Howard Robert "Bob" Hammer (born March 3, 1930 - December 26, 2021) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

pianist, composer and

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestra ...

Biography

Hammer was born in Indianapolis,

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

. He began performing in Michigan at age 15 before studying at

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...

and the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

. Hammer had familiarized himself with early jazz styles (his father had performed with territory bands during the 1930s), and while living in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, he performed with musicians such as

Red Allen Henry James "Red" Allen, Jr. (January 7, 1908 – April 17, 1967) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist whose playing has been claimed by Joachim-Ernst Berendt and others as the first to fully incorporate the innovations of Louis Arms ...

and Bud Freeman. During the early 1960s, he studied with composer

Henry Brant Henry Dreyfuss Brant (September 15, 1913 – April 26, 2008) was a Canadian-born American composer. An expert orchestrator with a flair for experimentation, many of Brant's works featured spatialization techniques. Biography Brant was born i ...

(alongside

Tom McIntosh Thomas S. "Tom" McIntosh (February 6, 1927 - July 26, 2017) was an American jazz trombonist, composer, arranger, and conductor. McIntosh was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the eldest of six siblings. He also had an elder half-sibling by his fat ...

and

Julian Priester Julian Priester (born June 29, 1935) is an American jazz trombonist and occasional euphoniumist. He is sometimes credited "Julian Priester Pepo Mtoto". He has played with Sun Ra, Max Roach, Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, and Herbie Hancock. Bio ...

). Hammer led a band with

Bob Wilber Robert Sage Wilber (March 15, 1928 – August 4, 2019) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, and band leader. Although his scope covers a wide range of jazz, Wilber was a dedicated advocate of classic styles, working throughout his car ...

(1955). He worked in the Sauter/Finnegan Orchestra, the

Roy Eldridge David Roy Eldridge (January 30, 1911 – February 26, 1989), nicknamed "Little Jazz", was an American jazz trumpeter. His sophisticated use of harmony, including the use of tritone substitutions, his virtuosic solos exhibiting a departure from ...

Quartet (1956) and with

Gene Krupa Eugene Bertram Krupa (January 15, 1909 – October 16, 1973), known as Gene Krupa, was an American jazz drummer, bandleader and composer who performed with energy and showmanship. His drum solo on Benny Goodman's 1937 recording of " Sing, Sing, ...

(1956/57). He was a member of

's band (1958–1962) and

Eddie Condon Albert Edwin Condon (November 16, 1905 – August 4, 1973) was an American jazz banjoist, guitarist, and bandleader. A leading figure in Chicago jazz, he also played piano and sang. Early years Condon was born in Goodland, Indiana, the son of ...

's (1959/60) band. At that time, he recorded with Charles Mingus (who called him his "Beethoven") and began to work as arranger for the bassist on '' Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus'', '' Town Hall Concert'' and the celebrated '' The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady''. In 1963, Hammer played with

Pee Wee Russell Charles Ellsworth "Pee Wee" Russell (March 27, 1906 – February 15, 1969), was an American jazz musician. Early in his career he played clarinet and saxophones, but he eventually focused solely on clarinet. With a highly individualistic and s ...

, Krupa, and Eldridge. In 1964, he was on tour with

Bobby Hackett Robert Leo Hackett (January 31, 1915 – June 7, 1976) was an American jazz musician who played trumpet, cornet, and guitar with the bands of Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Hackett was a featured soloist ...

. From 1965 to 1967, he worked as arranger for ''

The Merv Griffin Show ''The Merv Griffin Show'' is an American television talk show starring Merv Griffin. The series ran from October 1, 1962 to March 29, 1963 on NBC, May 10, 1965 to July 4, 1969 in first-run syndication, from August 18, 1969 to February 11, 197 ...

''. He recorded with

Jimmy Knepper James Minter Knepper (November 22, 1927 – June 14, 2003) was an American jazz trombonist. In addition to his own recordings as leader, Knepper performed and recorded with Charlie Barnet, Woody Herman, Claude Thornhill, Stan Kenton, Benny Goo ...

, Johnny Hartman,

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948–51), Duke ...

, and

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebra ...

. Between 1967 and 1982, he worked as a member of show bands in Las Vegas. After moving to Los Angeles in 1983, Hammer had an engagement with

Slide Hampton Locksley Wellington Hampton (April 21, 1932 – November 18, 2021) was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. As his nickname implies, Hampton's main instrument was slide trombone, but he also occasionally played tuba and flugelho ...

he worked as instructor for jazz improvisation at El Camino Community College and played in the

Jimmy Cleveland James Milton Cleveland (May 3, 1926 – August 23, 2008) was an American jazz trombonist born in Wartrace, Tennessee.

Octet. He also worked with

Barbara McNair Barbara Jean McNair (March 4, 1934 – February 4, 2007) was an American singer and theater, television, and film actress. McNair's career spanned over five decades in television, film, and stage. McNair's professional career began in music dur ...

, the

Tommy Newsom Thomas Penn Newsom (February 25, 1929 – April 28, 2007) was a saxophone player in the NBC Orchestra on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'', for which he later became assistant director. Newsom was frequently the band's substitute dir ...

Quartet, and the

MDA Labor Day Telethon The ''MDA Labor Day Telethon'' was an annual telethon held on (starting the night before and throughout) Labor Day in the United States to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). The Muscular Dystrophy Association was founded in ...

. In 2004, he recorded with

Floyd Standifer Floyd Standifer (1929–2007) was an American jazz musician who helped establish the jazz music scene in Seattle. He played tenor saxophone and trumpet, sang, and was bandleader of the Floyd Standifer Quartet. He was born in Wilmington, North Carol ...

's quintet. He also arranged dance charts for the Nicholas Brothers, Skip Cunningham, Chester Whitmore, Jacqueline Douget, Deborah Lysholm, and Tim J Hickey.

Discography

As leader

* ''Beatlejazz'' (ABC-Paramount, 1964)

As sideman

* Cozy Cole, ''A Cozy Conception of Carmen'' (Charlie Parker, 1962) * Johnny Hartman, ''

The Voice That Is! ''The Voice That Is!'' is an album by American jazz vocalist Johnny Hartman featuring performances recorded in 1964 for the Impulse! label.

'' (Impulse!, 1964) *

, ''

A Swinging Introduction to Jimmy Knepper ''A Swinging Introduction to Jimmy Knepper'' is an album led by trombonist Jimmy Knepper which was recorded in 1957 and originally released on the Bethlehem label.

'' (Bethlehem, 1957) *

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians an ...

, ''

A Modern Jazz Symposium of Music and Poetry ''A Modern Jazz Symposium of Music and Poetry'' is an album by the jazz bassist, composer, and band leader Charles Mingus, released by Bethlehem Records in mid-1959. In spite of the title, the album does not contain any poetry. "Scenes in the Cit ...

'' (Bethlehem, 1957)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammer, Bob 1930 births Living people Musicians from Indianapolis Michigan State University alumni American jazz pianists American male pianists American music arrangers 20th-century American pianists 21st-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians