Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time. He was noted for the complexity and speed of his performances, which set a new standard for jazz piano virtuosity.
Tatum drew inspiration from his contemporaries James P. Johnson and Fats Waller, and had a great influence on other famous jazz pianists, such as Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Chick Corea, and Oscar Peterson. Saxophonist Charlie Parker took his first job in New York as a dishwasher where Tatum played, just for the experience of hearing Tatum's harmonic inventions.
Tatum identified Fats Waller as his main influence, but according to pianist Teddy Wilson and saxophonist Eddie Barefield, "Art Tatum's favorite jazz piano player was Earl Hines. He used to buy all of Earl's records and would improvise on them. He'd play the record but he'd improvise over what Earl was doing ..... 'course, when you heard Art play you didn't hear nothing of anybody but Art. But he got his ideas from Earl's style of playing – but Earl never knew that."
A major event in his meteoric rise to success was his appearance at a cutting contest in 1933 at Morgan's bar in New York City that included Waller, Johnson and Willie "The Lion" Smith. Standard contest pieces included Johnson's "Harlem Strut" and "Carolina Shout" and Fats Waller's "Handful of Keys." Tatum triumphed with his arrangements of "Tea for Two" and "Tiger Rag", in a performance that was considered to be the last word in stride piano. James P. Johnson, reminiscing about Tatum's debut afterward, simply said, "When Tatum played Tea For Two that night I guess that was the first time I ever heard it really played." Tatum's debut was historic because he outplayed the elite competition and heralded the demise of the stride era. He was not challenged further until stride specialist Donald Lambert initiated a half-serious rivalry with him.
Tatum worked first around Toledo and Cleveland and then later in New York at the Onyx Club for a few months; he recorded his first four solo sides on the Brunswick label in March, 1933. He returned to Ohio and played around the American midwest - Toledo, Cleveland, Detroit, Saint Louis and Chicago - in the mid-1930s and played on the Fleischman Hour radio program hosted by Rudy Vallee in 1935. He also played stints at the Three Deuces in Chicago and in Los Angeles he played at The Trocadero, the Paramount and the Club Alabam. In 1937 he returned to New York where he appeared at clubs and played on national radio programs. The following year he embarked on the Queen Mary for England where he toured, playing for three months at Ciro's Club owned by bandleader Ambrose. In the late 1930s he returned to play and record in Los Angeles and New York.
In 1941, Tatum recorded two sessions for Decca Records with singer Big Joe Turner, the first of which included "Wee Wee Baby Blues", which attained national popularity. Two years later Tatum won Esquire Magazine's first jazz popularity poll. Perhaps believing there was a limited audience for solo piano, Tatum formed a trio in 1943 with guitarist Tiny Grimes and bassist Slam Stewart, whose perfect pitch enabled him to follow Tatum's excursions. Tatum recorded exclusively with the trio for almost two years, but abandoned the trio format in 1945 and returned to solo piano work. Although Tatum was idolized by many jazz musicians, his popularity faded in the mid to late forties with the advent of bebop - a movement which Tatum did not embrace.
The last two years of his life, Tatum regularly played at Baker's Keyboard Lounge in Detroit, including his final public performance in April 1956. Earlier, Tatum had personally selected and purchased for Clarence Baker the Steinway piano at Baker's, finding it in a New York showroom, and shipping it to Detroit.
Tatum was widely recognized among his colleagues as the most gifted jazz pianist alive, some going so far as to say he was one of the greatest pianists of any genre. Such classical luminaries as Vladimir Horowitz and Sergei Rachmaninov greatly admired his technique. Unusually for a jazz musician, Tatum rarely abandoned the original melodic lines of the songs he played, preferring innovative reharmonization (changing the chord progressions that supported the melodies). He also had a penchant for filling spaces within melodies with his trademark runs and other embellishments, which some critics considered gratuitous and "unjazzlike."
Sweet Lorraine
Art Tatum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Can't believe it yet, but it's true,
I'll give you just one guess,
My sweet Lorraine said "yes"
Waiting for the time, soon to be,
When the bells will chime merrily,
(I'm so happy,) when it's raining I don't miss the sun,
Just think that I'm the lucky one
Who will lend her down the aisle
Each night I pray
That nobody steals her heart away,
Just can't wait until that happy day,
When I marry sweet Lorraine
Everything is set, skies are blue,
Can't believe it yet, but it's true,
I'll give you just one guess,
My sweet Lorraine said "yes"
Waiting for the time, soon to be,
When the bells will chime merrily,
(I'm so happy,) when it's raining I don't miss the sun,
For it's in my sweeties smile,
Just think that I'm the lucky one
Who will lend her down the aisle
Each night I pray
That nobody steals her heart away,
Just can't wait until that happy day,
When I marry sweet Lorraine
The lyrics of Art Tatum's song "Sweet Lorraine" describes the overwhelming feeling of joy and contentment that comes with being in love with someone who reciprocates those feelings. The singer is clearly enamored and in awe of Lorraine, who has accepted his proposal, and he makes references to the blue skies and bells that are symbolic of the happiness and excitement that their union will bring. He indicates that he is so consumed by her love that he doesn't even notice the absence of the sun, for it is in her smile that he finds his happiness.
The lyrics also convey the singer's hope of successfully marrying Lorraine, as he prays that no one would come in the way and steal her heart away. It is clear that the singer is looking forward to the day when they will be wed, which will undoubtedly be a joyous occasion for them both. Overall, the lyrics of the song "Sweet Lorraine" speak of the beauty of true love and the joy that comes with its reciprocation.
Line by Line Meaning
Everything is set, skies are blue,
The singer feels everything is going well, he is content and ready.
Can't believe it yet, but it's true,
Despite his disbelief, the singer is happy about something momentous.
I'll give you just one guess,
The singer is about to share some good news and he is confident you'll be able to guess what it is.
My sweet Lorraine said 'yes'
Lorraine has committed to something, likely to marry the singer.
Waiting for the time, soon to be,
The singer is eagerly anticipating something in the near future.
When the bells will chime merrily,
The singer is looking forward to a joyful occasion
(I'm so happy,) when it's raining I don't miss the sun,
The singer is happy regardless of the circumstances, as he has something that brings him joy.
For it's in my sweeties smile,
The source of the singer's joy is his beloved Lorraine.
Just think that I'm the lucky one
The singer feels fortunate to have Lorraine in his life.
Who will lend her down the aisle
The singer will have the privilege of walking Lorraine towards the altar on their wedding day.
Each night I pray
The singer is hopeful and optimistic about the future.
That nobody steals her heart away,
The singer worries that someone else may try to take Lorraine's love from him.
Just can't wait until that happy day,
The singer is eagerly anticipating his wedding day with Lorraine.
When I marry sweet Lorraine
The singer is looking forward to marrying the love of his life, Lorraine.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: CLIFF BURWELL, CLIFFORD BURWELL, MITCHELL PARISH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
madbebopper
There is only one Art Tatum - possibly the greatest piano genius of all time in music. He has brought me to tears with his sheer greatness many times. He never got the recognition due during his short lifetime. God Bless you Art Tatum!
Despond
This isn't shredding. It's actual melodic and has unique phrasing. :)
mcrohof
The genius part I feel is the intro; the conception is quite mind blowing.
John Harding
Great piano work. I knew Michael Heindorf, the son of Ray Heindorf. Michael was also a true genius - played any instrument, had perfect pitch and a great composing career.
Phil Pryor
There is nothing more beautiful than a Tatum flight, here at Ray Heindorf's private situation where relaxation led to concentrated beauty. No-one could play piano with such speedy skill and ultimate improvised imagination. His suggested paths of harmonic progression remain a wonder, for they sound absolutely refined, though just contrived then, as though by instantaneous magic. It is still pure sculptured sound.
Pinkie Eldred
Phil Pryor ...very well stated...he was so phenomenal we are at loss of words to describe his magic but you chose your words wisely. Aren't we lucky to hear the miracles...many could never know, will never know of him because they don't have ears to hear.
fred
agree totally. his mind worked at such a speed, that really he was very much a solo pianist, even though he made many recordings with others. An extraordinary musician. He was planning to make some recordings with an orchestra, playing Rhapsody in Blue,etc but it was too late. a tragedy.
Travis Brown
That progression 2:03 - 2:08 still gets me every time OMG!! Geesh
fred
It will probably be another 100 years before another Art Tatum comes along. His abilities with time, harmonies and substitute chords have never been matched. Irrespective of genre of music, no other pianist ever had such ability to play chords like him. His departure at age 47 was a tragedy and far too soon. Hopefully future generations will be able to appreciate his craft.
Lembit Punapart
Tatum is one the realest legends in the jazz music.