Philly Joe Jones
Philly Joe Jones was born with the name Joseph Rudolph Jones in the city of Philadelphia on July 15, 1923. His mother, a piano teacher taught him the basics in music. In his formative years he also studied the drums with drummers the likes of Cozy Cole and Charles Wilcoxon, receiving valuable advise from Art Blakey and a then younger Max Roach. He established himself as Philly Joe Jones, from the name of the city of his birth, to distinguish himself from the mainstay Count Basie’s drummer, Jo Jones. But just as Jo Jones established the rhythm section standard in the 30’s and 40’s, Philly Joe would do the same in the 50’s.
He began playing with the rhythm and blues bands in the 40’s, establishing himself on the New York jazz scene. The first group that he recorded with was co-led by Johnny Griffin and Joe Morris, along with Matthew Gee on trombone and Elmo Hope on piano and Percy Heath. For a time they played standard Monk and pieces of Bud Powell, but reverted back to playing the blues for the sake of money. Philly, unhappy with the music, split with the group and joined the already established Ben Webster, Lee Konitz, Zoot Sims, Tony Scott, and Tadd Dameron. He worked in Philadelphia as the local drummer for stars such as Dexter Gordon and Fats Navarro. He was in the army for a short time and len left in 1945 taking a job up as a streetcar driver. He was supposedly fired from the job because he would stop the steetcar with people in it and go in to play a set at the jazz clubs on the way, sometimes forgetting about the people in the car.
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Reassessing
Album Review
- The Complete Recordings by Chris May
- The Complete Hank Mobley Blue Note Sessions 1963-70 by C. Andrew Hovan
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Profile
First Time I Saw
Album Review
- Drum Songs by C. Michael Bailey
- Philly Mignon by Derek Taylor
July 15, 2020
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2019
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2018
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2017
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2016
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2015
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2014
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2013
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2012
Jazz Musician of the Day: Philly Joe Jones
July 15, 2011
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