Coleman Hawkins, Saxophone, 1904, St Joseph, MO
Coleman was taught the piano and cello by his mother beginning when he was five years old. He requested a tenor sax which he received for his 9th birthday. By age 12 he was playing professionally for school dances. He went to high school in Chicago and then attended Washburn College in Topeka, Kansas for two years where he studied harmony and composition. Hawkin's first regular job was at the12th Street Theater in Kansas City in 1921. When Mamie Smith appeared at the theater she offered Coleman a job touring with her show. He toured with the group until 1923 when he decided to stayin New York. Coleman then worked as a freelance with various groups until he was hired by Fletcher Henderson beginning an association that was mutually beneficial and lasted many years. Together they made numerous recordings and Hawkins began attracting worldwide recognition. With Henderson, Hawkins recorded and toured widely in the U.S. and in England. While working in England in 1934, he decided to leave the band and make his home there. He worked with Jack Hylton and enjoyed great success. Hawkins formed a nine piece band and returned to New York in 1939, just before the war clouds gathered in Europe. It was around this time that Coleman recorded Body And Soul, a recording that was to change the world of improvisation. On this record, Hawkins plays the melody once, in the beginning. Afterwards he plays the entire song, never again playing the melody, but you always know its Body And Soul. A marvelous piece of work. He spent most of the late '40s and all of the '50s touring extensively with his own groups and with Jazz At The Philharmonic. During the late '60s Coleman began to exhibit signs of emotional distress and was seriously affected by alcoholism. His last professional appearance was in 1969. Hawk influenced countless tenor men over the years. It's almost impossible to listen to a tenor player and not hear something of Coleman Hawkins. Coleman Hawkins died in 1969.
Sal Salvador, Guitar, 1925, Monson, MA
Sal became interested in jazz at the age of 15 when he heard recordings by Charlie Christian. From 1945 on he played in and around Springfield, Mass. before moving to New York in 1949 to work with Terry Gibbs and Mundell Lowe. From1951 to 1952 he worked with Stan Kenton's orchestra. He later worked as a freelance, He led a big band from 1958 to 1963. In the late '70s Sal was named head of the guitar department at the University of Bridgeport. Sal Salvador died in 2003.
Arthur Schutt, Piano, 1902, Reading, PA
