Connie Kay
Conrad Henry Kirnon (April 27, 1927 – November 30, 1994) known professionally as Connie Kay, was an American jazz and R&B drummer, who was a member of the Modern Jazz Quartet. Self-taught on drums, he began performing in Los Angeles in the mid-1940s. His drumming is recorded in The Hunt, the recording of a famous Los Angeles jam session featuring the dueling tenors of Dexter Gordon and Wardell Gray on July 6, 1947. He recorded with Lester Young's quintet from 1949 to 1955 and with Stan Getz, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis. Kay did R&B sessions for Atlantic Records in the early to mid-1950s, and he was featured on hit records such as Shake, Rattle and Roll by Big Joe Turner and Ruth Brown's (Mama) He Treats Your Daughter Mean. Kay joined the Modern Jazz Quartet in 1955, replacing original drummer Kenny Clarke. He remained through the group's dissolution in 1974 and occasional reunions into the 1990s. In addition to his MJQ compatriots, he had an enduring partnership with cool jazz altoist Paul Desmond through the first half of the 1960s. He played drums on several of Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison's albums: Astral Weeks, one song on Saint Dominic's Preview, and four songs on Tupelo Honey. Kay was known for incorporating percussion instruments alongside his drum kit, such as timpani, small cymbals, triangle, bell tree, and darbukas, the latter referred to as "exotic-looking" drums in a 2006 article. In 1989, Kay received an honorary doctorate of music from Berklee College of Music. Kay had a stroke in 1992, but recovered enough to resume performing. He died of cardiac arrest in Manhattan in 1994 at the age of 67. He also played with Benny Goodman' Orchestra at the Carnegie Hall 40th. Anniversary Concert on January 17, 1978. Kay never recorded as a session leader. |
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 49 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlantic | 572 | 10-in. | 2/27/1951 | I've got you under my skin | Frank "Floorshow" Culley | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 573 | 10-in. | 2/27/1951 | Culley-flower | Frank "Floorshow" Culley | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 753 | 10-in. | 12/19/1951 | Middle of the night | The Clovers | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 754 | 10-in. | 12/19/1951 | Comin' on | The Clovers | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 755 | 10-in. | 12/19/1951 | One mint julep | The Clovers | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 786 | 10-in. | 1/20/1952 | I'll never stop loving you | Joe Turner ; Harry Van Walls | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 787 | 10-in. | 1/20/1952 | Sweet sixteen | Joe Turner ; Harry Van Walls | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 791 | 10-in. | 2/7/1952 | Alarm clock boogie | Jesse Stone Orchestra ; Odelle Turner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 792 | 10-in. | 2/7/1952 | Draggin' hours | Jesse Stone Orchestra ; Odelle Turner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 803 | 10-in. | 2/13/1952 | Be anything (but be mine) | Ruth Brown | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 804 | 10-in. | 2/13/1952 | 5-10-15 hours | Ruth Brown | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 960 | 10-in. | 12/19/1952 | (Mama) he treats your daughter mean | Ruth Brown | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1017 | 10-in. | 3/4/1953 | Good lovin' | The Clovers | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1018 | 10-in. | 3/4/1953 | I confess | The Clovers | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1065 | 10-in. | 5/17/1953 | It should have been me | Mickey Baker ; Ray Charles ; Connie Kay ; Lloyd Trotman | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1066 | 10-in. | 5/17/1953 | Losing hand | Ray Charles | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1067 | 10-in. | 5/17/1953 | Heartbreaker | Ray Charles | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1068 | 10-in. | 5/17/1953 | Sinner's prayer | Ray Charles | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1069 | 10-in. | 5/17/1953 | Mess around | Ray Charles | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1070 | 10-in. | 5/17/1953 | Funny (but i still love you) | Ray Charles | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1109 | 10-in. | 8/18/1953 | Feelin' sad | Ray Charles | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1209 | 10-in. | 2/15/1954 | Shake, rattle and roll | Blues Kings (Joe Turner's)(Musical group) | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1212 | 10-in. | 2/5/1954 | Well all right | Blues Kings ; Joe Turner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1315 | 10-in. | 8/26/1954 | All righty oh sweetie | The Clovers | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 1332 | 10-in. | 10/20/1954 | Tomorrow night | LaVern Baker ; The Gliders | instrumentalist, drums |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Kay, Connie," accessed November 7, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/324826.
Kay, Connie. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 7, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/324826.
"Kay, Connie." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 7 November 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Connie Kay
Discogs: Connie Kay
Allmusic: Connie Kay
Grove: Connie Kay
IMDb: Connie Kay
Britannica: Connie Kay
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Kay, Connie - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n82245227
Wikidata: Connie Kay - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q431520
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/76500549
MusicBrainz: Connie Kay - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/4f1dc71a-d679-4d5d-b590-a38456b1b48e
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