Tommy Benford

Thomas " Tommy" Benford ( born April 19, 1905 in Charleston, West Virginia; † 24 March 1994) was an American jazz musician (drums). Benford was a representative of traditional jazz.

Musical development

Benford was born in the Appalachian Mountains and was with his older brother, the tuba player Bill Benford, a solid musical education at the Jenkins Orphanage ( Jenkins Orphanage ) in South Carolina. In 1914 he went with the school orchestra, the Jenkins Orphanage band, even on tour to England. In 1920 he toured with the Green River Minstrel Show, then moved near Washington DC, where he among other things, with Elmer Snowden, Edgar Hayes, Charlie Skeet, Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Waller and with the orchestra of his brother Bill played ( also has a month as a substitute for Duke Ellington ). Known are its participation in recordings of Jelly Roll Morton in 1928 and 1930 (including Kansas City Stomp ). The years 1932-1941 he spent in Europe. From 1932 to 1936 Benford was in the orchestra violinist Eddie South, 1936-1937 Freddy Taylor and from 1938 Willie Lewis. This pictures were taken with Coleman Hawkins, Bill Coleman, Joe Turner, Django Reinhardt and Sidney Bechet.

From 1943 he played at Noble Sissle and then with Snub Mosley in New York. He played regularly at Jimmy Ryan's club, with swing musicians like Rex Stewart and revival musicians such as Muggsy Spanier. In the years 1948-1950 Benford was involved with Bob Wilber. In 1952 he toured with Jimmy Archey in Germany and Switzerland in the late 1950s with the Jazz Train Review of Eddie Barefield. Two years later, Benford was with Muggsy Spanier in Canada on tour. From 1956 to 1959 he was engaged at Bob Pilsbury and then back to Jimmy Ryan's in New York City. In the 1960s he played in the bands of Joe Thomas and Ed Hall. After that he played among others with revival bands like the Saints and Sinners by Danny Barker, the Harlem Blues and Jazz Band of Clyde Bernhardt, Bob Greene's World of Jelly Roll Morton, and clarinetist Stan MacDonald ( Blue Horizon Jazz Band ).

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