jazz (Topaz, 1935–45)
• Heckler's Hop (Hep, 1936–1939)
• After You've Gone (Decca/GRP, 1936–46)
• Roy Eldridge in Paris (Vogue, 1950/51)
• Roy's Got Rhythm (EmArcy, 1951)
• Rockin' Chair (Clef, 1951–52, [1955])
• Dale's Wail (Clef, 1953, [1955])
• The Strolling Mr. Eldridge With The Oscar Peterson Trio (Clef, 1954)
• Little Jazz (Clef, 1954)
• Roy and Diz (Clef, 1954) with Dizzy Gillespie
• Swingin' on the Town (Verve, 1960)
• Oscar Peterson and Roy Eldridge
• Little Jazz (1957; 7"; EmArcy [Mercury])
• The Coleman Hawkins, Roy Eldridge, Pete Brown, Jo Jones All Stars at Newport (Verve, 1957)
• The Complete Verve Roy Eldridge Studio Sessions (Mosaic, later Verve)
• "Newport Rebels" (Candid, 1960)
• The Nifty Cat (Master Jazz/New World, 1970)
• The Trumpet Kings Meet Joe Turner (Pablo, 1974)
• Roy Eldridge and Oscar Peterson (OJC, 1974)
• Little Jazz and the Jimmy Ryan All-Stars (Pablo, 1975)
• Happy Time (Pablo, 1975)
• Jazz Maturity...Where It's Coming From (Pablo, 1975)
• Oscar Peterson and The Trumpet Kings - Jousts (Pablo, 1975)
• The Trumpet Kings at Montreux '75 (Pablo)
• What It's All About (Pablo, 1976)
• Montreux 1977 (Pablo, 1977)
• Roy Eldridge & Vic Dickenson (Storyville, 1978)
• Heckler's Hop (Hep, 1995)

See also

In Spanish: Roy Eldridge para niños