ENDEIT
Kenny Clarke
Photo: W. Punt for Anefo, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Drummers · 1914–1985

Kenny Clarke

American jazz drummer (1914–1985)

Born
9 January 1914
Pittsburgh
Died
26 January 1985
Montreuil
Country
United States
Record labels
Blue Note
Discography
11 albums

Biography

Kenny Clarke was a jazz musician who played drum kit. Kenny Clarke was born on 9 January 1914 in Pittsburgh and died on 26 January 1985 in Montreuil. The music is usually filed under jazz and bebop. Record labels: Blue Note. The discography here lists 11 albums, from “Bohemia After Dark” (1955) to “Live in Paris: Jazz From Carnegie Hall, 1er oct. 1958” (2018). Honours include NEA Jazz Masters.

Kenneth Clarke Spearman (January 9, 1914 – January 26, 1985), known professionally as Kenny Clarke and nicknamed Klook, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A major innovator of the bebop style of drumming, he pioneered the use of the ride cymbal to keep time rather than the hi-hat, along with the use of the bass drum for irregular accents ("dropping bombs"). Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was orphaned about age five and began playing drums when he was eight or nine at the urging of a teacher at his orphanage. He turned professional in 1931 at age 17; four years later, he moved to New York City where he began to establish his drumming style and reputation. As the house drummer at Minton's Playhouse in the early 1940s, he participated in the after-hours jams that led to the birth of bebop.

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Discography

Studio and live albums

Bohemia After Dark 1955 · Savoy Records Telefunken Blues 1955 · Savoy Records The Golden Eight 1961 Musique Sacrée 1969 · Riviera Jazz a confronto 20 1975 · Horo Records I Giganti Del Jazz Vol. 37 1981 · Live · Armando Curcio Editore Pieces of Time 1984 · Soul Note Klook's Time 2002 · EMI The Golden Eight - Encore! 2010 · Rearward Live in Paris: Jazz From Carnegie Hall, 1er oct. 1958 2018 · Live · Frémeaux & Associés Clarke Boland Quintet · Europa Jazz

Also plays on

Albums where Kenny Clarke is credited as a sideman

1951 Fats Navarro Memorial Album — Fats Navarro drums (drum set)
1952 Young Man With a Horn — Miles Davis drums (drum set)
1952 Wizard of the Vibes — Milt Jackson drums (drum set)
1952 Modern Jazz Quartet — Modern Jazz Quartet drums (drum set)
1953 The Compositions of Al Cohn — Miles Davis drums (drum set)
1953 Jay Jay Johnson with Clifford Brown, Jimmy Heath, John Lewis, Percy Heath, Kenny Clarke — J.J. Johnson drums (drum set)
1954 Miles Davis With Sonny Rollins — Miles Davis drums (drum set)
1954 Jay & Kai — Kai Winding & J.J. Johnson drums (drum set)
1954 Vibist — Cal Tjader drums (drum set)
1954 Jazz Studio 1 — Paul Quinichette, Benny Green, Frank Foster, Joseph Newman, Hank Jones, Kenny Clarke, Edward Jones, Sir Jonathan Gasser drums (drum set)
1955 My Kinda Love — Sarah Vaughan drums (drum set)
1955 Presenting Cannonball Adderley — Cannonball Adderley drums (drum set)
1955 Julian Cannonball Adderley — Julian Cannonball Adderley drums (drum set)
1955 Carmen McRae — Carmen McRae, The Mat Mathews Quartet, The Tony Scott Quartet drums (drum set)
1955 When Farmer Met Gryce — Art Farmer & Gigi Gryce drums (drum set)
1955 The Hank Jones Quartet-Quintet — Hank Jones drums (drum set)
1955 Lee Konitz with Warne Marsh — Lee Konitz & Warne Marsh drums (drum set)
1955 The Eminent Jay Jay Johnson, Volume 2 — Jay Jay Johnson drums (drum set)
1955 The Eminent Jay Jay Johnson, Volume 1 — Jay Jay Johnson drums (drum set)
1955 Opus de Jazz — Milt Jackson drums (drum set)
1955 "That's Nat" Adderley — Nat Adderley drums (drum set)
1955 Blues and Other Shades of Green — Urbie Green drums (drum set)
1955 Flutes & Reeds — Ernie Wilkins / Frank Wess / Jerome Richardson / Hank Jones / Eddie Jones / Kenny Clarke drums (drum set)
1955 Nica’s Tempo — Gigi Gryce drums (drum set)
1956 Blue Haze — Miles Davis drums (drum set)
1956 Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington — Thelonious Monk drums (drum set)
1956 Sonny Rollins With the Modern Jazz Quartet — Sonny Rollins with The Modern Jazz Quartet feat. Art Blakey & Kenny Drew drums (drum set)
1956 Jazz Composers Workshop — Charles Mingus drums (drum set)
1956 Byrd's Word — Donald Byrd drums (drum set)
1956 By Special Request — Carmen McRae with Mat Mathews Quintet drums (drum set)

Standards written by Kenny Clarke

TitleKeyFormGroove
Epistrophy D♭ major ABCB · 32 Medium swing

Member of

Modern Jazz Quartet 1952– · American musical group; jazz ensemble

Awards

Historic 78 rpm records

  • D and E Milt Jackson Quartet · Milt Jackson · John Lewis · Ray Brown · Kenny… archive.org ↗
  • Yesterdays Milt Jackson Quartet · Milt Jackson · John Lewis · Ray Brown · Kenny… archive.org ↗
  • CONFIRMATION KENNY CLARKE'S ALL STARS · Kenny Clarke · J. Brown · C. Payne ·… archive.org ↗
  • WRAP YOUR TROUBLES IN DREAMS SIDNEY BECHET and his feetwarmers · Sidney Bechet · Eddy Bernard ·… archive.org ↗
  • MARGIE SIDNEY BECHET and his feetwarmers · Sidney Bechet · Eddy Bernard ·… archive.org ↗
  • OUT OF NOWHERE KENNY CLARKE'S ALL STARS · Percy Heath · H. McGee · Michel DeVillers… archive.org ↗
  • Tall Boy Kenny Clarke's All Stars · Kenny Clarke · Michel DeVillers · Jean… · 1948 archive.org ↗
  • THE MAN I LOVE JEAN-CLAUDE FOHRENBACH · Claude Dunson · Michel de Villers · Jack… · 1948 archive.org ↗

Frequently asked questions

What instrument did Kenny Clarke play?

Kenny Clarke is known for playing drum kit.

When and where was Kenny Clarke born?

Kenny Clarke was born 9 January 1914 in Pittsburgh.

What are Kenny Clarke's best-known albums?

Albums in our database include Bohemia After Dark (1955), Telefunken Blues (1955), The Golden Eight (1961), Musique Sacrée (1969) and Jazz a confronto 20 (1975).

External links

Data compiled from open sources; see the source links below. Spotted an error? Let us know.