Eddie Thompson (musician)

Edgar Charles " Eddie" Thompson ( born May 31, 1925 in Shoreditch, London, † November 6, 1986 in London) was a British jazz pianist.

Thompson was as blind George Shearing and studied at the same school for the blind Linden Lodge in Wandsworth like this. From the mid- 1940s he was in the London jazz scene is active (but worked part-time as a piano tuner ) and adopted in 1948 with quartet of Johnny Dankworth ( with Victor Feldman on drums ) and joined in 1949 at the Paris Jazz Fair with the band by Carlo Krahmer on, who also was a drummer and behind the label Esquire. In the 1950s, Thompson had his own groups ( trio, quintet recordings in tempo) and played with Tony Crombie, Vic Ash, Tommy Whittle and Ronnie Scott, in whose club he was 1959/60 house pianist. In the early 1960s he played regularly in the Downbeat Club. In 1962 he moved to the USA where he was well received in the New York jazz scene ( where he met with Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Erroll Garner befriended ) and played from 1963 to 1967 in the Hickory House in New York City.

In 1972 he returned to London. He played regularly in the BBC Jazz Club, had a long involvement in the Jazz Cellar in Stockport and played regularly at Pizza Express in London. He also took numerous recordings with his trio ( Len Skeat bass, Martin Drew and later Jim Hall drums) to, among other things, for the 77 label, Hep Records and the German BASF. In the 1980s, he often accompanied by traveling American jazz musicians, among other things, after many years of absence ( in the 1940s he was in London at the bop pioneers ) back in the UK occurring Tensorsaxophonisten Spike Robinson. He also took up with trombonist Roy Williams. In 1985 he first appeared after thirteen years back in New York on in a three-week engagement in a duo with pianist Roger Kellaway in the Upstairs and as a solo pianist. He died from the after-effects heavy smoking ( emphysema ).

Thompson was able to play in many different styles. In addition to its early role models Art Tatum, who was also blind, he was also influenced by Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner and Nat King Cole, which he imitated when needed. He possessed a sophisticated technology and knew hundreds of partially obscure song titles by heart ( with a preference for George Gershwin title ).