Kenny Clarke

Kenny Clarke was a highly influential if subtle drummer who helped to define bebop drumming. He was the first to shift the time-keeping rhythm from the bass drum to the ride cymbal, an innovation that has been copied and utilized by a countless number of drummers since the early '40s.

Clarke played vibes, piano and trombone in addition to drums while in school. After stints with <a href="spotify:artist:4RvXA7BDgqNgGDjsSSJnPc">Roy Eldridge</a> (1935) and the Jeter-Pillars band, Clarke joined <a href="spotify:artist:7LuYKkS2JVhnt6x2HmwK2P">Edgar Hayes' Big Band</a> (1937-38). He made his recording debut with <a href="spotify:artist:7LuYKkS2JVhnt6x2HmwK2P">Hayes</a> (which is available on a Classics CD) and showed that he was one of the most swinging drummers of the era. A European tour with <a href="spotify:artist:7LuYKkS2JVhnt6x2HmwK2P">Hayes</a> gave Clarke an opportunity to lead his own session, but doubling on vibes was a definite mistake! Stints with the orchestras of <a href="spotify:artist:5c9tII5LKJPqotewcpsFcb">Claude Hopkins</a> (1939) and <a href="spotify:artist:6RcS0R1ApjQDjEnMMMeoVa">Teddy Hill</a> (1940-41) followed and then Clarke led the house band at Minton's Playhouse (which also included <a href="spotify:artist:4PDpGtF16XpqvXxsrFwQnN">Thelonious Monk</a>). The legendary after-hours sessions led to the formation of bop and it was during this time that Clarke modernized his style and received the nickname "Klook-Mop" (later shortened to "Klook") due to the irregular "bombs" he would play behind soloists. A flexible drummer, Clarke was still able to uplift the more traditional orchestras of <a href="spotify:artist:19eLuQmk9aCobbVDHc6eek">Louis Armstrong</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:5V0MlUE1Bft0mbLlND7FJz">Ella Fitzgerald</a> (1941) and the combos of <a href="spotify:artist:5dlCVmfRbWVGOJYHzGyk32">Benny Carter</a> (1941-42), <a href="spotify:artist:1kEniOVLhKw78gS0myngEf">Red Allen</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:0JM134st8VY7Ld9T2wQiH0">Coleman Hawkins</a>; he also recorded with <a href="spotify:artist:1RsmXc1ZqW3WBs9iwxiSwk">Sidney Bechet</a>. However after spending time in the military, Clarke stayed in the bop field, working with <a href="spotify:artist:5RzjqfPS0Bu4bUMkyNNDpn">Dizzy Gillespie's</a> big band and leading his own modern sessions; he co-wrote "Epistrophy" with <a href="spotify:artist:4PDpGtF16XpqvXxsrFwQnN">Monk</a> and "Salt Peanuts" with <a href="spotify:artist:5RzjqfPS0Bu4bUMkyNNDpn">Gillespie</a>. Clarke spent the late '40s in Europe, was with <a href="spotify:artist:6htazaFMy8zs0f3sMtM2Pt">Billy Eckstine</a> in the U.S. in 1951 and became an original member of <a href="spotify:artist:7wBFjZMHsC6nfV0HOSd6uI">the Modern Jazz Quartet</a> (1951-55). However he felt confined by the music and quit <a href="spotify:artist:7wBFjZMHsC6nfV0HOSd6uI">the MJQ</a> to freelance, performing on an enormous amount of records during 1955-56.

In 1956 Clarke moved to France where he did studio work, was hired by touring American all-stars and played with <a href="spotify:artist:570vCzcespB48HIQyTbDO6">Bud Powell</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:3DuKJapiJ2AUvoIJq1ZJFb">Oscar Pettiford</a> in a trio called the Three Bosses (1959-60). Clarke was co-leader with <a href="spotify:artist:1mavRaFvDnIEm1IWWLxoVO">Francy Boland</a> of a legendary all-star big band (1961-72), one that had Kenny Clarke playing second drums! Other than a few short visits home, Kenny Clarke worked in France for the remainder of his life and was a major figure on the European jazz scene. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi