Willard McDaniel (November 15, 1915 – December 13, 1961) 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 ...

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

singer and pianist. He was born in

Stamps Stamp or Stamps or Stamping may refer to: Official documents and related impressions * Postage stamp, used to indicate prepayment of fees for public mail * Ration stamp, indicating the right to rationed goods * Revenue stamp, used on documents to ...

, Arkansas. He started playing the piano at an early age. He lived in California from the mid-1930s, where he began playing in Hollywood with Roy Milton's group, later working as a

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

Specialty Records Specialty Records was an American record label founded in Los Angeles in 1945 by Art Rupe. It was known for rhythm and blues, gospel, and early rock and roll, and recorded artists such as Little Richard, Guitar Slim, Percy Mayfield, and Lloyd P ...

. He performed in a distinctive

stride piano Stride jazz piano, often shortened to stride, is a jazz piano style that arose from ragtime players. Prominent stride pianists include James P. Johnson, Willie "the Lion" Smith, Fats Waller, Luckey Roberts, and Mary Lou Williams. Techn ...

style that has been compared to

Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star ...

. McDaniel released most of his work during the 1950s. In 1958,

Crown Records Crown Records was a budget record label founded as a subsidiary of Modern Records in 1957. It has been the name of several different record labels, listed below. Discography Mono Stereo Other Crown Records * United Kingdom ** Crown Records w ...

issued his album ''88 a la Carte'', with McDaniel leading a jazz trio performing

standards Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object t ...

in an

easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was most popular during the 1950s to the 1970s. It is related to middle of the road (MOR) music and encompasses instrumental recordings of standards, hit s ...

style. He died in 1961 in Los Angeles at the age of 46. His work is also featured on other records, including ''

Singin' the Blues ''Singin' the Blues'' is the first LP album by American bluesman B.B. King, released in 1957 by the Bihari brothers on their Crown Records, Crown budget label. It is a compilation album whose songs were issued between 1951 and 1956 on singles by ...

'' and was a member of the band Gene Phillips & His Rhythm Aces. He contributed to films such as '' Young Man with a Horn'', '' Panic in the Streets'' and ''

The World in His Arms ''The World in His Arms'' is a 1952 American seafaring adventure film directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Gregory Peck, Ann Blyth and Anthony Quinn, with John McIntire, Carl Esmond, Andrea King, Eugenie Leontovich, Hans Conried, and Sig Ru ...

''. Compilations include ''100 Christmas Blues - Songs To Get You Through The Cold'' released in 2014, ''Blues 'N Boogie'' in 2012, and ''Specialty Legends of Boogie Woogie'' released in 1992.

Discography

* ''88 A La Carte'' (Crown, 1958) * "The Curse of an Aching Heart/My Sin" (Crown, 1954) (single) * "Ciri-Biri-Bin Boogie" (Specialty Records) (single)

References

1915 births 1961 deaths Musicians from Missouri American blues pianists American jazz pianists Stride pianists 20th-century American pianists {{jazz-pianist-stub