This piece of paper comes from the collection of Boston jazz aficionado Samuel Prescott, and it’s an absolute Who’s Who of jazz stars who came through that city in the Forties. The Prescott papers (and discs) are now held by the University of New Hampshire Library, and they took good care of this piece of paper, crowded with signatures of great men and women:
On the back (invisible at the moment) is the autograph of one Duke Ellington. And here are the names that the librarians found: a good pastime for a rainy day with a magnifying glass:
Earl ‘Fatha’ Hines (twice). Al Morgan. Pete Brown. Joe Battaglia (piano). Shirley Mhore (vocal). Gene Sedric. Art Hodes. Vic Dickenson. J. C. Higginbotham. Roy Eldridge. Erskine Hawkins (twice). Joe Marsala. Adele Girard. Jimmy Shirley. Jess Stacy. Ev Schwarz (pian0). John Kirby. James P. Johnson. Edmond Hall. Louis Armstrong. Billy Kyle. Bob Wilber. Frankie Newton. Willie ‘Bunk’ Johnson (twice). Baby Dodds. Johnny Windhurst. Johnny Field (bass). Sparky Tomasetti. Jack Teagarden. Dick Wellstood. Pops Foster. Sidney Bechet. Sandy J. Williams. Jimmy Archey. Howey ‘Peacoo’ Gadboys. Sidney de Paris. Rex Stewart. ‘Wild’ Bill Davison. Pleasant Joseph. Henry ‘Red’ Allen. Milton ‘Mezz’ Mezzrow. Pee Wee Russell. Don Kirkpatrick. Max Kaminsky. Paul Watson. Bob Guy. Charlie Holmes.
Amazing, no?
JAZZ LIVES 