Biography
Born in Newton, Massachusetts on 20 June 1906, Howard Joyner died in Mount Kisco, New York on 3 December 1986. After developing his piano and vocal skills in his native state, he relocated to New York at the close of his teens and promptly established himself as both a hotel and nightclub performer and a recording artist. A short European sojourn followed, yet by the mid-1930s he had strengthened his standing in New York by adding a steady radio program to his credits—an uncommon achievement for a black musician at that time. Steady work continued through the 1940s and into the 1950s, when his popularity opened doors to television appearances. Although he remained centered in New York, occasional engagements took him to residencies in Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
Public recognition rested chiefly on his emulation of Fats Waller, an approach whose lack of originality was offset by polished technique and an affable stage presence. While he sometimes collaborated and recorded with jazz players, his reputation rested on his work as a jazz-inflected popular singer and pianist. His vocal delivery shifted with the song and the setting, moving between tenor and baritone, between forceful delivery and playful, meandering phrasing. When fronting a group modeled on Cab Calloway’s, he hired capable players yet frequently interrupted their solos with untimely shouts of encouragement. Arrangements by Benny Carter remain the ensemble’s chief claim to remembrance.
Public recognition rested chiefly on his emulation of Fats Waller, an approach whose lack of originality was offset by polished technique and an affable stage presence. While he sometimes collaborated and recorded with jazz players, his reputation rested on his work as a jazz-inflected popular singer and pianist. His vocal delivery shifted with the song and the setting, moving between tenor and baritone, between forceful delivery and playful, meandering phrasing. When fronting a group modeled on Cab Calloway’s, he hired capable players yet frequently interrupted their solos with untimely shouts of encouragement. Arrangements by Benny Carter remain the ensemble’s chief claim to remembrance.