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 1-25 of 87 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Victor | BS-046832 | 10-in. | 2/5/1940 | Indian summer | Sidney Bechet ; New Orleans Feetwarmers | Jazz/dance quintet | instrumentalist, drums | |
Victor | BS-046833 | 10-in. | 2/5/1940 | One o'clock jump | Sidney Bechet ; New Orleans Feetwarmers | Jazz/dance quintet | instrumentalist, drums | |
Victor | BS-046834 | 10-in. | 2/5/1940 | Preachin' blues | Sidney Bechet ; New Orleans Feetwarmers | Jazz/dance quintet, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Victor | BS-046835 | 10-in. | 2/5/1940 | Sidney's blues | Sidney Bechet ; New Orleans Feetwarmers | Jazz/dance quintet | instrumentalist, drums | |
Victor | D6VB-2792 | 10-in. | 9/5/1946 | Epistrophy | 52nd Street Boys ; Kenny Clarke | Jazz/dance ensemble | instrumentalist, drums, composer, leader | |
Victor | D6VB-2795 | 10-in. | 9/5/1946 | Royal roost | 52nd Street Boys ; Kenny Clarke | Jazz/dance ensemble | instrumentalist, drums, leader, composer | |
Columbia | 28617 | 10-in. | 9/12/1940 | I'm all for you | Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 28618 | 10-in. | 9/12/1940 | I hear music | Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 28619 | 10-in. | 9/12/1940 | The same old story | Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 28620 | 10-in. | 9/12/1940 | Practice makes perfect | Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 29987 | 10-in. | 3/21/1941 | Let's do it | Eddie Heywood Orchestra ; Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 29988 | 10-in. | 3/21/1941 | Georgia on my mind | Eddie Heywood Orchestra ; Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 29989 | 10-in. | 3/21/1941 | Romance in the dark | Eddie Heywood Orchestra ; Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Columbia | 29990 | 10-in. | 3/21/1941 | All of me | Eddie Heywood Orchestra ; Billie Holiday | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | instrumentalist, drums | |
Atlantic | 157 | 10-in. | 10/25/1948 | Don't bring your troubles to me | Earl Coleman ; Linton Garner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Atlantic | 158 | 10-in. | 10/25/1948 | I hadn't anyone till you | Earl Coleman ; Linton Garner | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62217 | 10-in. | 5/25/1937 | Caravan | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62218 | 10-in. | 5/25/1937 | Edgar steps out | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62219 | 10-in. | 5/25/1937 | Laughing at life | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62220 | 10-in. | 5/25/1937 | Stomping at the Renny | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62450 | 10-in. | 7/27/1937 | Laughing at life | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62451 | 10-in. | 7/27/1937 | High, wide and handsome | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62452 | 10-in. | 7/27/1937 | Satan takes a holiday | Edgar Hayes Orchestra | instrumentalist, drums | ||
Decca | 62573 | 10-in. | 9/7/1937 | Love me or leave me | Edgar Hayes Quintet | instrumentalist, drums, vibraphone | ||
Decca | 62574 | 10-in. | 9/7/1937 | Blue skies | Edgar Hayes Quintet | instrumentalist, drums, vibraphone |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Clarke, Kenny," accessed November 7, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103158.
Clarke, Kenny. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 7, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/103158.
"Clarke, Kenny." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 7 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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