Teddy Wilson
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Born

  • November 24, 1912
  • Austin, TX

Died

  • July 31, 1986
  • New Britain, CT

Full Name

  • Theodore Shaw Wilson

Theme Song

  • Jumpin' on the Black and Whites

Teddy Wilson

Many critics consider Teddy Wilson one of the greatest jazz pianists of all-time. Though influenced by Earl Hines he later developed a style all his own. His early recordings were percussive and forceful, but as he matured his technique became graceful, almost elegant. He was a gifted artist who used the full range of his instrument to his advantage. His recordings with Benny Goodman's trio and quartet during the 1930s are considered classics.

Wilson studied music at both the Tuskegee Institute and Alabama's Talladega College. He worked in Detroit and Toledo, Ohio, with Speed Webb and Milton Senior before moving to Chicago, where he played with the likes of Erskine Tate, Eddie Mallory, Clarence Moore, Jimmy Noone and Louis Armstrong. He traveled to New York in 1933 to join Benny Carter's orchestra, the Chocolate Dandies. After Carter disbanded the following year to take a position as arranger with Goodman's band Wilson worked with an all-star group led by Red Norvo in 1934 and with Willie Bryant's band during 1934 and 1935. He met Goodman in 1935 and in 1936 was asked to join the bandleader's trio, which also included drummer Gene Krupa. Lionel Hampton joined soon after, making it a quartet. Wilson became the first African-American publicly featured in Goodman's line-up.

During his time with Goodman, Wilson put together several small groups for recording sessions. These sessions featured such artists as Lester Young, Roy Eldridge, Billie Holiday, Lena Horne, Ella Fitzgerald, Helen Ward, and Harry James. Wilson left Goodman in 1939 to form his own big band, which included such top musicians as Doc Cheatham, Ben Webster, Rudy Powell, and Hal Baker. Thelma Carpenter was vocalist. Wilson's subtle style failed to win over audiences, however, who often complained that his orchestra sounded ''too white.'' He disbanded the group after only a year and formed a sextet that played regularly at the Cafe Society in New York from 1940 to 1946.

After 1946 Wilson worked mostly as a soloist or in a trio. In 1946 he became a staff musician for CBS radio and operated his own music school. He taught at Julliard in the early 1950s, becoming one of the first jazz musicians to do so. He reunited with Goodman occasionally and traveled with the King of Swing on his 1962 Soviet Union tour. Teddy Wilson passed away in 1986.