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Erroll Garner
Birth name	Erroll Louis Garner
Born	June 15, 1921(1921-06-15) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Died	January 2, 1977 (aged 55)
Genre(s)	Jazz Piano Jazz
Occupation(s)	Composer
Instrument(s)	Piano
Years active	1944 - 1974
Label(s)	Mercury Records Columbia Records Verve Records Blue Note Records London Records

Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 – January 2, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and composer whose distinctive and melodic style brought him both popular acclaim and the admiration of peers. Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... is the 166th day of the year (167th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Pittsburgh redirects here. ... is the 2nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Cover from album by Bud Powell. ... For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making music. ... A short grand piano, with the lid up. ... In the music industry, a record label can be a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... Mercury Records is a record label currently headquartered in the UK, and is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. ... Columbia Records is the oldest brand name in recorded sound, dating back to 1888, and was the first record company to produce pre-recorded records as opposed to blank cylinders. ... Verve Records is an American Jazz record label, founded by Norman Granz in 1956, which absorbed the catalogues of his earlier labels: Norgran Records and Clef Records (founded 1953). ... Blue Note Records is a jazz record label, established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff. ... London Records is a record label headquartered in the United Kingdom, originally marketing records in the United States, Canada and Latin America from 1947 through the 1980s. ... is the 166th day of the year (167th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... is the 2nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... For other uses, see Jazz (disambiguation). ... A pianist is a person who plays the piano. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ...

Life and career

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1921, Erroll began playing piano at the age of 3. He attended George Westinghouse High School (as did Billy Strayhorn and Ahmad Jamal). Garner was self-taught and remained an "ear player" all his life, having never learned to read music. Pittsburgh redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... Westinghouse High School can refer to: George Westinghouse High School, Pittsburgh Public Schools, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania George Westinghouse Information Technology High School, New York City Department of Education, Brooklyn, New York Westinghouse High School, Chicago Public Schools, Chicago, Illinois Category: ... Billy Strayhorn, photographed by Carl Van Vechten on 14. ... Ahmad Jamal (born on July 2, 1930)[1] is a noted American jazz pianist. ...

At the age of 7, Garner began appearing on radio station KDKA in Pittsburgh with a group called the Candy Kids. By the age of 11, he was playing on the Allegheny riverboats. At age 16 in 1937 he joined local saxophonist Leroy Brown. KDKA is the callsign of two broadcast stations in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA: KDKA AM 1020, the first commercial station in the U.S. KDKA-TV, channel 2 (DTV 25) KDKA-FM 92. ... City nickname: The Steel City Location in the state of Pennsylvania Founded 1758 Mayor Tom Murphy (Dem) Area  - Total  - Water 151. ... Allegheny River watershed Much of the area through which the Allegheny River flows consists of hilly woodlands. ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This is from a video clip of game footage taken by an unknown source from World of Warcraft (a Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game or MMORPG). ...

He played locally in the shadow of his older pianist brother Linton Garner and moved to New York in 1944. He briefly worked with the bassist Slam Stewart, and though not a bebop musician per se, in 1947 played with Charlie Parker on the famous Cool Blues session. Linton Garner (March 25, 1915 in Greensboro, North Carolina – March 6, 2003 in Vancouver) was a jazz pianist. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Slam Stewart Leroy Elliott Slam Stewart (September 21, 1914-December 10, 1987) was an African-American jazz bassist whose trademark style was his ability to bow the bass and simultaneously hum an octave apart. ... This article is about the genre of music, for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character see Bebop and Rocksteady. ... For other persons of the same name, see Charles Parker. ...

Short in stature, Garner was reputed to perform sitting on a Manhattan telephone directory. Films from the early to mid 60's do show him seated on something resembling this. He was also known for his occasional vocalizations while playing, which can be heard on many of his recordings. He is generally credited for having bridged the gap for jazz musicians between night clubs and the concert hall. This article is about the borough of New York City. ... Moscow phone book, 1930. ...

Garner's ear and technique owed as much to practice as to a natural gift. His distinctive style could swing like no other, but some of his best recordings are ballads, such as his best-known composition, "Misty"'. Although it rapidly became a standard with singers -- and was famously featured in Clint Eastwood's film Play Misty for Me (1971) -- "Misty" was never favored by fellow instrumentalists. This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Misty is a jazz standard written in 1954 by the pianist Errol Garner. ... For other uses, see Clint Eastwood (disambiguation). ... Play Misty for Me is a 1971 thriller film, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. ...

Garner may have been inspired by the example of Earl Hines, a fellow Pittsburgh resident who was 18 years his senior. There were resemblances in their elastic approach to timing and the use of the right-hand octaves, however, Errol's style was unique and had neither obvious forerunners nor competent imitators. Just the same, more amateur players have attempted to imitate him than any other pianist in jazz history. A key factor in Garner's sound was the independence of his springy but rock-steady left hand from the seemingly wayward melodies of the right. His playing often started with a strange mixture of notes that bore no resemblance to any musical composition but gave his audience a sense of excitement from not knowing which number he was about to perform. Whether in ultra slow ballads or rampant up-tempo improvisation, this never failed to convey a humorous and titilating attitude to both the material at hand and the audience. Earl Kenneth Hines, universally known as Earl Fatha Hines, (28 December 1903[1] Duquesne, Pennsylvania – 22 April 1983 in Oakland, California) was one of the most important pianists in the history of jazz. ...

Errol was a jazz musician through and through, his popular appeal arising directly from his playing. It was achieved without the aid of jocular vocals or ingratiating announcements, in the manner of Louis Armstrong or Fats Waller (the only comparable figures in terms of earning universal affection), and it seems equally unlikely that he tailored his music to the demands of success. He merely found the way to people's hearts and never lost it. Louis[1] Armstrong[2] (4 August 1901[3] – July 6, 1971), nicknamed Satchmo[4] and Pops, was an American jazz musician. ... Fats Waller (born Thomas Wright Waller on May 21, 1904, died December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer and comedic entertainer. ...

Garner had established himself an international reputation, and from that point until his death on January 2, 1977, he made many tours both at home and abroad, and produced a huge volume of recorded work.

Garner is buried in Pittsburgh's Homewood Cemetery. Homewood Cemetery is an historic burial ground in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. ...

Works

His record recording career started out in the late 1940s when several 7" EP records were made with tracks such as 'Fine and Dandy' and 'Sweet 'n' lovely'. Among his most popular work is the 1955 recording, Concert by the Sea, made in Carmel, California, with Eddie Calhoun on bass and Denzil Best on drums. Ironically, it was produced using relatively primitive sound equipment, yet Erroll's inventiveness and swing get the point across in each cut. Other notable works include 1951's Long Ago and Far Away and 1974's Magician, both of which see Erroll perform a number of classic standards in his own style. Often the trio was expanded to add Latin percussion, usually a conga, with electric results. Concert by the Sea is an album by Erroll Garner. ... Carmel-by-the-Sea is a city located in Monterey County, California. ...

In 1964 Garner made a two consecutive rare appearances in the UK on the BBC music series entitled Jazz 625 (625 referring to the new high quality 625 line format, as opposed to the old 405 line screen) being broadcast by the then new television channel BBC 2. The programme was hosted by Steve Race, who introduced Garner's trio with Eddie Calhoun on bass and Kelly Martin on drums. While working the keyboard hard, Garner had perspiration streaming down his face as the programme made close shots of his hands. For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... BBC Two (or BBC2 as it was formerly styled) was the second UK television station to be aired by the BBC. History The channel was scheduled to begin at 7:20pm on April 20, 1964 and show an evening of light entertainment, starting with the comedy show The Alberts and... Steve Race, OBE (born April 1, 1921), is a British composer, musician and radio and television presenter. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...

What makes Erroll's playing easy to recognize is his trademark introductions, which seem to make no sense until breaking dramatically into his exposition of the tune he will play, and the guitar strumming sound of his left hand, playing crotchet accompaniment to his rich sounding right hand. He places his chords and octaves on syncopated beats that swing very hard and can be used to build excellent tension, such as between phrases. The approach also suggests he was influenced by the iconic rhythm guitar work of Count Basie's long time guitarist, Freddie Green. But discerning listeners could find that while his even four left hand was a fixture, it was far from being the only rhythmic approach he took to playing. William Count Basie (August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Samples

• of "Laura" by Erroll Garner

Erroll bridged the gap between stride and straight ahead styles. Often identified as a stride player, his right hand had the trappings of modernity, elements of Cole and Wilson delineations...He was one of our greatest anomalies, with hands barely reaching an octave, he came to define a media filled with technical prowess on his own terms. His style might best be described as orchestral as his creations often maintained the energy and diversity of an entire band...held up on a foundation of unka chunka.

External links

• Fan Site
• Errol Garner at Allmusic
• Erroll Garner's Photo & Gravesite