Teddy Wilson - Jam Session Aesthetic

WKCR, Columbia University’s wonderful FM and Internet radio station, devoted a whole day this Sunday to the music of Teddy Wilson (1912 - 1986). This magical pianist is best known for his work with Benny Goodman,  the small groups with B.G., Lionel Hampton, and Gene Krupa. Teddy Wilson is a superb pianist and consummate piano  stylist - I rely here on Art Blakey’s distinction between a stylist and instrumentalist, which he illustrated by his saying that Miles Davis is a trumpet stylist, while Clifford Brown is a trumpet player. Teddy Wilson is both. I invoke the present tense when discussing musical genus, the is of recorded music.

  When I think of Teddy Wilson, I think of Teddy Wilson’s small groups - the groups that featured Billie Holiday and a host of other geniuses: for example, Roy Eldridge, Benny Carter, Benny Goodman, Lester Young, Johnny Hodges, Chu Berry, Ben Webster, Buster Bailey, Vido Musso, Harry Carney, Lionel Hampton, Red Norvo, Big Sid Catlett, Charlie Ventura, Misses Fitzgerald, Ward, Carpenter, Sullivan, and The Divine One.

  As has been emphasized by Gunther Schuller and Phil Schaap, in Wilson’s small groups the lady singers were an integral part of the jam session aesthetic that Mr Wilson was about - instrumentalists and singers improvised. And Billie Holiday incorporated the Wilson jam session aesthetic in her small group recordings, both her Columbia and Verve recordings.

   Mr Wilson is of the glide and stride college of pianists - seminars offered by Jelly Roll Morton and Earl Hines; post-graduate work with Art Tatum (just a taste); and the European classical piano tradition. The recording that Wilson made with Lester Young on Verve of “I didn’t know what time it was” is fine example of Mr Wilson’s piano technique and styling. This recording also features Roy Eldridge, Vic Dickerson, and Jo Jones. Prez and Mr Wilson both glide on top of the music, a perfect meringue for a perfect jam session.


P.S. Ethan Iverson on Teddy Wilson:
http://dothemath.typepad.com/dtm/2012/11/bits-and-bytes.html

PPS I'm quite enjoying the 10 CD Teddy Wilson Jumpin' For Joy set from

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0014WSX34/ref=sr_1_5_np_1_main_olp?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1354729624&sr=1-5&condition=new

It cost less than $20US, including shipping from Europe.