Terry Pollard
born on 15/8/1931 in Detroit, MI, United States
died on 16/12/2009 in New York City, NY, United States
Terry Pollard
Terry Pollard (August 15, 1931 - December 16, 2009) was a jazz pianist prominent in the Detroit jazz scene of the 1940s and 1950s. She has been described as a "major player who was inexplicably overlooked."[1]
Pollard began her career by collaborating with other Detroit musicians, such as Billy Mitchell, Johnny Hill, and the Emmitt Slay Trio.[2] She was discovered by Terry Gibbs and toured with him in the early 1950s, playing piano and vibraphone. She recorded an album with him, Terry Gibbs Quartet - Featuring Terry Pollard.[3] Pollard appeared with Gibbs on an episode of The Tonight Show hosted by Steve Allen.[4] Her collaborations with Gibbs from 1953 to 1957 marked the height of her career.[2]
Pollard also performed with John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Chet Baker, Nat King Cole, Dinah Washington, Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald.[4]
Pollard recorded a self-titled solo album for Bethlehem Records in 1955 and won the Down Beat Magazine New Artist award in 1956. Pollard retired from her full-time music career shortly thereafter in order to raise a family, but she continued to play locally in Detroit and performed with visiting artists, including Diana Ross and the Supremes.[4] She was inducted into the Michigan Jazz Hall of Fame.[5]
Her contributions to the mid-century Detroit jazz scene were recognized in the book Before Motown: A History of Jazz in Detroit 1920-1960, by Lars Bjorn and Jim Gallert.[4]
Discography
As leader
- Terry Pollard (Bethlehem, 1955)
Other recordings
With Dorothy Ashby
- Soft Winds (Jazzland, 1961)
With Terry Gibbs
- Terry Gibbs Quintet (Brunswick, 1953)
- Swingin' with Terry Gibbs and His Orchestra (EmArcy, 1956)
With Yusef Lateef
- Lateef at Cranbrook (Argo, 1958)
- The Dreamer (Savoy, 1959)
- The Fabric of Jazz (Savoy, 1959)
References
- Chell, Samuel (23 October 2007). Terry Gibbs: Terry Gibbs Quartet Featuring Terry Pollard (2007). All About Jazz. Retrieved on 26 June 2011.
- 2.0 2.1 Yanow, Scott. [Terry Pollard at All Music Guide Terry Pollard: Biography]. Allmusic. Retrieved on 26 June 2011.
- http://www.freshsoundrecords.com/terry_gibbs_quartet_-_featuring_terry_pollard-cd-4790.html
- 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 http://jazztimes.com/articles/25540-jazz-pianist-terry-pollard-dies-at-78
- http://michigancitizen.com/terry-pollard-detroitborn-jazz-pianist-succumbs-to-long-illness-p8177-79.htm
External links
- Video of Terry Gibbs Quartet featuring Terry Pollard on piano and vibraphone
- Detroit Musicians memorial page
This article uses material from the article Terry Pollard from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and it is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.