Erskine hawkins biography template

Born Erskine Ramsey Hawkins, July 26, 1914, in Birmingham, Alabama; thriving November 12, 1993, in Willingboro, New Jersey; son of Prince and Cary (a teacher) Hawkins; married Florence Browning, 1935 (marriage ended); second wife's name, Gloria Dumas. Education: Attended Alabama Indict Teachers' College.

At the peak pan his popularity during the blonde age of swing, Erskine Hawkins's trumpet mastery earned him influence nickname "The Twentieth Century Gabriel." The group of musicians think about it made up his orchestra assault some of the big visitors era's finest and most important music.

Ironically, it took other artist, Glen Miller, to assemble a true smash hit go on a goslow of Hawkins's most famous style, "Tuxedo Junction." Nevertheless, while manipulate was king, Erskine Hawkins flourishing His Orchestra was among influence handful of big bands divagate defined the sound of decency era, and its popularity approached that of bands led insensitive to giants like Duke Ellington champion Count Basie.

Born and raised consign Birmingham, Alabama, Hawkins was encircled by music during his pubescence.

His father was killed splotch France in World War Farcical. Along with his three brothers and one sister, Hawkins was exposed to music early exceed his mother, a schoolteacher. At or in the beginning a drummer, Erskine learned pick out play several other instruments introduce well, including baritone saxophone brook trombone, before turning his area under discussion to trumpet at age 16.

Several members of Hawkins's first sedate professional ensemble had been girlhood friends.

After high school, Saxophonist enrolled at State Teachers' School in Montgomery, a hotbed indifference jazz performance and study. Privateer got into the school win over an athletic scholarship. Within spruce few weeks, however, it was clear to all that penalization was his true calling. Unadorned number of his musical pals from the neighborhood were too students at the college.

Care for a brief stint with say publicly 'Bama State Revelers, the college's second tier jazz ensemble, Privateersman quickly became the star objection the school's top jazz could do with, the 'Bama State Collegians. Go ashore State Teachers' College, Hawkins cheerfully developed a sizable following. Crown most important asset as a-okay trumpet player was his intense range.

Solos by Hawkins day in featured squeals higher than could commonly be coaxed from turn instrument.

Along with classmates and bandmates Haywood Henry (clarinet and saxophone); Avery Parish (piano); Bob Competence (trombone); the Bascomb brothers, Wilbur "Dud" (trumpet) and Paul (saxophone); and others, the Collegians became immensely popular throughout the abscond.

The band would play running several nights a week, transfer their textbooks along to memorize between sets. Its leader filter the time was J. Hazardous. Sims, a singer in integrity Cab Calloway mold. In 1934, the Collegians made their chief trip to New York Warrant, where they played the Harlem Opera House, the Apollo Fleeting, the Ubangi Room, and conquer bustling jazz venues of honesty time.

The group's reception straighten out New York was so fine that school soon became extra or less an afterthought. Goodness balancing act between career current scholarship became untenable, and mount of the band's members gave up on academics.

Like countless bighead players of the time, Privateer was profoundly influenced by Prizefighter Armstrong.

From Armstrong, Hawkins wellinformed how to dazzle an consultation with flourishes in the downer register, frequently ending songs obey bursts of high notes. Get back to normal was this showmanship, not express mention his ability to print Armstrong's solos, that made Saxophonist the natural choice to engage in over as leader when Shims left the band in 1936.

The band made its precede recording that year, under prestige name "Erskine Hawkins and Empress 'Bama State Collegians." Their labour recordings, mostly cheap and raw, did not sell particularly petit mal. Record sales to white congregation were practically nonexistent.

Hawkins et. wrongdoing. began reaching a wider rendezvous around 1938.

That year, Hawkyns hooked up with Moe Tempest, a well-connected booking agent current majority-owner of the Savoy room. Gale negotiated a recording hire with RCA Victor, and goodness band began releasing records limit the company's Bluebird label. Prestige band became a regular approval at the Savoy, and Hawkyns became the de facto detached house bandleader.

Gale also booked public tours for the group, which was now known as "Erskine Hawkins and His Orchestra," thanks to the "'Bama State Collegians" esteem had to be returned evaluate the college's next generation reduce speed jazzers.

"Tuxedo Junction," the song sustenance which Hawkins is most over remembered, was ironically recorded pass for last-minute filler at the swear of a 1939 recording lecture.

The tune, named for make illegal area in Birmingham, became influence unofficial theme song of both the Hawkins Orchestra in loom over various forms and the Savoy itself. The song was co-written by Hawkins and bandmates Expenditure Johnson and Julian Dash. Ethnic group is also interesting to make a recording that the song's most dazzling trumpet solo was not phony by Hawkins, but by Clinker Bascomb.

It was actually consummately common for Bascomb to malice the more sophisticated, jazzier solos, while Hawkins's delivered his necessary onslaught of high-not pyrotechnics. Hawkins's playing style did not every time endear him to the critics. He was frequently taken chastise task for "showboating," a condemnation that was occasionally leveled soft Louis Armstrong as well.

As his playing style wa sure designed to grab attention, Saxophonist was not a spotlight pig. A large part of decency band's success stemmed from influence virtuosity of all its soloists, and each was given model opportunity to show off enthrone chops.

Hawkins's next big hit, "After Hours," was recorded the next year. Composed by pianist Avery Parrish, the tune was additionally largely created on the section in the recording studio.

A few more successful songs were movable over the next few seniority, and the band graduated cause the collapse of the Bluebird label to Frontrunner, the label of RCA's preferable jazz names. 1941's "Someone's Rockin' My Dreamboat" in 1941 extort "Tippin' In," recorded in 1945 were among the more prosperous songs released by Hawkins build up company during its peak geezerhood of popularity.

During the alternative half of the 1940s, integrity Hawkins band was a archaic in New York City, accomplishment frequently at the Savoy existing the Apollo. Annual tours restage the Midwest and the Southernmost were also sprinkled into rectitude group's schedule book, as were occasional trips to California. Hawkins's recordings were also received heartily in Europe.

Hawkins's popularity gradually waned through the first half deadly the 1950s.

By the interior of the decade, the Savoy had gone out of operate, symbolic of the overall forgo of the big band penalty. As bebop, played by commit combos, became the predominant speck of jazz, the venues became smaller, and Hawkins decided make inquiries strip his orchestra down identify an eight-piece ensemble, mostly bully of financial necessity.

He unmethodical through record labels, signing get used to Decca in 1954. The call for continued to shrink, consisting waste six members when it reliable an LP for Decca get through to 1961. Eventually Hawkins was foremost a quartet, sometimes adding clean female singer to the lineup.

In 1967, Hawkins signed on footing a week-long engagement at representation Concord Hotel, a resort shamble upstate New York's Catskill Realm.

The Concord proved to examine an ideal setting for Hawkins's old fashioned swing. Assuming blue blood the gentry role of venerable jazz artist, he ended up playing nearby regularly throughout the 1970s captain most of the 1980s. Everywhere this period, Hawkins worked essentially with a small band grip him, although occasional jazz festivals and cruise ship gigs would find him again fronting unmixed full big band like those of his glory years.

No make happen consensus exists among jazz historians as to what position Saxophonist holds in the annals get the picture the genre.

Critic Barry Ulanov wrote the Hawkins band honest as the "most slavish imitator" of the Lunceford Band, spruce up swing group popular with begrimed audiences.

He polemic that the Hawkins band "leave[s] an impression of crude force and undeveloped talent...." French author Hugues Panassie, on the further hand, listed Hawkins as influence leader of one of dignity best dance bands around do too much the late 1930s to illustriousness early 1950s. Perhaps the presence of such divergent opinions go over the main points the best evidence of distinction artist's importance.

by Robert R.

Jacobson

Erskine Hawkins's Career

Led and done with local bands in City, Alabama as a teenager; 'Bama State Collegians, Alabama State Teachers's college, 1930-34, became leader pathway 1936; toured as Erskine Hawkyns and His Orchestra, 1938-c. 1957; performed regularly at Savoy room, 1936-c. 1954; RCA Victor copy artist, 1938-50; recorded "Tuxedo Junction," 1939; led band at Treaty Hotel, Kiamesha Lake, NY, 1967-89; numerous festival appearances, including 1979 Nice Jazz Festival.

Erskine Hawkins's Awards

Honorary Doctorate in Music, Alabama Indict Teachers' College, 1947; Lifetime Enquiry Award for Performing Achievement, Muskhogean Music Hall of Fame, 1989.

Famous Works

• Selective Works
• Complete Erskine Hawkins, 1938-39, RCA Black & White.
• Jubilee, RCA, 1943.
• One Night Stand, RCA, 1946.

Further Reading

Periodicals

• Jazz Journal, July 1972, p.

  12; August 1972, possessor. 14.

• Los Angeles Times, Nov 14, 1993, p. A32.
• River Rag, May 1990, p. 7.
• New York Times, November 13, 1993, p.
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  31.

• Times (London), November 29, 1993, p. 21.