[Dixielandjazz] RIP - Buddy Childers

[Larry Walton Entertainment - St. Louis]

Thanks Mike and Stan - Gary Dammer noted Buddy's passing at the Memorial Day 
concert Monday.  I'm sure he influenced Gary.  He had many fans here.   Kim 
Park played the concert with us.  His dad was in the Kenton band and Kim 
started with Stan's band at age 15.  Kim is still using his dad's alto. 
Don't know if you have heard Kim play but he says his dad was better. 
That's hard to imagine because I have never heard anyone play like Kim. 
It's so much fun to be on the same stage as these guys.  When Kim plays it's 
just like magic.
Larry
St. Louis
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Stan Brager" <sbrager at socal.rr.com>
To: "Larry Walton" <larrys.bands at charter.net>
Cc: "Dixieland Jazz Mailing List" <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Saturday, May 26, 2007 1:23 PM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] RIP - Buddy Childers


> Mike Vax reports the passing of trumpeter Buddy Childers:
>
> It is my sad task to let all of you know that one of the greatest lead
> trumpet players in the history of big bands passed away last night. Buddy
> Childers died after a long illness. Buddy was a good friend and the reason
> that I
> first wanted to become a lead trumpet player. His numerous recordings with
> the Stan Kenton Orchestra were my real introduction to that world.
> My Kenton Alumni Band actually did a concert yesterday afternoon at the
> Balboa Pavilion in Newport Beach, California, as part of the LA Jazz
> Institute
> "Swing into Spring" weekend of 24 different big band performances. We were
> the
> opening "special" concert as a tribute to Stan. The Balboa Pavilion is
> within a couple of blocks of the old Rendezvous Ballroom, where Stan made
> his
> debut on Memorial Day Weekend of 1941. It was a fitting place and time for
> us
> to perform. During that performance, we performed "Solo for Buddy," 
> written
> in the early 50's for Buddy Childers by Bill Holman. Carl Saunders and I 
> did
> it as a duet.
> We actually had Norm Tompach from Friends of Big Band Jazz call Buddy on 
> the
> cell phone so that he could hear us play this rare piece in his honor. He
> was sleeping and his son didn't want to wake him up.
> Little did we know that we would perform the piece on the exact day of his
> passing.
> Rest in Peace, Buddy. You showed us all how to play lead trumpet the right
> way!
> Mike Vax
>
>
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