Slim Gaillard

Slim Gaillard

Source: Vocal Group Harmony

Born on 9 January 1911, guitarist and pianist, Slim Gaillard, began life's strange trip in 1916 in Santa Clara, Cuba. Though some have him born in the United States, his mother was Afro-Cuban married to a German-Jewish ship steward. At age twelve he accompanied his father on a world tour, missing the ship when it departed from a stop in Crete. He scrambled variously in the Mediterranean until about age fifteen he boarded a ship that he thought was bound for Cuba. It wasn't, passing by Cuba to deposit him in the united States where he ended up in Detroit, Michigan. He there worked in a grocery store and did some boxing. In 1931 or 1932 he drove a hearse for the Purple Gang, concealing liquor in coffins during the Prohibition. He began to study music around that time, teaching himself guitar and piano. Moving to New York, he happened to play an early gig with Frank Sinatra. Both Steve Huey and Scott Yanow have him with bassist, Slam Stewart, as early as 1936, teaming up as Slim & Slam. Lord's sessionography traces Gaillard to April 15, 1937, singing with trumpeter Frank Newton, on 'There's No Two Ways About It' and ''Cause My Baby Says It's So' (Variety 550). Other matrices of each saw issue on Columbia.

'There's No Two Ways About It'   Slim Gaillard w Frankie Newton & His Uptown Serenaders

15 April 1937 in NYC   Matrix M-404-2   Variety 550

Trumpet: Newton (arrangeent)

Alto sax: Russell Procope / Pete Brown

Tenor sax: Cecil Scott (claarinet)   Baritone sax: Edmond Hall (claarinet)

Piano: Don Frye   Guitar: John Smith

Bass: Richard Fullbright   Drums: Cozy Cole   Vocal: Slim Gaillard

Composition: Jimmy McHugh

It was January 19 of 1938 when Gaillard and Stewart in the duo, Slim & Slam, recorded unissued tracks like 'The Flat Foot Floogie' and 'Lady Be Good', etc.. Three of those eventually got released by Legacy in 1996 on 'The Groove Juice Special'. 'Flat Foot Floogie' went down again with Gaillard as vocalist on 17 February for issue on Vocalion 4021. Slim and Slam was a duo in name but usually incorporated other musicians such as Sam Allen (piano) and Pompey Guts Dobson (drums) on their first tracks. Other popular issues in 1938 included 'Jump Session' and 'Tutti Frutti'. IMDb has 'Flat Foot Floogie' used in the soundtrack of the 1940 film, 'it All Came True'. Slim and Slam remained an enterprise to become Slim Gaillard and His Flat Foot Floogie Boys from 1939 into the forties. They performed 'Binjee Binjee Scootta' in the 1942 release of the film, 'Almost Married'. It was 'Sharp as a Tack' in 'Star Spangled Rhythm' premiering in December. Gaillard's 'Cement Mixer' and 'Scotchin' with the Soda' went down on January 12 of 1945 with Bam Brown (bass/vocal) and Zutty Singleton (drums).

'Flat Fleet Floogee'   Slim Gaillard w Slim & Slam

Probably a label typo of 'Flat Feet Floogee'

17 Feb 1938 in NYC   Matrix 22318-4   Vocalion 4021

Guitar / vocals: Gailard   Bass / vocals: Slam Stewart

Composition: Gaillard / Stewrt

'A-Well-A-Take 'Em Joe (Crap Shooter's Jive)'   Slim Gaillard & His Flat Foot Floogie Boys

15 Sep 1939 in NYC   Matrix 25364-1   Vocalion 5138

Trumpet: Cyril Newman   Alto sax: Herman Flintall

Piano: Loumell Morgan   Guitar: Gaillard (vocal)

Bass: Oscar Smith   Drums: Hubert Pettaway

Composition: Gaillard

'It's You, Only You'   Slim Gaillard & His Flat Foot Floogie Boys

4 Oct 1939 in NYC   1 of 4 takes   Vocalion 5301

Trumpet: Al Killian   Alto sax: Herman Flintall

Piano: Loumell Morgan   Guitar: Gaillard (vocal)

Bass: Oscar Smith   Drums: Hubert Pettaway

Composition: Gaillard

'Ra-Da-Da-Da'   Slim Gaillard & His Flat Foot Floogie Boys

4 April 1942 in Hollywood   Matrix H-789-1   Meritt 10

Tenor sax: Ben Webster

Piano: Jimmy Rowles   Guitar: Gaillard (electric)

Bass: Slam Stewart   Drums: Leo Watson

Composition: Gaillard

Among the bigger names with whom Gaillard recorded is Dodo Marmarosa. Their first session together included Zutty Singleton on drums for 'Laguna Oroonee' in early 1945 issued in 1984 on the Gaillard compilation, 'Cement Mixer Put-Ti Put-Ti' (below). Lord traces Gaillard through eleven sessions with Marmarosa into late 1947. He also recorded with Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker, all three together with Marmarosa on 17 December 1945 in Hollywood.

'The Hop'   Slim Gaillard Quartet w Dodo Marmarosa

December 1945   Matrix H-789-1   Cadet CR 202-B

Piano: Dodo Marmarosa   Guitar: Gaillard

Bass: Tiny Brown   Drums: Zutty Singleton

Composition: Gaillard

'Tip Light'   Slim Gaillard  & His Trio w Dodo Marmarosa

December 1945   Matrix 47-S-3031   MGM 10017

Piano: Dodo Marmarosa   Guitar: Gaillard (vocal)

Bass: Tiny Brown   Drums: Zutty Singleton

Composition: Gaillard

'Atomic Cocktail'   Slim Gaillard Quartet w Dodo Marmarosa

17 December 1945   Matrix A215-A-1   Atomic 215

Piano: Dodo Marmarosa   Guitar: Gaillard (vocal)

Bass: Tiny Brown   Drums: Zutty Singleton

Composition: Gaillard

From the forties into the fifties Gaillard entertained at clubs like the Birdland in New York City. Gaillard was a comic by nature with a love for languages, several of which he studied, also creating his own language for the hip called Vout. He issued the album, 'Slim Gaillard Rides Again', in 1959, after which he shifted away from music toward acting for television, assuming roles in such as 'Mission Impossible' and 'Roots'. On 30 October 1982 Gaillard was in London to record the album, 'Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere', with Buddy Tate and Jay McShann. On 10 June of 1983 he recorded the album, 'Steve Allen's Hip Fables', with Al Jazzbo Collins in New York City before moving to England later that year. Tom Lord has him contributing to Memphis Slim's 'Stepppin' Out' at Ronnie Scott's in London in 1986. Lord finds Gaillard in one last session at an unknown location in 1990 to record 'Kahlua' which is track 15 of the compilation, 'Searching For You', on Sunset Blvd Records SBR-7905 (below).

'Make It Do'   Slim Gaillard

July 1952   Matrix 849-1 or 849-6

Verve B0027591-02 (CD) or Norgran EPN19 / MGN13 respectively

Composition: Gary William Friedman / Mae West

'Gomen Nasai'   Slim Gaillard

Dec 1952   Matrix 1126-10 or 1126-13

Verve B0027591-02 (CD) or Clef 89031 / MGC138 respectively

Composition: Raymond Hattori / Benedict Mayers

'How High the Mooni'   Slim Gaillard

From the album 'Slim Gaillard Rides Again' on Dot DLP3190

Nov 1958

Composition: Morgan Lewis / Nancy Hamilton

Discogs

'How High the Mooni'   Slim Gaillard   Television

"Steve Allen Show'   1963

'Clair de Lune' (Debussy 1890-1905)

'Cement Mixer Put-Ti Put-Ti' (Gaillard / Paul Mills as Lee Ricks)

Daniel Goldberg

'Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere'   Slim Gaillard

From the album 'Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere' on Hep 2020 / CD2020

30 Oct 1982 in London

Album personnel:

Cornet: Digby Fairweather   Trumpet: Jay Thomas (sax)

Tenor sax: Buddy Tate (clarinet)

Piano: Jay McShann / Gaillard (guitar / vocals)

Bass: Peter Ind   Drums: Allan Ganley

Discogs

'Little Red Riding Hood'   Slim Gaillard

From the album 'Steve Allen's Hip Fables' on Doctor Jazz FW 38729

10 June 1983 in NYC

Album personnel:

Cornet: Digby Fairweather   Trumpet: Jay Thomas (sax)

Tenor sax: Buddy Tate (clarinet)

Piano: Steve Allen   Percussion: Ray Mantilla

Voice English: Al "Jazzbo" Collins   Voice Spanish: Gaillard

Discogs

'Kahlua'   Slim Gaillard

Sometime 1990   See the compilation 'Searching for You' on Sunset Boulevard SBR-7905 (CD)

Composition: Gaillard

In 1989 BBC released Anthony Wall's documentary, 'Slim Gaillard's Civilisation'. Wall's documentary comes in four parts: 1. 'A Traveller's Tale', 2. 'How High the Moon', 3. 'My Dinner with Dizzy' 4. 'Everything's OK in the UK'. Gaillard died a couple years later in London on February 26, 1991.