Kenny Clarke
Kenneth Clarke Spearman (January 9, 1914 – January 26, 1985), nicknamed Klook, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A major innovator of the bebop style of drumming, he pioneered the use of the ride cymbal to keep time rather than the hi-hat, along with the use of the bass drum for irregular accents ("dropping bombs"). Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was orphaned at the age of about five and began playing the drums when he was eight or nine on the urging of a teacher at his orphanage. Turning professional in 1931 at the age of seventeen, he moved to New York City in 1935 when he began to establish his drumming style and reputation. As the house drummer at Minton's Playhouse in the early 1940s, he participated in the after-hours jams that led to the birth of bebop. After military service in the US and Europe between 1943 and 1946, he returned to New York, but from 1948 to 1951 he was mostly based in Paris. He stayed in New York between 1951 and 1956, performing with the Modern Jazz Quartet and playing on early Miles Davis recordings. He then moved permanently to Paris, where he performed and recorded with European and visiting American musicians and co-led the Kenny Clarke/Francy Boland Big Band between 1961 and 1972. He continued to perform and record until the month before he died of a heart attack in January 1985. |
Birth and Death Data: Born January 9, 1914 (Pittsburgh), Died January 26, 1985 (Montreuil)
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1937 - 1956
Roles Represented in DAHR: drums, vibraphone, leader, composer
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 76-87 of 87 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Decca | 88142 | 6/14/1955 | Something to live for-1 | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88143 | 6/14/1955 | Love is here to stay | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88144 | 6/14/1955 | I can't get started | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88145 | 6/14/1955 | This will make you laugh | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88146 | 6/14/1955 | Suppertime-2 | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88147 | 6/16/1955 | My one and only love | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88148 | 6/16/1955 | Yardbird suite | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88149 | 6/16/1955 | Give me the simple life | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88150 | 6/16/1955 | I'll remember April | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 88151 | 6/16/1955 | You took advantage of me | Carmen McRae | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 89232 | 1/24/1956 | Spring it was | Mat Mathews Quintet | instrumentalist, drums | |||
Decca | 107472 | 10/20/1949 | My man (Mon homme) | Sidney Bechet | instrumentalist, drums |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Clarke, Kenny," accessed November 22, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103158.
Clarke, Kenny. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 22, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103158.
"Clarke, Kenny." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 22 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Kenny Clarke
Discogs: Kenny Clarke
Allmusic: Kenny Clarke
Grove: Kenny Clarke
IMDb: Kenny Clarke
Britannica: Kenny Clarke
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Clarke, Kenny, 1914-1985 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n81055676
Wikidata: Kenny Clarke - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q346779
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/116335684
MusicBrainz: Kenny Clarke - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/48eaf8a1-6e44-488c-a91a-736867f1ba50
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