Edwin Swayze or Swayzee (June 13, 1906 – January 31, 1935) 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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

trumpeter and composer. Swayze grew up in

Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

, and played with Alphonso Trent, Art Sims, Eugene Cook, Alex Hill,

Jelly Roll Morton Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe ( Lemott, later Morton; c. September 20, 1890 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American blues and jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer of Louisiana Creole descent. Morton was jazz ...

, and Sammie Lewis early in his career. He 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 ...

late in the 1920s, where he continued to work with Morton, before joining

Lew Leslie Lew Leslie (born Lewis Lessinsky; April 15, 1888 – March 10, 1963) was a American Jews, Jewish American writer and producer of Broadway theatre, Broadway shows. Leslie got his start in show business in vaudeville in his early twenties. Al ...

's ''Blackbirds'' revue for a tour of Europe. After the show's run he remained in Europe for a time, playing with

Herb Flemming Herb Flemming (April 5, 1898 – October 3, 1976) was an American jazz trombonist and vocalist who played extensively in Europe. Early life Flemming was born Nicolaiih El-Michelle, and was of North African descent. Flemming studied music an ...

's International Rhythm Aces and the Plantation Band, which he led for a spell in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. Early in the 1930s he worked with

Chick Webb William Henry "Chick" Webb (February 10, 1905 – June 16, 1939) was an American jazz and swing music drummer and band leader. Early life Webb was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to William H. and Marie Webb. The year of his birth is disputed. The ...

and

Sam Wooding Samuel David Wooding (17 June 1895–1 August 1985) was an American jazz pianist, arranger and bandleader living and performing in Europe and the United States. Career Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, between 1921 and 19 ...

before joining

Cab Calloway Cabell "Cab" Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American jazz singer and bandleader. He was a regular performer at the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he became a popular vocalist of the Swing music, swing era. His niche ...

's orchestra in 1932. He wrote several tunes for Calloway, including "Call of the Jitterbug", "Father's Got His Glasses On", and "Good Sauce from the Gravy Bowl". Swayze died while on tour with Calloway in 1935.

References

Eugene Chadbourne Eugene Chadbourne (born January 4, 1954) is an American banjoist, guitarist and music critic. Life and career Chadbourne was born in Mount Vernon, New York, Mount Vernon, New York, but grew up in Boulder, Colorado. He started playing guitar wh ...

, Edwin Swayzeat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

1906 births 1935 deaths American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters 20th-century American trumpeters Jazz musicians from Arkansas 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians The Cab Calloway Orchestra members {{US-musician-stub