Biography
Though Teddy Hill directed a thriving big band during the 1930s, he is chiefly recalled today for his stewardship of Harlem’s Minton’s Playhouse, the club whose late-night experimental sessions gave rise to bebop. His own path in music started upon arriving in New York in 1927, when he entered the ranks of George Howe’s ensemble—an outfit that became Luis Russell’s within a few months—and remained until 1931. Launching his own orchestra in 1934, Hill drew in such notable players as Roy Eldridge, Chu Berry, Dicky Wells, Bill Coleman, and Dizzy Gillespie, the last of whom cut his earliest recorded solos under Hill’s leadership. The group appeared often at the Savoy Ballroom and spent the summer of 1937 on the road in England and France, yet by 1940 Hill had stepped away from bandleading to take charge of Minton’s. At that venue, Gillespie, Berry, Charlie Christian, Jimmy Blanton, Thelonious Monk, and Kenny Clarke gathered after their paid engagements, extending their explorations of advanced harmonic ideas well into the early hours; one such performance preserved by enthusiast Jerry Newman even carries the title “Up on Teddy’s Hill.” Following World War II the club’s influence diminished, and when it abandoned its music policy in 1969 Hill moved on to manage the Baron Lounge.
Albums
