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Artist
Prince Robinson
12+ albums
bluesbluesrockguitar blues
about
This Southern musician's early start helped him get a foot in the door of many of the most innovative and most popular jazz combos of the day, where he emerged as a member well-respected by his fellow players but largely forgotten by the listening public. He was self-taught on the clarinet and began wailing with local bands less than a year after he started playing at 14. He headed for New York City in 1923 after a few years of knocking around the local scene. His first job from the Big Apple jazz merchants was with Lionel Howard's Musical Aces, and from there, gigs with Elmer Snowden, June Clark, and a quite green Duke Ellington. Robinson was on recording sessions with the latter band, including sides cut for Okeh that have been reissued on labels such as Masters of Jazz. There are many different collections available of Ellington recordings from the mid- and late '20s, many of them featuring Robinson. In 1927 he took advantage of the opportunity to tour South America as a member of the Leon Abbey band, then joined the classic hot jazz outfit McKinney's Cotton Pickers, fronted by reed player Don Redman. Robinson's recordings with this group highlight his soloing on tracks such as "Four or Five Times," cut originally for Victor. There are a half-dozen different collections available of recordings by the McKinney group. A medium-sized combo that sounded like a much larger group, this band was one of the best mediums for Robinson. One of his specialties fit right in with the g
