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About Chico Hamilton

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Musician

Chico Hamilton

Born:

Legendary jazz drummer and bandleader Foreststorn ‘Chico’ Hamilton, born September 21st, 1921 in Los Angeles, had a fast track musical education in a band with his schoolmates Charles Mingus, Illinois Jacquet, Ernie Royal, Dexter Gordon, Buddy Collette and Jack Kelso. Engagements with Lionel Hampton, Slim & Slam, T-Bone Walker, Lester Young, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Charlie Barnett, Billy Eckstine, Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis Jr., Billie Holiday, Gerry Mulligan and six years with Lena Horne established this young West Coast prodigy as a jazz drummer on the rise, before striking out on his own as a bandleader in 1955. Chico appears in the March Milastaire number in the film “You'll Never Get Rich” (1941) as part of the backing group supporting Fred Astaire, and performed on the soundtrack of the Bing Crosby/Bob Hope film “Road to Bali”. Chico’s impact upon jazz includes the introduction of two unique and distinct sounds: first in 1955 with his Original Quintet which combined the sounds of his drums, the bass of Carson Smith, the guitar of Jim Hall, the cello of Fred Katz, and the flute of Buddy Collette; and the second in 1962 with his own drums, the bass of Albert Stinson, the guitar of Gabor Szabo, the tenor sax of Charles Lloyd, and the trombone of George Bohanon. Recorded first lp as leader in '55 with George Duvivier and Howard Roberts for Pacific Jazz; in '55 formed an unusual quintet in L.A

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Article: Live Review

Charles Lloyd at the Umbria Summer Jazz Festival 2026

Read "Charles Lloyd at the Umbria Summer Jazz Festival 2026" reviewed by Rhonda Wagner

by Rhonda Wagner

Charles Lloyd Quartet Arena Santa Giuliana  Umbria Jazz Festival Perugia, Italy July 6, 2026  It was a night to remember in Perugia, Italy. During a brutal heat wave sweeping across southern Europe, the legendary saxophonist Charles Lloyd performed at the Umbria Jazz Festival in the open-air Arena Santa Giuliana, at ...

3

Article: Album Review

Eric Person: Extra Pressure

Read "Extra Pressure" reviewed by Mike Jurkovic

by Mike Jurkovic

Curating the elders while clearing his own path, there is an urgent, blue ease to alto and soprano sax man Eric Person's resonance. As a matter of fact, there is a blue urgency to all of Person's compositions: His wiry lines have stories to tell and tell them he does, with a soulful urban sovereignty. Witness “Fallout," ...

3

Article: Radio & Podcasts

Mike Westbrook 1936 - 2026 & More

Read "Mike Westbrook 1936 - 2026 & More" reviewed by Jerome Wilson

by Jerome Wilson

About half of this episode is dedicated to the work of pianist and composer Mike Westbrook who passed away on April 11, 2026. Music from some of Westbrook's large and small groups will be played as well as a performance with his wife Kate Westbrook. The show will also feature music from Melissa Aldana, Chico Hamilton, ...

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Article: Album Review

Josh Nelson / Kevin Van Den Elzen: West Coast Echoes

Read "West Coast Echoes" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers

Pianist Josh Nelson and drummer Kevin Van Den Elzen (with bassist Eric Sittner) revisit the glory days of West Coast jazz in the 1950s and '60s on West Coast Echoes, a generally smooth and pleasing glance backward at the “cool" school of jazz championed by such legendary artists as Shorty Rogers, Art Pepper, Stan Getz, Shelly ...

3

Article: Radio & Podcasts

Classic jazz from Horace Silver, Betty Carter, along with recent releases from Carole Nelson Trio, Eric Alexander, and more

Read "Classic jazz from Horace Silver, Betty Carter, along with recent releases from Carole Nelson Trio, Eric Alexander, and more" reviewed by David W. Daniels

by David W. Daniels

Other classic jazz from Annie Ross, Quincy Jones, and more. New releases from Cecile McLorin Salvant, Atlanta's own Karla Harris, and more. Additional birthdays for Jon Hendricks, Brother Jack McDuff, Steve Coleman, and more. Playlist Horace Silver “Ill Wind"--from Further Explorations By The Horace Silver Quintet (Blue Note) 00:00 Annie Ross “Twisted"--from Jazz Divas: ...

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Article: Building a Jazz Library

Brian Wilson Jazzed: Ten Essential Wilson Covers

Read "Brian Wilson Jazzed: Ten Essential Wilson Covers" reviewed by Ian Patterson

by Ian Patterson

Brian Wilson is widely hailed as one of the most significant songwriters of the 20th century--the master craftsman behind The Beach Boys' music. Inspired by rock 'n' roll, doo-wop, George Gershwin, vocal quartet The Four Freshmen and Burt Bacharach, he developed sophisticated harmonies and a signature sound that sold millions of records. His singular ...

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Article: Liner Notes

Czarakcziew and the Jazz Cats: A Tribute to Fred Katz

Read "Czarakcziew and the Jazz Cats: A Tribute to Fred Katz" reviewed by Pawel Czarakcziew

by Pawel Czarakcziew

I've always thought that musicians (if they are sincere), draw from the same source. No matter what genre (classical, jazz, rock) they are in, it's the same well. In my book The Seekers--Meetings with Remarkable Musicians, I write a chapter on Fred Katz, my old college professor and more importantly, the cello player in the Chico ...

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Article: History of Jazz

Gravity and Resurgence: The Many Dimensions of Dexter Gordon

Read "Gravity and Resurgence: The Many Dimensions of Dexter Gordon" reviewed by Arthur R George

by Arthur R George

Long Tall Dexter; swinger, bebopper, saxophone balladeer; acting the dissipated genius expatriate who was not unlike himself in the movie Round Midnight; his dressed-up persona “Society Red;" the laconic elder statesman of his later years. Dexter Gordon is all those things, but more than a kaleidoscope of caricatures. Those who trace their lineages through ...

23

Article: Album Review

Arthur Blythe Quartet: Live From Studio Rivbea, July 6, 1976

Read "Live From Studio Rivbea, July 6, 1976" reviewed by John Sharpe

by John Sharpe

Saxophonist Arthur Blythe arrived in New York City in 1974 with a gorgeous tone and a fully formed conception. Having featured in the ensembles of pianist Horace Tapscott in his native LA, he first caught the ear in the Big Apple after his recruitment into the bands of drummer Chico Hamilton and pianist/composer Gil Evans. This ...


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