Jazz Birthday: Meade “Lux” Lewis (1905)

Meade “Lux” Lewis is one of several famous boogie-woogie style pianists with a notable influence, such as on Etta James. He appears in It’s A Wonderful Life (1946), the film noir Nightmare (1956) and New Orleans (1947). The latter, which has other jazz musicians in it, shows on TCM occasionally. Lewis came from a musical family and started on violin. Later, attracted to the music of Jimmy Yancey, he taught himself piano. He and Albert Ammons, another boogie-woogie pianist, worked together studying the music of Yancey. His biggest hit is Honky Tonk Train Blues. He later experimented with celeste, a very pretty sound (see here.) Lewis was an enormously sophisticated master at his craft, utilizing complex chords, rhythms, thematic developments and contrasts while covering the piano’s full range. The tune below consists of a series of 12-bar blues choruses. In each one, Lewis expresses a different musical idea brought out by his light touch and accompanied by his infallible left-hand rhythm. For one listening, I’d close my eyes and just listen. On another, enjoy the small sample of dance.

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7:33 am on September 4, 2012