Biography
Ollie Powers, whose surname implied considerable force, nevertheless maintained one of the shortest careers in jazz before diabetes ended his life during 1928. Serving as both drummer and vocalist, he directed several ensembles of his own, among them Ollie Powers' Harmony Syncopators, which documented its sound in a solitary 1923 session for Paramount. Two selections appeared from those dates: "Jazzbo Jenkins," a title that fuses a pair of twenties-era slang expressions, and "Play That Thing," possibly intended as an exhortation to fellow players and substantial enough to warrant at least four recorded versions.
Originally known as Powell, the artist’s activities on the Chicago jazz circuit of the Roaring Twenties continue to elicit labels such as obscure and shadowy within a single description. His style merged cabaret presentation with jazz execution. From behind the drum set he supplied vocals for the Panama Trio, a group already audible in the Windy City by 1914. Shortly afterward, pianist Shelton Brooks shared a duo with Powers. The new decade opened with work in the Fields Crackerjack Band, an engagement that may have finally convinced him to abandon sideman roles altogether.
Bands under his leadership followed, many carrying the word harmony in their names, yet their musical aim was to replicate the sound of Southern groups, especially those from New Orleans and in particular King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band. Ollie Powers Harmony Band held court at Dreamland while he simultaneously maintained a solo turn and a partnership with singer May Alix. Around 1926 he began working with bandleader and clarinetist Jimmie Noone; their run at the Apex Club finished only three weeks before Powers died. Most surviving recordings of his own groups date from this concluding association with Noone. Ongoing interest in those limited documents stems in part from sidemen such as trumpeter Tommy Ladnier.
Originally known as Powell, the artist’s activities on the Chicago jazz circuit of the Roaring Twenties continue to elicit labels such as obscure and shadowy within a single description. His style merged cabaret presentation with jazz execution. From behind the drum set he supplied vocals for the Panama Trio, a group already audible in the Windy City by 1914. Shortly afterward, pianist Shelton Brooks shared a duo with Powers. The new decade opened with work in the Fields Crackerjack Band, an engagement that may have finally convinced him to abandon sideman roles altogether.
Bands under his leadership followed, many carrying the word harmony in their names, yet their musical aim was to replicate the sound of Southern groups, especially those from New Orleans and in particular King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band. Ollie Powers Harmony Band held court at Dreamland while he simultaneously maintained a solo turn and a partnership with singer May Alix. Around 1926 he began working with bandleader and clarinetist Jimmie Noone; their run at the Apex Club finished only three weeks before Powers died. Most surviving recordings of his own groups date from this concluding association with Noone. Ongoing interest in those limited documents stems in part from sidemen such as trumpeter Tommy Ladnier.