William C. "Buster" Bailey (July 19, 1902 – April 12, 1967) was an American jazz clarinetist.

Career history

Early career

Buster Bailey was taught clarinet by classical teacher Franz Schoepp, who also taught

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader, known as the "King of Swing". His orchestra did well commercially. From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing bi ...

. Bailey gained his start with W.C. Handy's Orchestra in 1917, when he was just fifteen years old. After two years of touring with Handy, Bailey quit the orchestra while the band was in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. In 1919, Bailey joined Erskine Tate's Vendome Orchestra and remained with Tate until 1923 when he joined up with Joe "King" Oliver. As a member of King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, Bailey met and became friends with

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

, who was also a member of the band at that time. In 1924, Armstrong left King Oliver's Jazz Band to join Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra in New York. Within a month, Armstrong extended an invitation for Buster Bailey to join him as a member of Henderson's band. Bailey accepted and moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Mid-career

In New York during the late 1920s, Buster Bailey became a highly respected

sideman A sideman is a professional musician who is hired to perform live with a solo artist, or with a group in which they are not a regular band member. The term is usually used to describe musicians that play with jazz or rock artists, whether solo o ...

with

Perry Bradford Perry Bradford (February 14, 1893, Montgomery, Alabama – April 20, 1970, New York City) was an African American composer, songwriter, and vaudeville performer. His most notable songs included "Crazy Blues," "That Thing Called Love," and "You C ...

and others, and appeared on numerous recordings playing both the clarinet and the

soprano saxophone The soprano saxophone is a small, high-pitched member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented in the 1840s by Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax. Built in B♭ an octave above the tenor saxophone (or rarely, slightly small ...

. Bailey performed on a number of Clarence Williams recordings. In 1927, he left Fletcher Henderson and undertook a tour of Europe with Noble Sissle's Orchestra. After his return, Bailey performed with several other jazz musicians, including Edgar Hayes and Dave Nelson. He rejoined Sissle's orchestra in 1931 and continued with the group through 1933. In 1934, Bailey briefly returned to Fletcher Henderson, but by the end of the year he had settled down as a member of the John Kirby Band. Bailey remained a member of Kirby's band until 1946, but that did not stop him from performing with other artists. In 1934 and 1935, Bailey was playing with the Mills Blue Rhythm Band and, in 1937, he was a session player for Midge Williams and Her Jazz Jesters. He also recorded music during this time as Buster Bailey and His Rhythm Busters.

Later career

In 1946, Buster Bailey led his own band, but his group lasted for only the year. In 1947, he joined Wilbur de Paris and performed with him until 1949. During the early 1950s, Bailey was with Big Chief Russell Moore, but for most of the decade Bailey played with

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

. From 1961 to 1963, he performed with Wild Bill Davison. Bailey was with the Saints And Sinners from 1963 to 1964, and in 1965 he rejoined Armstrong and became a member of Louis Armstrong and His All-Stars. Buster Bailey died in April 1967 of a heart attack. He was living in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York, at the time.

Screen appearances

Buster Bailey appeared on film three times during his career. The first was in a film entitled '' That's the Spirit'' (1933) in which he played himself as a band member. The second was as an uncredited clarinetist in '' Sepia Cinderella'' (1947) as part of the John Kirby Sextet. His final film appearance was with Louis Armstrong in '' When the Boys Meet the Girls'' (1965), again as a musician. He also appeared in 1958 in the DuMont TV series '' Jazz Party'' and in 1961 on the TV program '' The DuPont Show of the Week'' in an episode entitled "America's Music - Chicago and All That Jazz".

Discography

As leader

* '' All About Memphis'' (Felsted, 1958) * ''1925–1940'' (Classics)

As sideman

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

, '' Red Allen, Kid Ory & Jack Teagarden at Newport'' (Verve, 1957) * Red Allen, ''Ride, Red, Ride in Hi-Fi'' (RCA Victor, 1957) * Red Allen, ''Red Allen Plays King Oliver'' (Verve, 1961) *

Mildred Bailey Mildred Bailey (born Mildred Rinker; February 27, 1907 – December 12, 1951) was a Native American jazz singer during the 1930s, known as "The Queen of Swing", "The Rockin' Chair Lady", and "Mrs. Swing". She recorded the songs " For Sentime ...

, ''Her Greatest Performances 1929–1946'' (Columbia, 1962) *

Eubie Blake James Hubert "Eubie" Blake (February 7, 1887 – February 12, 1983) was an American pianist and composer of ragtime, jazz, and popular music. Blake began his career in 1912, and during World War I he worked in partnership with the singer, drum ...

, ''The Marches I Played On the Old Ragtime Piano'' (20th Fox, 1960) * Wild Bill Davison, ''Swingin'' (Dixie Bear, 1962) *

Vic Dickenson Victor Dickenson (August 6, 1906 – November 16, 1984) was an American jazz trombonist. His career began in the 1920s and continued through musical partnerships with Count Basie (1940–41), Sidney Bechet (1941), and Earl Hines. Life and car ...

& Joe Thomas, ''Mainstream'' (Atlantic, 1958) * Bobby Donaldson, ''Dixieland New York'' (World Wide, 1958) * Bobby Donaldson, ''Dixieland Jazz Party'' (Savoy, 1959) * Leonard Gaskin, ''At the Jazz Band Ball'' (Prestige Swingville, 1962) * Ronnie Gilbert, ''In Hi-Fi: The Legend of Bessie Smith'' (RCA Victor,, 1958) *

Jackie Gleason Herbert John Gleason (born Herbert Walton Gleason Jr.; February 26, 1916June 24, 1987), known as Jackie Gleason, was an American comedian, actor, writer, and composer also known as "The Great One". He developed a style and characters from growin ...

, ''Jackie Gleason Presents Lazy Lively Love'' (Capitol, 1960) * Juanita Hall, ''The Original Bloody Mary Sings the Blues'' (Counterpoint, 1958) *

Fletcher Henderson James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson (December 18, 1897 – December 29, 1952) was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music. He was one of the most prolific black musical ...

, ''The Big Reunion'' (Jazztone, 1958) * Fletcher Henderson, ''Swing's the Thing 1931–1934'' (Decca, 1961) *

Claude Hopkins Claude Driskett Hopkins (August 24, 1903 – February 19, 1984) was an American jazz stride pianist and bandleader. Biography Claude Hopkins was born in Alexandria, Virginia, United States. Historians differ in respect of the actual date of his ...

, ''Music of the Early Jazz Dances'' (20th Fox, 1958) *

Alberta Hunter Alberta Hunter (April 1, 1895 – October 17, 1984) was an American jazz and blues singer and songwriter from the early 1920s to the late 1950s. After twenty years of working as a nurse, Hunter resumed her singing career in 1977. Early life Hu ...

& Lucille Hegamin & Victoria Spivey, ''Songs We Taught Your Mother'' (Prestige Bluesville, 1962) * Henry Jerome, ''Strings in Dixieland'' (Decca, 1962) *

Odetta Odetta Holmes (December 31, 1930 – December 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and s ...

, ''Sometimes I Feel Like Cryin'' (RCA Victor, 1962) *

Jimmy Rushing James Andrew Rushing (August 26, 1901 – June 8, 1972) was an American singer and pianist from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948. Rushing was known as " Mr. Five by ...

, ''Bessie Clara Mamie & Trixie'' (Columbia, 1961) * Clarence Williams, ''1935'' (Almac, 1960)

Filmography

Resources

* Kernfeld, Barry, ed. ''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'', vol. 1. London: Macmillan Publishers, Ltd., 2002. * Larkin, Colin, ed. ''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', vol. 1. London: Macmillan Reference, Ltd., 1998. * Panassie-Gautier, ''Dictionnaire du Jazz'', 1972

References

External links

Buster Bailey
Red Hot Jazz Archive
Buster Bailey recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Buster 1902 births 1967 deaths African-American woodwind musicians American jazz clarinetists American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists African-American jazz musicians 20th-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from Tennessee 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Mills Blue Rhythm Band members Saints & Sinners (jazz band) members 20th-century African-American musicians