Alex Hill

Alexander "Alex" Hill (* 19 April 1906 in Little Rock , Arkansas ; † 1. February 1937 ) was an American jazz - pianist and arranger.

Life

Hill was considered a child prodigy at the piano, whose playing he learned from his mother. During his student years at Shorter College he met Alphonse Trent , for whom he worked as an arranger. He graduated in 1922 and then played in various territory bands , such as Terrence Holder's . From 1924 to 1926 he directed his own ensemble; In 1926 he worked at Speed ​​Webb ; In 1927 he was a member of Mutt Carey's Jeffersonians and Paul Howards Quality Serenaders .

In late 1927 he moved to Chicago and worked there as an arranger for the Melrose Music Publishing Company ; he also arranged for the Carroll Dickerson Orchestra. In 1928 he played with Jimmy Wade , then with Junie Cobb , Jimmie Noone , Jabbo Smith (1929) and Sammy Stewart (1930). In March 1929 he recorded the tracks "Tack Head Blues" and "Stompin 'em Down" under his own name.

During a tour with Stewart he came to New York City in 1930 , where he worked as arranger for Paul Whiteman , Benny Carter , Claude Hopkins , Andy Kirk , Ina Ray Hutton , the Mills Blue Rhythm Band and Duke Ellington . He also worked for Louis Armstrong's Savoy Ballroom Five ("Beau Koo Jack", 1928), Fats Waller , Eddie Condon , Mezz Mezzrow and Willie Bryant and as an arranger for the Mills Music Company . Together with Fats Waller he organized the show Hello 1931 in New York and was an accompanist for Adelaide Hall .

Hill then had his own formation in 1935, with which recordings were made (“Functionizin”, “Ain't It Nice”); but he broke up the group after appearing in the Savoy Ballroom when he fell ill with tuberculosis . He returned to his hometown of Little Rock and died there in 1937 at the age of 30.

According to the authors John Jörgensen and Erik Wiedemann Hill was considered one of the most talented arrangers of his time, but his career ended prematurely. Rex Harris and Brian Rust referred to him as one of the forgotten Barrelhouse piano-style pianists who, however, was highly regarded in Chicago in the 1920s and 1930s.

Discographic notes

• Alex Hill 1928–1934 ( Timeless Records ) with Albert Wynn , Jimmy Wade , Jimmie Noone , Junie Cobb , Eddie Condon and The Hokum Trio and eleven titles as band leader.

Web links

• Alex Hill at Allmusic

swell

• Richard Cook , Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings . 8th edition. Penguin, London 2006, ISBN 0-14-102327-9 .
• Rex Harris & Brian Rust : Recorded Jazz: A Critical Guide . London, Penguin Books, 1958.
• John Jörgensen, Erik Wiedemann Jazzlexikon , Munich, Mosaik, 1967