May 21 - Fats Waller (The Musical Birthday Series, 4th Annual Cycle)

Previous posts for May 21st may be found here: Fats Waller (2019), Maurice André (2020), and Heinz Holliger (2021)

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Fats Waller (21 May 1904 – 15 December 1943) was an innovative and virtuosic jazz pianist and composer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Credit Where Credit Is Due

Waller is believed to have composed many novelty tunes in the 1920s and 1930s and sold them for small sums, attributed to another composer and lyricist.  He often sold melodies for quick cash when in his cups. – adapted from Wikipedia

There are standards we now know are Waller’s

Because of the research of scholars.

He would sell them outright,

When at night he was tight,

For a matter of hundreds of dollars.

 

 

 

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