Erskine Butterfield

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Erskine Butterfield, Washington, DC, circa March 1942. Photograph by William P. Gottlieb

Erskine Butterfield (born February 9, 1913 in Syracuse (New York) , † July 11, 1961 in New York City ) was an American pianist , singer, arranger and songwriter in the field of boogie-woogie and swing .

Life

Erskine Butterfield, who was active from the 1930s to the 50s, is considered a protagonist of the cocktail piano style , according to Eugene Chadbourne . He began playing the piano in early childhood and grew up in Newark, New Jersey . In the 1930s he appeared on radio shows, such as on the local station WOR in New York, and played in Noble Sissle's orchestra. In 1937 the first recordings were made under his own name on the Variety label; In 1938 he moved to Decca Records , which published over forty pieces by him by 1942. Butterfield, who was referred to by the Chicago Defender as the singing Vagabond of the Keys , employed musicians of various skin colors in his band; his musicians included Jimmy Lytell (clarinet), Carmen Mastren (guitar) and Haig Stevens (bass). In 1939 Butterfield went to Joe Davis and his Beacon Records label, with whom he would work for a long time. In 1943 he was drafted into the army, but continued to work as a musician. In 1944 eight pieces were written for the Joe Davis label under the name Erskine Butterfield and his Blue Boys ; In 1945 he also recorded a V-disc .

Butterfield's songs such as “Lovin 'Man” and “Because Of You” were also used as film scores. After the end of the war he founded a trio with which he toured regularly, but had little success with it. At the end of the 1940s, recordings were made for smaller labels; after a long break he did not take up a few pieces for Joe Davis until 1956. His group Butterfield and his Blue Boys included musicians such as Sam "The Man" Taylor and Panama Francis . Butterfield appeared in shows with Nat King Cole , Tony Martin and Jo Stafford in the years before his death in July 1961 .

Discographic notes

  • Erskine Butterfield and his Blue Boys - Tuesday at Ten (Circle Records, 1941)
  • 1944–1956 / Part-Time Boogie (Harlequin, 1944 and 1956)

literature

  • Bruce Bastin: Liner Notes for Erskine Butterfield, 1944–1957 / Part-Time Boogie and Liner Notes from the album (1957) "Piano Cocktail". Harlequin HQ 2050 (1986).
  • Frank Driggs : Liner Notes for Erskine Butterfield and His Blue Boys, Tuesday at Ten , (Circle Records, 1983).

swell

  1. ↑ Dan DelFiorentino, Big Bands Database
  2. ↑ Dan DelFiorentino, Big Bands Database

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Butterfield, Erskine
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American jazz pianist, arranger and songwriter
DATE OF BIRTH February 9, 1913
PLACE OF BIRTH Syracuse (New York)
DATE OF DEATH July 11, 1961
Place of death New York City