Shared birthdays...

[Alexander Hawkins]

I seem to share a b'day with, among others, Bing Crosby, Jimmy Cleveland, Sugar Ray Robinson and Machiavelli.

'Looks like I got me a jam session..!'

[Late]

OK, I just checked my sources — the liner notes to Black Fire, by A.B. Spellman, and Leonard Feather's The Encyclopedia of Jazz in the Sixties both list Hill(e)'s birthplace as Port au Prince, Haiti. His family did move to Chicago, however, in 1941 when Andrew was 4.

As a note of interest, according to Feather, "Hill started in music as a boy soprano, singing, playing accordion and tap dancing. He appeared in local talent shows from 1943-47. In 1950 he learned to play blues on the piano. His teacher was a baritone saxophonist. On his early jobs he played baritone as well as piano. He worked with Paul Williams' r&b at 15, later coming into contact with many name jazzmen at Joe Segal's jam sessions."

Feather even lists his address (from 1969):

Andrew Hill

212 West 102nd St.

New York 25, NY

p.s.

Mike Weil, I dig your avatar!

Edited May 19, 2003 by Late

[bertrand]

Two comments:

1. The Feather book is not a reliable source. As was pointed out above, Andrew was born in Chicago, but for years Haiti was mistakenly indicated. I don't know where the mistake originated.

2. Feather apparently pissed off a lot of musicians by giving out their home address.

Bertrand.

[Chuck Nessa]

Andrew was the source of Feather's error. AH is one sly MF.

[jazzbo]

Sly. . . deceitful. . . whatever! It's almost presidential.

[pryan]

All exicited with Jim's link I checked out the page and found that I shared a birthday (12 October) with..... no one, jazz related.

But I am sandwiched in between the birthdays of:

11 October

Curtis Amy *1929 Mose Allison *1927 Art Blakey *1919 Lester Bowie *1941 Billy Higgins *1936

13 October

Ray Brown *1926 Terry Gibbs *1924 Lee Konitz *1927 Pharoah Sanders *1940 Art Tatum *1909

[Late]

Allright then, so Haiti it's not. I take it that A.B. Spellman was duped by Andrew too? Weird.