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Willie "The Lion" Smith

With his derby and cigar, along with his command of counterpoint and swing, Willie "The Lion" Smith was one of the jazz world's outsized characters. Bravery during World War I earned him his nickname; friendship and mutual admiration led to Duke Ellington's "Portrait of The Lion" and Smith's own "Portrait of Duke." William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholoff was born in Goshen, N.Y., on Nov. 25, 1897. Growing up in Newark, he began playing at age 6, drawn to the piano by his mother's playing in church. His father's Jewish ancestry later led to work as a cantor, he claimed, during the '40s. In 1916, Willie enlisted in the Army where he became the drum major for his unit. During World War I, he spent over a month on the front lines, where he earned his name "The Lion" for his bravery. After returning from the war, he established himself as one of Harlem's most illustrious stride piano players, familiar in the cutting contests with other pianists that went on after hours at speakeasies, or at rent parties. The Lion quickly became a mentor for younger musicians such as Duke Ellington, Bix Beiderbecke, Artie Shaw, and the Dorsey Brothers. They would often go up to Harlem and listen to Willie and play and ask for musical tips to better their skills. During the '20s he toured with singer Mamie Smith and played on her "Crazy Blues," but was generally unknown to the public until his Decca recordings of the mid '30s, when he recorded with a small band called Willie The Lion and his Cubs. But these sessions with a band are not as revealing of his mature style as the later Commodore sessions with their impressionistic rendering of a New York City park, "Echoes of Spring" and classical techniques heard in "Passionette." His solo recordings from 1939 are often reckoned to be his finest work, but he went on making discs well into the 1960s and beyond, some of them including his own spoken comments and repartee, as he demonstrated his playing at the keyboard. His fame spread when Artie Shaw and Tommy Dorsey performed arrangements of his compositions. Smith toured Europe in 1949 and again in the mid '60s; appeared in the film Jazz Dance in 1954 and wrote his memoirs, Music On My Mind in '65. Willie "The Lion" Smith lived through six decades of music and, despite the changes in musical styles over those years; he remained true to himself and his own style.

Willie "The Lion" Smith & Don Ewell: Stride Piano Duets—Live in Toronto, 1966

Read "Stride Piano Duets—Live in Toronto, 1966" reviewed by Jerry D'Souza

by Jerry D'Souza
September 13, 2008

Willie “The Lion" Smith was one of the great stride pianists whose style and approach were an inspiration to many. His ideas were fermented by a larger-than-life presence that he transfused into his playing. He also transmitted his unabashed exuberance to his audience. The power of his playing and his animation come to the fore on this recording with Don Ewell.

Ewell was a stride pianist in a class of his own. He may not be as well ...

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Album Review

Willie "The Lion" Smith & Don Ewell: Stride Piano Duets. Live In Toronto 1966

Read "Stride Piano Duets. Live In Toronto 1966" reviewed by Nic Jones

by Nic Jones
August 2, 2008

The more time passes, the starker the light thrown on a release like this. This is a point that can't be emphasized enough when it comes to something like the stride piano style and Delmark deserves high praise indeed for putting in the work necessary to get this music out there.

Smith was arguably the greatest stride exponent, but it would be a little misleading to suggest that Ewell was a relative acolyte, especially in view of the fact that ...

Recording

Perfection: Jimmy Smith - 'Too Old to Dream'

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
October 31, 2024

In April 1960, organist Jimmy Smith joined forces with tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine and recorded Back at the Chicken Shack for Blue Note. One of the tracks was “When I Grow Too Old to Dream," by Oscar Hammerstein II, Sigmund Romberg. The song was introduced in The Night Is Young (1935) and was given a gospel-soul shove on the 1963 album by Smith, Turrentine and Donald Bailey on drums. (Guitarist Kenny Burrell appears on two tracks but not this one.) ...
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TV / Film

Doc: The Jazz Loft According to W. Eugene Smith

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
June 12, 2024

From 1957 to 1965, photographer W Eugene Smith lived in loft space at 821 Sixth Avenue in Manhattan. Smith had already established himself as a pioneer of the journalistic photo essay—a collection of images that told a story in magazines, most notably Life. Before the rise of the documentary in the early 1960s with the advent of the portable shoulder camera, Smith's photo montages served the same purpose in still images. In 1957, Smith left his wife and four children ...
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Recording

Steve Holt Celebrates 40th Anniversary Digital Reissue Of Debut Album 'The Lion's Eyes'

Source: Steve Holt
December 21, 2023

Jazz fans and music enthusiasts alike are in for a treat as Steve Holt, JUNO-nominated musician and renowned jazz pianist, announces the digital reissue of his debut album, The Lion's Eyes, on December 22, exactly 40 years after its original vinyl release. Originally nominated for a JUNO award, “The Lion's Eyes" showcases Holt's talent on the piano and features a stellar lineup of musicians, including Bob Mover on alto saxophone, Charles Ellison on trumpet, Steve Hall on tenor saxophone, Michel ...
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Video / DVD

Paul Smith: Swinging Elegance

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 19, 2023

In the late 1940s and 1950s, few pianists moved as effortlessly and deftly between jazz and pop as pianist Paul Smith. Instrumental pop, as a genre, came into its own after 1948, with the advent of the 10-inch LP. Pop back then still had plenty of swing but was really jazz-light—easy-going music that had a bit of a kick but didn't venture too far off a familiar song's melody. Pop as a lucrative record-company division emerged then when record buyers ...
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Performance / Tour

Legendary Trumpeter/Composer Wadada Leo Smith To Premiere His Monumental New Work, America Transformed, At Brooklyn College From Sept. 8–11

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications
August 17, 2023

At 81 years of age, Wadada Leo Smith is deep in the midst of the most creative and prolific period of an already formidable career. On the heels of a yearlong 80th birthday celebration that featured a number of dazzling performances along with several large-scale releases, the visionary composer and trumpeter will premiere his most monumental work to date. From September 8 to 11 at Brooklyn College’s Leonard & Claire Tow Center for the Performing Arts, Smith will present the ...
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Recording

Sun Ra Arkestra Veteran Drummer Wayne Smith, Jr. Releases 'Be Still,' A Powerful Venture In Emotion And Tranquility

Source: Outside in Music
July 19, 2023

Wayne Smith Jr. is a drummer, composer, and educator with a multifaceted palette of soundscapes and genres at his disposal. Having toured across three continents, performed throughout the New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. music scenes, and currently working as a staple member of the legendary Sun Ra Arkestra, Smith’s accolades rightly herald his abilities as a master craftsman of the drum set. Described as an “inventive drummer who displays an in-depth musical consciousness,” and who is “willing to embrace ...
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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Dr. Lonnie Smith

Source: Michael Ricci
July 3, 2023

All About Jazz is celebrating Dr. Lonnie Smith's birthday today!

Dr. Lonnie Smith is an unparalleled musician, composer, performer and recording artist. An authentic master and guru of the Hammond B-3 organ for over five decades, he has been featured on over seventy albums, and has recorded and performed with a virtual “Who’s Who” of the greatest jazz, blues and R&B giants in the industry. Consequently, he has often been hailed as a “Legend,” a “Living Musical Icon,” and as ...
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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Johnny Smith

Source: Michael Ricci
June 25, 2023

All About Jazz is celebrating Johnny Smith's birthday today!

Guitarist Johnny Smith's career spans the decades of the 1940's through the 1990's. From the very beginning of his musical career he influenced the playing of other guitarists. In fact, many mention Smith as a major influence on their playing. The major guitar builders as Guild, Gibson, Benedetto, and the Heritage all have their signature Johnny Smith high end models as a tribute to this master. John Henry Smith, Jr. was ...
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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Marvin "Smitty" Smith

Source: Michael Ricci
June 24, 2023

All About Jazz is celebrating Marvin “Smitty" Smith's birthday today!

Marvin “Smitty" Smith, Born June 24, 1961 in Waukegan (Illinois). “It was a very natural inclination for me to play drums," says Marvin “Smitty" Smith. A glance at his early life validates that truth. Born the son of a drummer, Marvin, Sr., was always surrounded by music in the house. At six months old, he would climb up on the large lounge chair positioned directly in front of his father's ...
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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Wadada Leo Smith

Source: Michael Ricci
December 18, 2022

All About Jazz is celebrating Wadada Leo Smith's birthday today!

ISHMAEL WADADA LEO SMITH trumpet-player, multi- instrumentalist, composer and improviser has been active in the creative contemporary world music for over thirty years. His theory of Jazz and World music was significant in his music development as an artist and educator. Born in Leland, Mississippi, Smith's early musical life began in the high school concert and marching bands. At the age of thirteen, he became immersed within the Delta Blues ...
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