Bobby Durham (February 3, 1937 – July 6, 2008) was an American jazz drummer.

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

/ref> Durham was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

and learned to play drums while a child. He played with The Orioles at age 16, and was in a

military band A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the ti ...

between 1956 and 1959. After his discharge, he played with King James and

Stan Hunter Stan or STAN may refer to: People * Stan (given name), a list of people with the given name ** Stan Laurel (1890–1965), English comic actor, part of duo Laurel and Hardy * Stan (surname), a Romanian surname * Stan! (born 1964), American author ...

. In 1960, he moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, where he played with

Lloyd Price Lloyd Price (March 9, 1933May 3, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter, record executive and bandleader, known as "Mr. Personality", after his 1959 million-selling hit, "Personality". His first recording, "Lawdy Miss Clawdy", was a hit for S ...

Wild Bill Davis Wild Bill Davis (November 24, 1918 – August 17, 1995) was the stage name of American jazz pianist, organist, and arranger William Strethen Davis. He is best known for his pioneering jazz electric organ recordings and for his tenure with t ...

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charle ...

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and th ...

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 ...

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Recording prolifically for Blue Note Records as both leader and sideman, Green performed in the hard bop, soul jazz, bebop, and Latin-tinged idioms ...

Sweets Edison Harry "Sweets" Edison (October 10, 1915 – July 27, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and a member of the Count Basie Orchestra. His most important contribution was as a Hollywood studio musician, whose muted trumpet can be heard ba ...

Tommy Flanagan Thomas Lee Flanagan (March 16, 1930 – November 16, 2001) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He grew up in Detroit, initially influenced by such pianists as Art Tatum, Teddy Wilson, and Nat King Cole, and then by bebop musicians. ...

Jimmy Rowles James George Hunter (August 19, 1918 – May 28, 1996), known professionally as Jimmy Rowles (sometimes spelled Jimmie Rowles), was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, and composer. As a bandleader and accompanist, he explored multiple styles in ...

, and the

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was ba ...

Orchestra, in which he played for five months. While working with Basie, he met

Al Grey Al Grey (June 6, 1925 – March 24, 2000) was an American jazz trombonist who was a member of the Count Basie orchestra. He was known for his plunger mute technique and wrote an instructional book in 1987 called ''Plunger Techniques''. Car ...

, and was a member of several of Grey's small ensembles. He accompanied

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, i ...

for more than a decade, and worked with

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, ...

in a trio setting. Durham also played in trios with organists such as Charles Earland and

Shirley Scott Shirley Scott (March 14, 1934 – March 10, 2002) was an American jazz organist. Her music was noted for its mixture of bebop, blues and gospel elements. She was known by the nickname "Queen of the Organ". Life and career Scott was born in Ph ...

, and there was a resurgence in interest in Durham's work during the acid jazz upswing in the 1990s.

/ref> Many of Durham's projects, both as sideman and as leader, came about because of his association with producer

Norman Granz Norman Granz (August 6, 1918 – November 22, 2001) was an American jazz record producer and concert promoter. He founded the record labels Clef, Norgran, Down Home, Verve, and Pablo. Granz was acknowledged as "the most successful impresa ...

, who used him in performances with Ella Fitzgerald,

Harry Edison Harry "Sweets" Edison (October 10, 1915 – July 27, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and a member of the Count Basie Orchestra. His most important contribution was as a Hollywood studio musician, whose muted trumpet can be heard backi ...

, Tommy Flanagan, and

Joe Pass Joe Pass (born Joseph Anthony Jacobi Passalaqua; January 13, 1929 – May 23, 1994) was an American jazz guitarist. Pass is well known for his work stemming from numerous collaborations with pianist Oscar Peterson and vocalist Ella Fitzgerald, an ...

. Durham led his own combos as well; he is noted for

scat singing In vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. In scat singing, the singer improvises melodies and rhythms using the voice as an instrument rather than a speaking medium. ...

along with his drum solos. Durham has also performed often with

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

musicians such as Frank Sinatra, James Brown,

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

, and

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown (music style), Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player ...

. He died of lung cancer in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

, Italy, aged 71.

Discography

As leader

* ''Bobby Durham Trio/Gerald Price'' 1979 * ''For Lovers Only'', 2001 * ''We Three Plus Friends'', featuring Massimo Faraò and Paolo Benedettini, 2001 * ''Domani's Blues'', 2004 * ''Christmas Jazz'', 2006

As sideman

With

Monty Alexander Montgomery Bernard "Monty" Alexander (born 6 June 1944) is a Jamaican jazz pianist. His playing has a Caribbean influence and bright swinging feeling, with a strong vocabulary of bebop jazz and blues rooted melodies. He was influenced by Lou ...

* ''We've Only Just Begun'' (

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) ;With

and

Johnny Hodges Cornelius "Johnny" Hodges (July 25, 1907 – May 11, 1970) was an American alto saxophonist, best known for solo work with Duke Ellington's big band. He played lead alto in the saxophone section for many years. Hodges was also featured on sopran ...

*'' Wild Bill Davis & Johnny Hodges in Atlantic City'' (RCA Victor, 1966) With Charles Earland *''

Boss Organ ''Boss Organ'' is an album by organist Charlie Earland which was recorded in 1966 and released on the Choice label in 1969.969 *'' Smokin''' (Muse, 1969/77

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*''

Mama Roots ''Mama Roots'' is an album by organist Charlie Earland which was recorded in 1969 and 1977 and released on the Muse label.977 Year 977 ( CMLXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * May – Boris II, dethroned emperor (''tsar'') of Bulgaria, and his brother Roman ...

With

*'' The Tommy Flanagan Tokyo Recital'' (Pablo, 1975) *'' Straight Ahead'' (Pablo, 1976) with

Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis Edward F. Davis (March 2, 1922 – November 3, 1986), known professionally as Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. It is unclear how he acquired the moniker "Lockjaw" (later shortened in "Jaws"): it is either said that ...

With

*''

Grey's Mood ''Grey's Mood'' is an album by trombonist Al Grey recorded in Paris at sessions in 1973 and 1975 and released on the French Black & Blue Records, Black and Blue label in 1979.979 *''

Struttin' and Shoutin' ''Struttin' and Shoutin is an album by trombonist Al Grey recorded in 1976 but not released on Columbia Records until 1983.

'' (Columbia, 1976 983 *''

The New Al Grey Quintet ''The New Al Grey Quintet'' is an album by trombonist Al Grey which was recorded and released on the Chiaroscuro label in 1988.Frankling, K.UPI Archives: Trombonist Al Grey and his musical sonsaccessed October 26, 2018 Reception The AllMusic rev ...

'' (Chiaroscuro, 1988) With Red Holloway * '' The Burner'' ( Prestige, 1963) With

Milt Jackson Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist, usually thought of as a bebop player, although he performed in several jazz idioms. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging sol ...

* ''Loose Walk'' ( Palcoscenico) With

Clifford Jordan Clifford Laconia Jordan (September 2, 1931 – March 27, 1993) was an American jazz tenor saxophone player. While in Chicago, he performed with Max Roach, Sonny Stitt, and some rhythm and blues groups. He moved to New York City in 1957, after ...

* '' Soul Fountain'' (

Vortex In fluid dynamics, a vortex ( : vortices or vortexes) is a region in a fluid in which the flow revolves around an axis line, which may be straight or curved. Vortices form in stirred fluids, and may be observed in smoke rings, whirlpools in t ...

, 1966 970 With

Jay McShann James Columbus "Jay" McShann (January 12, 1916 – December 7, 2006) was an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and bandleader. He led bands in Kansas City, Missouri, that included Charlie Parker, Bernard Anderson, Walter Brown, and ...

*''

Some Blues ''Some Blues'' is an album by jazz pianist Jay McShann recorded in 1990 and 1992 and released on the Chiaroscuro label in 1993.Shirley Scott Shirley Scott (March 14, 1934 – March 10, 2002) was an American jazz organist. Her music was noted for its mixture of bebop, blues and gospel elements. She was known by the nickname "Queen of the Organ". Life and career Scott was born in Ph ...

* ''

Mystical Lady ''Mystical Lady'' is an album by organist Shirley Scott recorded in 1971 and released on the Cadet label.Payne, DShirley Scott discographyaccessed July 4, 2012

'' (

Cadet A cadet is an officer trainee or candidate. The term is frequently used to refer to those training to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. Its meaning may vary between countries which can include youths in ...

, 1971) * ''Queen Talk: Live at the Left Bank'' (Cellar Live, 2023) With

* ''The Way I Really Play'' ( Pausa, 1968) * ''The Great Oscar Peterson on Prestige'' (Prestige, 1968) With

*'' Portraits of Duke Ellington'' (Pablo, 1974) With

* ''The New Al Grey Quintet'' (

Chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrast (vision), contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts ...

, 1988) * ''Live at the Floating Jazz Festival'' (Chiaroscuro, 1990) With

Jesse Green Jesse Green (born 1971) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and record producer. He has recorded three albums as a leader, all released by Chiaroscuro Records. Early life Green is the son of trombonist Urbie Green and vocalist Kat ...

* ''Lift Off'' (Chiaroscuro, 1990) With Shawnn Monteiro and Massimo Faraò Trio * ''Never Let Me Go'' (Azzurra Music, March 2001) With Waymon Reed * '' 46th and 8th'' ( Artists House, 1977 979

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Durham, Bobby 1937 births 2008 deaths American jazz drummers Jazz musicians from Philadelphia Duke Ellington Orchestra members 20th-century American drummers American male drummers American male jazz musicians Black & Blue Records artists Chiaroscuro Records artists 20th-century American male musicians Oscar Peterson Trio members