St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1943-12-24

ST., was one of the greatest) off
the stool and started playing. 1t
was well after closing time when he
quit, but no one left. Members of
the band stood around and listened.
Eddie Haywood, Mary Lou Will
liams, Cliff Jackson, Josh White,
Kenneth Spencer-they all hung
around hungrily drinking in the
Waller melodies - beautiful, rare
harmonies, expressive of deep senti-
ment, humor, sparkling wit which
needed not Walters saucy, some
times naughty lyrical inspersions
to make brighter. "Honeysuckle
Rose" was played with about 20
variations in six different keys.
write Myself A Letter" came
next, followed by ''Black and Blue"
"Ain't Misbehaving," Squeeze
Me-" and others.
Fats Could Play Boogie
A restless white lad, slouching
near the bar which had long been
closed, hollered, "Fats, play US
some boogie woogie." Waller looked
around with sort of hurt look in
his eyes, and then slowly a con-
temptuous smile spread over his
heavy features. He looked up at
Haywood and Mary Lou Williams,
admitted boogie-woogie experts,
and then nodded his head. He had
made up his mind. In a second, his
fingers were twinkling over the
keys in the traditional boogie
woogie beat. Only a few realized
that Waller had been challenged by
the white boy. Few knew that of
all forms of popular music, Waller
hated boogie-woogie as beneath him
and once swore he'd never descend
to such level that he would have
to play it. But Waller that night
was feeling good and from his
fingers there arose such a COM
bination of boogie-woogie chords
and runs that Mary Lou, an expert,
was seen getting her hat ready to
leave. Fats was too much. He
played boogie-woogie as though he
had been featuring it all his life.
Afterward, he said: "Now you see,
1 can play boogie-woogie-when I
want to-"
The obituaries on Waller are
pretty extensive and provide the
detailed information about how he
was born in New York City, May
Fl, 1904; how his father preached
at the Abyssinian Baptist Church
until Fats was Is years old and
how his religions background en-
phasized music. In those days, Wal
Ter showed an extraordinary ap-
probation of fine music and con-
slant study made him one of the
best classic pianists of that era. AS
he came along, however, he started
fooling around with ragtime and
jazz music. He played both piano
and the organ at the Old Lincoln
and Roosevelt Theatres in Harlem
and under the tutelage of the mas
ter, James P. Johnson, learned to
break his chords into thirds and
fifths and to swing his bass hand.
Carolina Shout" by johnson
helped make him great and to
launch him on the road to the pin
nacle.
He teamed up with Andy Razaf
in the early part of 1880 and from
their pens flowed a steady stream
of hits such as "Honeysuckle Rose"
"Ain't Misbehaving," "My Fate Is
In Your Hands," and many others.
He wrote with J. C. johnson and
other top-fight musicians and COM
posers. He rose steadily both as a
musician and, as a character, the
likes of which may not be seen in
this generation. When the train
conductor at Kansas City dis
covered the pianist, ailing from a
heart attack, Walters breath be-
came so complicated that before aid
could reach him, he had died.
Waller wrote all the music for
the Broadway hit musical comedy
early To Bed" At the height of
his career, Waller had appeared in
the movies, on the radio, had been
sensation in Europe, and was at
the point where he could do any
| thing he wanted in music with
IMMUNITY, since he had achieved the
rare distinction Of being the first
colored composer to pack Carnegie
Hall with patrons just to hear him
play the piano.
GREETINGS