Quick quiz. What do Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Lena Horne, and Charlie Mingus have in common?
Obviously, they’re all Jazz legends, but they also lived in Queens — and their residences are highlighted in the Queens Jazz Trail Map.
Thanks to a state grant, the Queens Tourism Council ordered a new print run of the map whose copyright has belonged to Flushing Town Hall for several decades. Get a free copy by sending an email to [email protected] or via Flushing Town Hall.
The multi-color, fold-out map features illustrations of the musicians and their houses by Tony Millionaire. The reverse side breaks down the neighborhoods with text and historical notes by Marc H. Miller.
Framed Jazz Trail maps look fantastic on walls. Folded copies are great for coffee table tops. Or keep one in your car for reference as driving around the borough.
New Orleans boosters contend that the Big Easy is the “Birthplace of Jazz,” where many of the genres pioneers performed and collaborated during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Fair enough, but Queens has a strong claim to being the “Home of Jazz” as dozens of musicians bought houses there during the 20th century. The borough was a great spot to put down roots as it was near Manhattan, where they often performed, and near an airport, where they often left for tours.
Clarence Williams, a pianist and publisher, and his wife Eva Taylor, a singer, were probably the first members of the Jazz World to move to Queens when they bought a house on 108th Avenue in Jamaica on 1923. Milt Hinton, Fats Waller, and Count Basie were also among the early wave of homeowners. Many have died or moved away over the years, but the borough is still home to many talented musicians. Meet some – and play, dance or listen – during the Monthly Jazz Jams at Flushing Town Hall.
Editor’s note: A more complete list of Jazz greats who lived in Queens follows. Cannonball Adderley (saxophone), Nat Adderley (cornet), Louis Armstrong (trumpet, vocals, band leader), Mildred Bailey (vocals), Count Basie (piano, bandleader), Bix Beiderbecke (cornet), John Coltrane (saxophone), Chick Corea (piano), Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis (saxophone), Bill Doggett (organ, piano), Roy Eldridge (trumpet), Mercer Ellington (trumpet, bandleader), Ella Fitzgerald (vocals), Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet), Benny Goodman (clarinet, band leader), Jimmy Heath (saxophone, band leader), Woody Herman (clarinet, bandleader), Milt Hinton (bass), Billie Holiday (vocals), Lena Horne (vocals), Milt Jackson (vibraphone), Illinois Jacquet (saxophone), Russell Jacquet (saxophone), James P. Johnson (piano, composer), Junior Mance (piano), Glenn Miller (trombone, arranger, band leader), Charlie Mingus (bass), Russell “Big Chief” Moore (trombone), Tony Sbarbaro (drums), Phil Schaap (historian, disc jockey, liner notes), Carol Sudhalter (saxophone), Clark Terry (trumpet), Fats Waller (piano, vocals), Ben Webster (saxophone), Clarence Williams (piano, composer, publisher), Cootie Williams (trumpet), Fess Williams (clarinet, bandleader), and Lester Young (clarinet, saxophone).
Plus, Armstrong, Gillespie, Scott Joplin (piano, composer), Johnny Hodges (saxophone), and Charlie Shavers (trumpet) are buried in Queens.
Top photo: Rob MacKay; bottom photo: Flushing Town Hall