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Art Tatum

Art Tatum was born in Toledo, Ohio and despite being blind in one eye and only partially sighted in the other he became arguably the greatest jazz piano player who ever lived.

He came from a musical family and when younger had some formal training at the Toledo School of Music, however he was largely self-taught. His teacher their recognized his talents and tried to steer him towards as a career as a classical concert pianist. Tatum was more interested in the music of Fats Waller, which would be a strong influence on his music. At 18 he was playing interludes at a local radio station and within a short period of time he had his own show. In 1932 he was heard by the singer Adelaide Hall who brought him to New York as her accompanist. One year later he made his first recordings, among which was "Tiger Rag", though a 1932 test pressing of the the same song eventually appeared. This song which features breakneck tempo and rippling left- hand and right-hand cascades and crashing bass notes had every pianist in the country amazed by his astonishing dexterity.

While in New York he established his reputation in "cutting contests" with other top pianists, which he never lost, overwhelming both Fats Waller and James P. Johnson during his first visit to the Big Apple. He spent the next few years playing in Cleveland, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles and even England in 1938. During this time he established himself as a major figure in jazz circles. In the early 1940s Tatum formed an extremely popular trio with bassist Slam Stewart and guitarist Tiny Grimes. He spent much of the next decade touring North America. In 1953 Tatum signed by producer Norman Granz and recorded extensively both as a soloist and in small groups with Benny Carter, Buddy DeFranco, Roy Eldridge, Lionel Hampton, Ben Webster, Harry Sweets Edison and others. His incredible talent allowed him to be extremely productive during this time. Ray Spencer in his biography, noted that Tatum was constantly "refining and honing down after each performance until an ideal version remained needing no further adjustments". This allowed him to achieve a remarkable work rate. For example, his solo sessions for Granz were mostly completed in two days. That is a total of 69 tracks and all but three of them needed only one take. Sadly, on Nov. 5, 1956 his prodigious output was cut short when he died of uremia, however his artistic influence has been strong and long-lasting.

Art Tatum: Jewels In The Treasure Box

Read "Jewels In The Treasure Box" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
April 26, 2024

In the annals of jazz history, certain recordings stand out as treasures, not only capturing the essence of a particular era but also the sheer brilliance of the musicians involved. Jewels In the Treasure Box, the 1953 Chicago Blue Note Jazz Club recordings, featuring the virtuosic trio of Art Tatum on piano, Everett Barksdale on guitar and Slam Stewart on bass, is undeniably one such gem. This three-CD set of newly unearthed, unissued live recordings is being released on Resonance ...

Radio & Podcasts

Effervescence: Art Tatum Meets Champagne

by Kristen Lee Sergeant
May 7, 2022

Join Kristen in a conversation about what makes bubbles so, how no talent is ever undisputed, and how to marvel at the one man show that is the legendary Art Tatum, featuring Champagne by Ployez-Jaquemart and Tatum's rendition of “Night and Day" by Cole Porter. ...

Jazz & Juice

Effervescence: Art Tatum Meets Champagne

by Kristen Lee Sergeant
April 21, 2022

This edition of Jazz & Juice comes with a warning: both the bottle featured and the musician spotlighted are explosive, and should be handled with care. Uncork and listen responsibly. Effervescence When something sparkles, literally or figuratively, it bursts with life. In liquid, there is a perpetual motion of bubbles escaping in a dazzling show of speed within a seemingly static glass. When we listen to effervescent music, we experience something that lifts us in delight and velocity ...

Radio & Podcasts

Into the ‘Now’s The Time’ Warp & Much More

by Marc Cohn
July 10, 2020

Oh, what a show for you! We start with twenty-first century New-Orleans-centric sounds from Charlie Dennard on the B-3, Billy Martin's Wicked Knee, Binker Golding, and a sexy song from Herlin Riley. We celebrate the life of Sonny Rollins with tracks from his Jazz Contrasts sideman gig with Kenny Dorham. And then there are two really top-shelf classics: Brubeck & Rushing (Dave's centennial year) and Art Tatum at the 88s with altoist Benny Carter. Then the professor goes for a ...

Radio & Podcasts

Norman Granz and Verve Records (1944 - 1962)

by Russell Perry
August 6, 2019

In July 2, 1944, Norman Granz, a jazz fan and small-time LA promoter staged a concert in the Philharmonic Auditorium with $300 of borrowed money. His “Jazz at the Philharmonic" concerts were hugely successful and became tours that ran until 1957. These tours and the record labels they spawned—Clef, Norgran and especially Verve—became home to many of the great players of the 1950s, often mainstream players who had a lot of music left to play, but were not necessarily at ...

Album Review

Art Tatum: Trio Days

by Marc Davis
June 7, 2014

I was wrong. I like Art Tatum. But in a slightly different way. My introduction to Art Tatum, many years ago, was a series of solo piano albums. They left me cold. No question, the man was gifted beyond belief. He could play faster, more accurately and with a greater sense of fun and originality than almost any pianist between Fats Waller and Thelonious Monk. And yet his solo work never felt right to me. Something ...

Reassessing

Art Tatum: Solo Masterpieces, Volume One

by C. Michael Bailey
September 24, 2013

Art TatumSolo Masterpieces, Volume OneOJC1975/2013 If blues icon Robert Johnson is a phantom, then pianist Art Tatum is a myth. In spite of James Lester's 1995 biography Too Marvelous For Words: The Life and Genius of Art Tatum (Oxford University Press, 1995), little is known of Tatum, whose piano talent has yet to be equaled more than fifty years after his death. It is acknowledged by more than one authority that ...

TV / Film

Documentary: Art Tatum

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
June 7, 2021

Art Tatum changed pop and rock 'n' roll. As Les Paul tells it, he was originally a pianist with a trio and determined to be exceptional. Until his friend played him a record by Art Tatum. Paul says he stopped playing piano and switched to guitar. Had Paul not heard Tatum and had he gone on to lead a piano trio, we likely wouldn't have had overdubbing, tape delay, phasing effects and multitrack recording not to mention the solid body ...
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Video / DVD

Art Tatum and Ben Webster

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
March 3, 2020

For me, jazz is divided between those who recorded with Art Tatum and those who didn't. Tatum remains king of the jazz piano—a briskly shaken cocktail of unrivaled technique, impeccable taste and a staggering ability to make you fall in love whatever song he's playing. Every one of his recordings is a gem, exhibiting daring, speed and lyricism. In solo and trio recordings, you are exposed to raw Tatum in all his centipedic glory. But in group settings, you get ...
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Video / DVD

Videos: Art Tatum at the Piano

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
July 11, 2014

Speaking of jazz piano, fans may be unaware that videos of Art Tatum in action exist and that the piano master also appeared in a couple of movies. There's also tape of Tatum's voice, which turns a name on a record label into a warm and charming guy... Here's Tatum at New York's 3 Deuces, at 72 W. 52nd St.... Here's Tatum playing Yesterdays... Here's Tatum in The Fabulous Dorseys. The personnel can be seen in the first ...
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Video / DVD

Jazzdoc: Art Tatum

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
July 19, 2013

Radio

Shelly Berg Plays Art Tatum This Week on Riverwalk Jazz

Source: Don Mopsick
January 19, 2012

This week on Riverwalk Jazz, actor Vernel Bagneris offers a glimpse of Art Tatum through the words of jazz musicians who knew him, and noted pianist Shelly Berg performs Tatum masterworks with the Jim Cullum Jazz Band. The program is distributed in the US by Public Radio International, on Sirius/XM sattelite radio and can be streamed on-demand from the Riverwalk Jazz website. Squarely grounded in the stride piano style of James P. Johnson and Fats Waller, Art Tatum took solo ...
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Interview

Who is Art Tatum Dating? By Steve Provizer

Source: Brilliant Corners, a Boston Jazz Blog
February 19, 2011

Was the saturation coverage of George Shearing's recent death commensurate with his musical contributions? To my ears, Shearing's music is pleasurable and well-crafted but unexciting. He was capable of playing any style, but the chosen format of his most well-known groups was harmonically consonant and the soloing, while very adept, lacked edge. Shearing's coverage was the equal of that given to Billy Taylor. Taylor was a creative musician, not a musical innovator, but his work as activist/mentor/educator kept his profile ...
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Music Industry

Tatum's Lounge: A Sculptural Homage to Art Tatum

Source: Andrew Rumpler
December 27, 2010

From the Brooklyn based design studio Nine Stories Furniture Co has come an homage to the great Art Tatum in the form of a one-of-a-kind chair. A long time jazz enthusiast and furniture designer Andrew Rumpler, constructed the piece from the keys of a discarded upright piano. The piece, which weighs less than six pounds can hold up to 150 pounds. “Tatum's Lounge," as it is called, is on view at Voos Furniture in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. The ...
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151

Music Industry

Art Tatum Trio, Chicago

Source: Jazz Lives by Michael Steinman
July 6, 2010

A good deal of energetic call-and-response was stirred up on this site by my posting what was proposed as an authentic Art Tatum signature. Reader Gary Pajer has generously shared with us his father's postcard from the London House in Chicago, signed by the three members of a notable trio:

Gary's father didn't remember an exact date for this (he's 89 now) but recalled that Tatum was very friendly and personable, his fingers “very fast." And he did recall having ...
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395

Music Industry

Sculptor Cork Marcheschi Creates Art Tatum Memorial

Source: Michael Ricci
February 27, 2010

After winning a competition, public sculptor Cork Marcheschi creates the Art Tatum Celebration Column in Toledo, Ohio, in honor of that city's jazz genius Art Tatum, a beautifully-illuminated 30 foot sculpture of a piano keyboard with a twist. The Art Tatum Celebration Column in Toledo, Ohio, the most expensive piece of public art ever installed in that city, was dedicated on September 11, 2009. The column was conceived, designed and built by Cork Marcheschi, a San Francisco public artist and ...
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Radio

Art Tatum: The Group Masterpieces

Source: Michael Ricci
October 13, 2009

This week Night Lights pays a centennial tribute to jazz piano giant Art Tatum, whose immense virtuosic talent made it nearly impossible for other musicians to keep up with him. Near the end of his life Tatum recorded a series of albums with musicians such as Benny Carter and Ben Webster that provide an unparalleled opportunity to hear the pianist with colleagues that could, to varying degrees, hold their own with him. Still, it was Tatum who dominated the proceedings. ...
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