Biography
Carroll Dickerson spent his entire professional life tied to Chicago as both a violinist and bandleader. His path crossed repeatedly with that of Louis Armstrong, resulting in a substantial body of recorded work that featured the two musicians together. At the outset of their association, however, roles were reversed: Armstrong served as sideman while Dickerson held the leadership position. Throughout his working life Dickerson showed a consistent preference for directing ensembles himself.
He launched his activities in charge of a group that performed at Chicago’s Entertainer’s Cafe around 1921. During the remainder of the decade he assembled additional units, one of which completed a 48-week tour. In 1926 he brought Armstrong into a long-running engagement at the Sunset Cafe, where performances often extended from late evening until dawn. The partnership persisted even as billing changed; by 1929 the ensemble had left Chicago for the road and, upon reaching New York, began appearing under Armstrong’s name. Its final collective booking occurred in 1930 at Connie’s Inn.
Dickerson’s time in New York also included spells alongside the Mills Blue Rhythm Band and King Oliver. He subsequently returned to Chicago and fronted his own groups for the following twenty years, becoming a familiar presence at venues such as Swingland and Rhumboogie.
He launched his activities in charge of a group that performed at Chicago’s Entertainer’s Cafe around 1921. During the remainder of the decade he assembled additional units, one of which completed a 48-week tour. In 1926 he brought Armstrong into a long-running engagement at the Sunset Cafe, where performances often extended from late evening until dawn. The partnership persisted even as billing changed; by 1929 the ensemble had left Chicago for the road and, upon reaching New York, began appearing under Armstrong’s name. Its final collective booking occurred in 1930 at Connie’s Inn.
Dickerson’s time in New York also included spells alongside the Mills Blue Rhythm Band and King Oliver. He subsequently returned to Chicago and fronted his own groups for the following twenty years, becoming a familiar presence at venues such as Swingland and Rhumboogie.