Song:Lady Be Good
Album Dicky Wells In Paris
Dicky Wells was best known as the long time trombonist for The Count Basie Orchestra. But before that, he made some killer recordings in Paris featuring legendary guitarist Django Reinhardt. He was born June 10, 1907 in Centreville, TN. He moved to New York in 1926 and played with Cecil Scott, Fletcher Henderson and Benny Carter among others. While he was on tour in Europe, he recorded in Paris in 1937. His main collaborator on these recordings was trumpeter Bill Coleman. But these recordings are a big deal now because they feature a pre-fame Django Reinhardt on guitar. So his fans will want these recordings. Other musicians include Sam Allen on piano, Bill Beason on drums and Dick Fullbright on bass. These recordings are not available on CD but you can get them on MP3. Of course we all know that Reinhardt would soon become a guitar legend. For the most part, Bill Coleman remained in Europe for most of his career. But Dicky Wells returned to New York in 1938 and was the featured trombonist for The Count Basie Orchestra until 1950. Wells suffered a beating later on that affected his memory. So in the 60s he wasn't the same musician that he was earlier in his career. Very similar to what happened to Bud Powell. Alcoholism ended Wells' days in the music business and he died on Nov. 12, 1985 at age 78. Don't overlook these vintage jazz recordings. Here's a video of Lady Be Good by Dicky Wells.
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