Chick Webb

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

William Henry Chick Webb was born in Baltimore, probably in 1905, and died in 1939. His exact year of birth is disputed. He was an American jazz and swing drummer and bandleader. As a baby he fell down a staircase, after which a spinal disease left him small in stature and physically limited. His doctor advised him to play an instrument to keep his bones supple. He earned money for a drum kit as a newspaper boy and gave his first professional performance at the age of eleven. At seventeen he moved to New York and by 1926 he was already leading a band of his own in Harlem.

Music and breakthrough

In 1931 his orchestra became the house band of the Savoy Ballroom. There he played battle-of-the-bands contests against the orchestras of Benny Goodman and Count Basie. In 1937 he lost to Duke Ellington. Webb could not read music. He memorised the arrangements and conducted from a platform in the middle of the band, with custom-made pedals and a 28-inch bass drum. He took the young Ella Fitzgerald under his wing. She became the singer of his orchestra, and after his death in 1939 she took over the band.

Influence

Webb was regarded as one of the best drummers of the swing years. Buddy Rich called him the father of them all. The drummer showed that a percussionist could drive a whole big band, with power and ingenuity. In doing so he laid a foundation for later drummers in jazz and rock.

Listening

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

• After Hours: Session 1^NL Reader
• After Hours: Session 2^NL Reader
• Magazine: Van Bessie tot Ella^NL Magazine

Mentioned in other articles

• Drum kit with bass drum pedal TechnologyChick Webb and Gene Krupa made it, in swing, an instrument for spectacular solos.

See also

• Drum kit with bass drum pedal