Great Jazz names (apart from Thelonious Monk)

[Cyril]

Monty Sunshine

[Larry Kart]

Edmund Gregory

[johnlitweiler]

Lonesome Sundown was surely the best name for a blues singer. Also, Peanut The Kidnapper.

[Peter Friedman]

Tiny Kahn

Harry "The Hipster" Gibson

Red Rodney

Dollar Brand

Abe Lincoln

Brew Moore

Derek Humble

Coleridge Goode

[johnlitweiler]

On the radio Dick Buckley once mentioned that the trombonists Abe Lincoln and George Washington not only knew each other, they once rode in a car together when a Los Angeles cop stopped them.

[marcello]

Wilfred Middlebrooks

Don't ask me why, I just find it funny. Sort of like a B grade silent film actor's name.

Let's not forget Charles "Bobo" Shaw

[BeBop]

How 'bout this for transformations:

Clarence Beeks ----> King Pleasure

Is that hip or what?

[Larry Kart]

Speaking of kings, even though he's not a jazz man, Roger King Mozian is a hell of a name for a trumpet player.

[Don Brown]

Shafi Hadi

Lonesome Dragon

Yusef Lateef

Pharoah Sanders

Little Brother Montgomery

Sweet Emma Barrett

Philly Joe Jones

Willie 'The Lion' Smith

Meade Lux Lewis

Eddie 'Cleanhead' Vinson

[mattes]

Wingy Manone

Freddie Slack

Cozy Cole

Fud Livingston

[Larry Kart]

Jason Adasiewicz (that's pronounced "Featherstonehaugh").

[Michael Weiss]

Wilfred Middlebrooks

Don't ask me why, I just find it funny. Sort of like a B grade silent film actor's name.

You beat me to it. Actually it's Wilfred Middlebrooks, III.

I played trio with him and Billy Higgins in LA.

[robertoart]

Otis 'Candy' Finch

Rudy McDaniel - Jamaaladeen Tacuma

Bern Nix

and for its generic potency - George Adams

Edited July 6, 2012 by freelancer

[aparxa]

Artie Shaw

[Big Beat Steve]

I've heard that Irving Fazola took that name from solfeggio, particularly "fa-so-la". I wonder if he was after the do-re-mi?

Royal Crown Revue, one of the major bands on the "Neo-Swing" musicians of the 90s (and beyond) includes one Mando Dorame, actually.

Toots Mondello

Tricky Sam Nanton

Bunny Berigan

Talking about great jazz names from that period, I've often wondered who inspired whom (if at all) or how some names came about.

There was one

Corky Cornelius

and a wee bit later there was one

Corky Corcoran

Coincidence?

[cih]

Alphonso Trent

[BillF]

Lol Coxhill

[brownie]

Garvin Bushell

Ziggy Elman

Ulysses Livingston

Chauncey Morehouse

Kid Ory

[Harold_Z]

Did I miss it? This thread actually went this long with nobody mentioning.......................HOT LIPS PAGE !

[Big Beat Steve]

Did I miss it? This thread actually went this long with nobody mentioning.......................HOT LIPS PAGE !

True ... an inexcusable oversight.

Do we therefore add Hot Lips Levine too?

(Yes, he actually existed too)

And while we're at facial details, how about:

GATEMOUTH BROWN

as well as his brother

WIDEMOUTH BROWN

Which of course leads to

Gatemouth Moore

...

Edited July 6, 2012 by Big Beat Steve

[Harold_Z]

Sugar Pie DeSanto

Santo Pecora

Cutty Cutshall

Marky Markowitz

Buzzy Drootin

[BillF]

Argonne "Dense" Thornton

[Cyril]

Blossom Dearie

[Big Beat Steve]

Blossom Dearie

The kind of name where you wonder whether "great" (or should I say weird) names are just as well found in other areas.

Or are

Hutch Davie

Tupper Saussy

really jazz people?

FWIW this thread and the names that are rattled off here has me wondering anyhow where the line would be between "great" jazz names (that somehow evoke the personality of the person) and just ODDBALL names.

[adamericson]

Tal Farlow

Gigi Gryce

Pepper Adams

Stuff Smith

Wardell Gray

Joe Puma

Booker Ervin

Carmell Jones

Serge Chaloff