Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

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WELLS, Dicky

(b William Wells, 10 June '07, Centerville TN; d 12 Nov. '85, NYC) Trombonist, composer; aka Dickie. With Jack Teagarden, J. C. Higginbotham and Jimmy Harrison, among the most influential trombonists in the decades before J. J. Johnson. Like the saxophone until Coleman Hawkins's time, the trombone was meant for comedy, playing a 'tailgate' role in New Orleans jazz, until technicians like these showed what could be done with it; Wells bravely put the comedy back in, but on a sophisticated level, always doing the unexpected. Invented his own 'pepperpot' mute. Humphrey Lyttelton calls him best of all in an excellent chapter in Humphrey's Enter The Giants. Wells worked with many bands incl. Fletcher Henderson; starred on the Spike Hughes sessions, made in NYC '33 when he was 23; an important LP was Dicky Wells In Paris 1937 on Prestige. He became famous with Count Basie '38-- 45: for Basie he wrote 'After Theatre Jump' and several others, but the famous 'Dickie's Dream' was written for him by Lester Young. With Sy Oliver '46--7, Basie again '47--50, Jimmy Rushing early '50s, toured Europe with Buck Clayton '59, '61; played with Ray Charles '61--3; freelanced but worked as bank messenger in Wall Street from '67. Mugged at least twice, suffered from alcoholism, but kept his sense of humour, evident in autobiography The Night People '71, as told to Stanley Dance. Dicky's Blues on Pearl was a good compilation of early work; later sessions incl. Swinging The Blues with Buck Clayton All Stars; Trombone Four-In-Hand and Bones For The King, later on Affinity UK; Lonesome Road '81 on Uptown with Buddy Tate.