Avery Parrish

Avery Parrish ( born January 24, 1917 in Birmingham, Alabama, † December 10, 1959 in New York City ) was an American jazz pianist and composer of Swing.

Life and work

Avery Parrish studied at Alabama State Teachers College, where he played in the college band, an ensemble, which was led at that time by Erskine Hawkins. Until 1941, he played in other bands of Hawkins and took with him on numerous recordings. Parrish left Hawkins 1941, the band and moved to California. In 1942, he was in a fight in a bar so very hurt that he was henceforth paralyzed and had to give up his career in music. 1979 Avery Parrish was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame.

Parrish wrote the music for the song "After Hours ", which was after his admission from 1940 with Hawkins ' orchestra to a jazz standard: the title was, by numerous musicians such as Glenn Miller, Dizzy Gillespie, Woody Herman, Hazel Scott Phineas Newborn, Hank Crawford, Buck Clayton and Ellis Marsalis interpreted; there was also a version sung by Aretha Franklin. Ray Bryant played in 1972, the version that is used for the mission of the National Public Radio, " Jazz After Hours" and which is broadcast since 1984.