Page 11 - My FlipBook

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M ore ab ut C i

Jazz music was born in New Orleans, but it had its roots in music from
Africa and Europe. Swing music is a form of jazz. It’s more rhythmic and less

improvisational than early jazz music. In the late 1920s and early 1930s,
big bands formed to play swing music. It was a music people wanted to dance

to. New dances like the Charleston and the Lindy Hop became popular. One
of the most famous songs Chick played, “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” refers to

the foot stomping often used in some of these dances.

Chick had spinal tuberculosis and constant back pain for most of his life. In
early 1939, his back pain worsened. He had surgery, but it didn’t help. Chick

found himself back in the hospital with further problems. On June 16, 1939,
surrounded by family and friends, Chick sat up in his bed and said, “I’m sorry,

but I gotta go.” He fell back onto his pillow and died.

Sources differ about Chick’s birth year (even though his grave marker
says 1909). It was probably sometime between 1905 and 1909, making

him younger than 35 years old when he died in 1939. At his funeral, Ella

Fitzgerald sang “My Buddy.” By the time she got to the end, she was weeping.

At just under five feet tall, the author understands that being short has its
challenges. That’s one thing that drew her to Chick’s story—that, and having

raised a percussionist daughter. While she cannot imagine the full effects
of the suffering Chick faced in life, she felt a tremendous admiration for this

man who overcame such difficulties to make incredible music.