Willie "The Lion" Smith in the 1920s was considered one of the big three of
stride piano (along with
James P. Johnson and
Fats Waller) even though he made almost no recordings until the mid-'30s. His mother was an organist and pianist, and
Smith started playing piano when he was six. He earned a living playing piano as a teenager, gained his nickname "the Lion" for his heroism in World War I, and after his discharge he became one of the star attractions at Harlem's nightly rent parties. Although he toured with
Mamie Smith (and played piano on her pioneering 1920
blues record "Crazy Blues"),
Smith mostly freelanced throughout his life. He was an influence on the young
Duke Ellington (who would later write "Portrait of the Lion") and most younger New York-based pianists of the 1920s and '30s. Although he was a braggart and (with his cigar and trademark derby hat) appeared to be a rough character,
Smith was actually more colorful than menacing and a very sophisticated pianist with a light touch. His recordings with his
Cubs (starting in 1935) and particularly his 1939 piano solos for Commodore (highlighted by "Echoes of Spring") cemented his place in history. Because he remained very active into the early '70s (writing his memoirs -Music on My Mind in 1965), for quite a few decades
Willie "The Lion" Smith was considered a living link to the glory days of
early jazz. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
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Wille "The Lion Smith" and His Cubs [Jazzology]