Biography
Tommy Newsom earned his greatest recognition through performances with the Tonight Show Band across the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, during which he was periodically cast in humorous sketches as Doc Severinsen's dim-witted sidekick. He maintained consistent good humor toward these portrayals, yet the long-running gig obscured his genuine skill as a tenor saxophone soloist. After four years of service in the Air Force, where he performed with the Airmen of Note, Newsom completed studies at the Peabody Conservatory and Columbia University Teachers College, receiving a master's degree from the latter institution. Studio sessions occupied the bulk of his time throughout the 1950s, although his contributions to a late-decade Charlie Byrd date on Savoy demonstrated a robust personal style rooted in the Zoot Sims school. Newsom took part in Benny Goodman's 1961 Latin America tour and the 1962 Soviet Union tour, and he also recorded with Ruby Braff in 1961. He entered the Tonight Show Band in 1963 and remained for nearly thirty years, departing only upon Johnny Carson's retirement. Occasional freelance work and appearances at classic jazz festivals filled his schedule, and he sustained recording activity in the years following the Carson show's conclusion. An obscure 1978 session for Direct Disc Labs featured the Tonight Show Orchestra under his leadership, while a 1990 Laserlight CD presented his "TV Jazz Stars." Newsom died of cancer at his home in Portsmouth, VA, in 2007 at the age of 78.