Buster Harding

Buster Harding
Birth nameLavere Harding
Born(1912-03-19)March 19, 1912[1][2][3]
Ontario, Canada
DiedNovember 14, 1965(1965-11-14) (aged 53)
New York City, New York, United States
GenresSwing music
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, arranger
InstrumentPiano
Formerly ofCount Basie

Lavere "Buster" Harding (March 19, 1917 – November 14, 1965)[4] was a Canadian-born American jazz pianist, composer and arranger.

Early life

[edit]

Born to Benjamin "Ben" and Ada (née Shreve) Harding in North Buxton, Ontario,[1][3] Harding was raised in Cleveland, Ohio, where as a teenager he started on his own band.[5]

Later life and career

[edit]

In 1939, Harding went to work for the Teddy Wilson big band, and then in the early 1940s went to work for the Coleman Hawkins band, and later Cab Calloway.[4] He became a freelance arranger and worked with Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Roy Eldridge, Dizzy Gillespie, and Count Basie, among others.[5]

In 1949, he was the musical director for Billie Holiday recording sessions.[4] In the early 1960s, Harding played with Jonah Jones, though he was known primarily as an arranger and composer.[5] Harding did not record as a leader.[6] He died on November 14, 1965, in New York City.[6]

Select discography

[edit]

With Count Basie

With Roy Eldridge

With Dizzy Gillespie

With Billie Holiday

  • Broadcast Performances, Vol. 1: Radio And TV Broadcasts (1949-52) (ESP Disk)
  • Broadcast Performances, Vol. 2: Radio And TV Broadcasts (1953-56) (ESP Disk)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Abdul, Raoul (September 14, 2005). "Deep roots in 'Musical Buxton'". New York Amsterdam News.
  2. ^ Miller, Mark (1997). Such Melodious Racket: The Lost History of Jazz in Canada, 1914-1949. Mercury Press. p. 141. ISBN 978-1-55128-046-2.
  3. ^ a b 1930 United States Census. -- Ohio -- Cuyahoga -- Cleveland. - United States Census Bureau.
  4. ^ a b c Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1081. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  5. ^ a b c Carr, Ian; Digby Fairweather; Brian Priestley (2004). The Rough Guide to Jazz. Rough Guides. p. 335. ISBN 9781843532569.
  6. ^ a b Yanow, Scott " Buster Harding – Biography by Scott Yanow". AllMusic. Retrieved January 25, 2016.