b. 23 September 1907; Chicago, IL
d. 2 or 3 December 1949; Chicago, IL
A pianist, Ammons was one of the major figures in
the development and popularization of the piano style
known as boogie-woogie. He drew on the example of
slightly older players like Jimmy Yancey in developing his own approach. As a teenager, he practiced
with his friend Meade ‘‘Lux’’ Lewis using a mechanical player piano for guidance, and developed a notably powerful tremolo as a result. He began to perform
in Chicago and elsewhere during the mid-1920s.
He met Pine Top Smith in Chicago in 1927, and
later recorded a version of Smith’s ‘‘Pine Top’s BoogieWoogie’’ called ‘‘Boogie-Woogie Stomp’’ in 1936. He
worked in a variety of settings in Chicago, from solo
piano to his Rhythm Kings sextet, formed in 1934.
He made his New York debut in the ‘‘Spirituals to
Swing’’ concert at Carnegie Hall on December 23,
1938, in which he accompanied Big Bill Broonzy and
played in a boogie-woogie piano trio with Meade
‘‘Lux’’ Lewis and Pete Johnson.
His success led to a long-running engagement at
Cafe´ Society, initially in a duo with Lewis, and subsequently with Johnson and singer Big Joe Turner
added. He recorded for Vocalion and Blue Note in
1939, and later for Commodore, Victor, and Decca.
The foursome was featured at the Sherman Hotel in
Chicago and became known nationally through
broadcasts.
A hand problem left him unable to play for a
period in the mid-1940s, but he recovered. He
continued to perform throughout the decade, and
was briefly a member of the Lionel Hampton Band
in 1949. Jazz saxophonist Gene Ammons was his son.
KENNY MATHIESON
Bibliography
Page, Christopher I. Boogie-Woogie Stomp: Albert Ammons
and His Music. Cleveland: Northeast Ohio Jazz Society,
1997.
Silvester, Peter. A Left Hand Like God: The Story of Boogie
Woogie. London: Quartet Books, 1988.
Discography: DGR; LSFP
‘‘Boogie-Woogie Stomp’’ (1936, Decca 749).
‘‘Boogie-Woogie Stomp’’/‘‘Boogie-Woogie Blues’’ (1939,
Blue Note 2).
‘‘Shout for Joy’’ (1939, Vocalion).
‘‘Suitcase Blues’’/‘‘Bass Goin’ Crazy’’ (1939, Blue Note 21).
‘‘Albert’s Special Boogie’’/‘‘The Boogie Rocks’’ (1944,
Commodore 617).