Willie "The Lion" Smith
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Willie "The Lion" Smith (25 November, 1897 - 18 April, 1973) was a jazz pianist, one of the masters of the stride style.
He was born as William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholoff Smith in Goshen, New York. By the early 1910s he was playing in New York City and Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Smith served in World War I where he saw action in France, and played drum with the African-American regimental band led by Tim Brymn.
He returned to New York City after the war, where he worked for decades, often as a soloist, sometimes in bands and accompanying blues singers such as Mamie Smith.
In the 1940s his music found appreciation with a wider audience, and he toured North America and Europe through 1971.
His autobiography, "Music on My Mind", was published in 1965.
Willie "The Lion" Smith died in New York City.
Samples
- Download sample of "Finger Buster" by Willie The Lion Smith, a long-unreleased piano solo from one of the giants of stride