Chick Webb

William Henry Webb, usually known as Chick Webb (February 10, 1905 - June 16, 1939) was a jazz and swing music drummer and band leader.

Related Topics:
February 10 - 1905 - June 16 - 1939 - Jazz - Swing music - Drummer - Band leader

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Webb was born in Baltimore, Maryland to William H. and Marie Johnson Webb. He suffered from childhood tuberculosis, leaving him with short height and a badly deformed spine. He supported himself as a newspaper boy and saved up money to buy drums, and first played professionally at age 11.

Related Topics:
Baltimore, Maryland - Tuberculosis - Spine - Newspaper - Drum

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At twenty he moved to New York City and by the following year, 1926, he was leading his own band in Harlem. Jazz drummer Tommy Benford said he gave Webb drum lessons when he first reached New York.

Related Topics:
New York City - 1926 - Harlem - Tommy Benford

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He alternated between band tours and residencies at New York City clubs through the late 1920s. In 1931, his band became the house band at the Savoy Ballroom. He became one of the best-regarded bandleaders and drummers of the new "Swing" style. The Savoy often featured "Battle of the Bands" where Webb's band would compete with other top bands (such as the Benny Goodman Orchestra or the Count Basie Orchestra) from opposing bandstands.

Related Topics:
1931 - Savoy Ballroom - Swing

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Webb married a woman named Sallye and in 1935 he began featuring a teenaged Ella Fitzgerald as vocalist. He formally adopted her.

Related Topics:
1935 - Ella Fitzgerald

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In November of 1938, Webb's health began to decline, and from then until his death he alternated time on the bandstand with time in hospitals.

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After his death, Ella Fitzgerald led the Chick Webb band for the remainder of the swing era.

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