William Randolph "Cozy" Cole (October 17, 1909
– January 9, 1981) was an American jazz musician who was a versatile
percussionist. A highlight of Cole’s drumming career was the 1958 hit Topsy,
the only recording featuring a drum solo to sell more than one million copies.
Cozy" Cole was born in East Orange, NJ, on October
17, 1909. He moved to New York City with his family in 1926 and soon became
fascinated with the work of Duke Ellington's percussionist Sonny Greer. By 1928
he was performing with clarinetist and bandleader Wilbur Sweatman, and his
first recordings (including the feature number "Load of Cole") were
made with Jelly Roll Morton in 1930.
After working for several years with Blanche Calloway
& Her Joy Boys and the Benny Carter Orchestra, Cole accelerated his
involvement in the swarming swing scene, making records with bands led by
Willie Bryant and pianist Teddy Wilson and backing vocalists Billie Holiday,
Midge Williams, Mildred Bailey, and
Vocalion's assigned Fats Waller emulator, Putney Dandridge. Cozy Cole assisted with Henry "Red" Allen's original recording of
"Algiers Stomp," and made records with Bunny Berigan, Bud Freeman's Windy City Five, Chu Berry's Stompy Stevedores, Stuff Smith's Onyx Club Orchestra, Frankie Newton's Uptown Serenaders, and Lionel Hampton. During the year 1939 he worked with Pete Brown & His Jump Band, Joe Marsala & His Delta Six, Leonard Feather's All-Stars, and one-armed trumpeter Wingy Manone.
Vocalion's assigned Fats Waller emulator, Putney Dandridge. Cozy Cole assisted with Henry "Red" Allen's original recording of
"Algiers Stomp," and made records with Bunny Berigan, Bud Freeman's Windy City Five, Chu Berry's Stompy Stevedores, Stuff Smith's Onyx Club Orchestra, Frankie Newton's Uptown Serenaders, and Lionel Hampton. During the year 1939 he worked with Pete Brown & His Jump Band, Joe Marsala & His Delta Six, Leonard Feather's All-Stars, and one-armed trumpeter Wingy Manone.
In 1940, Cozy Cole took his decade of experience and
descended upon the Cab Calloway Orchestra during that brief period when the
extroverted leader, reluctant to surrender the spotlight, begrudgingly assigned
instrumental features to his star players. Cole was the main focus of
"Ratamacue," "Paradiddle," and "Crescendo in Drums."
In 1943 he worked with bandleader Raymond Scott and performed "Beat Out
Dat Rhythm
on a Drum" in the Broadway production of Oscar Hammerstein II's Carmen Jones. While playing in Scott’s band, Cole studied piano, clarinet, vibraphone and percussion at the Juilliard School of Music.
on a Drum" in the Broadway production of Oscar Hammerstein II's Carmen Jones. While playing in Scott’s band, Cole studied piano, clarinet, vibraphone and percussion at the Juilliard School of Music.
The year 1944 was a triumphant one for Cole, as he led
several all-star groups for the Keynote and Savoy labels and served with bands
led by trumpeter Roy Eldridge, saxophonist Coleman Hawkins, bassist Billy
Taylor, and cornetist Rex Stewart. He also sat in with pianist Johnny Guarnieri
and saxophonist Lester Young, clarinetist Hank D'Amico, tenor man Walter
"Foots" Thomas, and several groups working for the Armed Forces
V-Disc project.
In 1945 he played in the Broadway performances of 'Carmen
Jones' and 'Seven lively arts', as well as in the soundtrack of the animated
film 'Make mine music’. He also played for Benny Goodman and since 1947 with
Louis Armstrong and his All Stars, whom he accompanied on his European tours of
1949 and 1952. In 1954 he founded a drum academy in New York with his colleague
Gene Krupa . Other appearances of his in the cinema in the fifties include 'The
Strip' (1951) in which Cozy dubs Mickey Rooney , who plays the role of the
drummer of Louis Armstrong's band and 'The Glenn Miller Story' (1953) in which
Cole performs a battery duel with Gene Krupa , a duel that would repeat several
more times in his life.
In 1957 he accompanied Jack Teagarden and Earl Hines on
their tours of Europe. The following year, with his new combo, he got a
surprise hits on the pop charts with "Topsy I" and "Topsy
II". "Topsy II" peaked at
No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and at No. 1 on the R&B chart. It sold over
one million copies and was awarded a gold disc. The track peaked at No. 29 in
the UK Singles Chart in
1958. The recording contained a long drum solo and was one of the few drum solo recordings to make the charts at Billboard magazine. The single was issued by Love Records, a small record label in Brooklyn, New York. Cole's song "Turvy II" reached No. 36 in 1959.
1958. The recording contained a long drum solo and was one of the few drum solo recordings to make the charts at Billboard magazine. The single was issued by Love Records, a small record label in Brooklyn, New York. Cole's song "Turvy II" reached No. 36 in 1959.
In 1962 the U.S. Department of State sent Cole and his
band on a tour of Africa. Cole appeared in music-related films, including a
brief cameo in Don't Knock the Rock. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s he continued
to perform in a variety of settings. Cole and Gene Krupa often played drum
duets at the Metropole in New York City during the 1950s and 1960s.
In 1969 Cole began gigging with his old session mate
Jonah Jones and worked with the trumpeter's group intermittently for several
years. Late maturity found him jamming at a jazz festival in Nice, France, in
1974 and participating in a Louis Armstrong alumni project under the leadership
of Lionel Hampton in 1977. Cozy Cole received an honorary degree from Capital
University in Columbus, OH, in 1978, and lectured there periodically for the
rest of his life. He died from cancer in Columbus, Ohio, January 1981 at age
71.
(Compiled & edited mainly from Wikipedia, britannica.com
& All music)
1 comment:
For “Cozy Cole & Alan Hartwells Big Band - 24 Original Cozy Cole Hits” go here:
https://www65.zippyshare.com/v/yVdr2bdA/file.html
(3:22) 1. Topsy I (Original Version)
(2:29) 2. Bad
(2:24) 3. Turvy I
(4:58) 4. Afro-Caravan
(2:36) 5. Topsy-Turvy I
(3:30) 6. Topsy II (Original Version)
(2:09) 7. Charleston
(2:31) 8. Turvy II
(2:16) 9. Late & Crazy
(2:24) 10. Topsy-Turvy II
(2:44) 11. Crescendo
(3:16) 12. Topsy (Part I)*
(3:29) 13. Topsy (Part II)*
(2:19) 14. North Beach
(2:13) 15. Let There Be Drums
(2:45) 16. Ol' Man Mose
(2:08) 17. Sing! Sing! Sing! (With A Swing)
(2:27) 18. Big Noise From Winnetka (PartI)
(2:40) 19. Big Noise From Winnetka (PartII)
(2:20) 20. Christopher Columbus
(2:16) 21. A Cozy Beat
(2:10) 22. Rockin' Drummer
(2:23) 23. Indian Love Call (Part I)
(2:24) 24. Indian Love Call (Part II)
Cozy Cole Hits assembles 24 of Cole's recordings for the Love and Coral labels from 1958-1965, including all of his chart hits from the period. In addition to "Topsy II" and its many sequels, Cole steps behind the microphone to sing "Ol' Man Mose," covers Sandy Nelson's "Let There Be Drums," and is joined by a girl group that sings the praises of the "Rockin' Drummer." Most of the music follows in the big-band style of "Topsy II," but several of Cole's later recordings are clearly aimed at the rock & roll audience. Love Records is still in operation and owns Cole's masters, so Cozy Cole Hits is a legitimate release created from the original tapes. ~ Greg Adams
A big thank you to The Rockin' Bandit for original post.
For “Cozy Cole - Swinging Drums” go here:
https://www.datafilehost.com/d/04e70e80
[2:31] 1. Comes The Don
[2:39] 2. Take It On Back
[3:01] 3. I Don't Stand A Ghost Of A Chance
[2:46] 4. Willow Weep For Me
[2:47] 5. Smiles
[3:11] 6. Now's The Time
[2:53] 7. Why Regret
[2:43] 8. Look Here
[2:36] 9. Through For The Night
[2:41] 10. Lover Come Back To Me
[2:42] 11. Stompin' At The Savoy
[2:42] 12. All Of Me
[3:11] 13. Dat's Love
[3:04] 14. Night Wind
[2:48] 15. Memories Of You
[2:31] 16. Beat
[2:40] 17. Strictly Drums
[3:09] 18. Hallelujah
[2:48] 19. They Didn't Believe Me
[2:51] 20. When Day Is Done
A big thank you to mat tiggas @ silky denims blog for active link.
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