Mike Longo Trio

about

Mike Longo was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He came from a musical background. His father played bass, his mother played organ at church, and his music training began at a young age. Mike recalled seeing Sugar Child Robinson playing boogie woogie piano: "The first time I saw him, man, he knocked me out. I must have been three or four years old. He played after the Count Basie show, so I went home and started picking out boogie woogie bass lines."[1] His parents took him for formal lessons at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music at four. He moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida soon after. At the age of 12 he won a local talent contest. Mike's career started in his father's band, but later Cannonball Adderley helped him get gigs of his own. Their working relationship began before Adderley was well known as a band leader. Adderley approached the teenaged Longo because he needed a pianist at his church. At this time the town was largely segregated so the white Longo playing at a black church was unusual. When this led to recordings with Adderley in the mid-1950s, Longo was initially too young to go to the clubs with him. Still in 10th grade, one of the places Longo played was Porky's, which was later portrayed in the movie.[1] Mike would go on to receive his Bachelor of Music degree from Western Kentucky University. The great Dizzy Gillespie first heard Longo when he was playing at The Metropole. "I was playing downstairs with Red Allen, and Dizzy was playing upstairs with his band.

top songs

albums

Float Like a Butterfly

Sting Like A Bee

▥

Only Time Will Tell

To My Surprise

Only Time Will Tell (feat. Paul West & Lewis Nash)

▥

Piano Jazz - SKY.FM - Enjoy the sounds of piano jazz from historic and modern masters.

▥

Piano Jazz - JAZZRADIO.com

▥

Still Swingin'

▥

900 Shares of the Blues

▥

Live: The Detroit International Jazz Festival

▥

A Celebration of Diz and Miles - Live from the John Birks Gillespie Auditorium in the New York City Baha'i Center

▥

?

similar artists