Tommy Madman Jones
Tommy "Madman" Jones (also Tommy "Mad Man" Jones , actually Thomas Douglas Jones , born October 19, 1922 in Chicago , † April 8, 1993 in St. Louis ) was an American tenor saxophonist , singer , band leader and producer of the Rhythm & Blues and Jazz .
Live and act
Jones played the saxophone when he was twelve and attended DuSable High School, albeit without playing in the school band, after temporarily losing interest in music. It was not until he was 22 years old that he began his musical career under the influence of Charlie Parker's music. Around 1945 he performed in Chicago with his trio Tommy Jones and His Flames of Joy .
Jones' first recordings were made in Los Angeles in 1945 with the singer Louise Tobin for the local record label Sterling; In 1946 he worked in Chicago with the recordings of the saxophonist Dick Davis (in a tenor battle with him and Eddie Chamblee). In the 1940s and 1950s, "Madman" Jones was an attraction in Chicago nightclubs with his own band. In addition, he played a few singles for local labels, in 1951 with Jimmy BB Robinson (piano), Israel Crosby (bass) and Jump Jackson (drums) four tracks by R&B singer Jack Cooley . In March 1952 Tommy Jones recorded with the blues musician Arbee Stidham for Checker Records ; 1957 followed another session with Arbee Stidham, in which Jones played the baritone saxophone (Sugarman Penigar was involved on the tenor saxophone). In order to record under his own name, he founded the record label Mad Records (later M&M Records ), for which he played a number of blues in the following years in changing line-ups (including with George Freeman , Fred Hopkins and Eldee Young ) up to the 80s - and R & B-oriented singles recorded such as “Hi Fi Apartment” and “Jess One Mo 'Time”, also Exotica such as “Snake Charmer”.
Jones moved to the Netherlands in the mid-1980s, where he toured several times with the organist Herbert Noord and also performed at jam sessions with Sean Bergin and Tobias Delius . In 1987 he played at the Lahnstein Blues Festival . In 1992 he returned to North America. Tom Lord lists only 18 recording sessions from 1945 to 1989.
Discographic notes
- Tommy Jones with the Apex All-Stars: Just Friends (Apex, 1959), with Quinn Wilson , Al Duncan , Lefty Bates , Floyd Morris
Web links
- The Mad and M&M Labels
- Tommy "Madman" Jones at Discogs (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael Rauhut, Reinhard Lorenz (ed.) I've had the blues a little longer: Traces of a music in Germany Berlin: Ch. Links 2008, p. 394
- ↑ Tom Lord: The Jazz Discography (online, accessed June 11, 2017)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Jones, Tommy Madman |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Jones, Thomas |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American jazz musician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 19, 1922 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Chicago |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 8, 1993 |
| Place of death | St. Louis |