Teddy (Ted) Brannon

Humphrey "Teddy" Brannon (September 27, 1916, Moultrie, Georgia – February 24, 1989, Newark, New Jersey) was an American jazz and blues pianist.

Brannon began on piano at age nine. He played in dance bands in high school and worked locally in nightclubs in Newark from 1937-42. From November 1942 to early 1944 he toured and recorded with Benny Carter. He recorded with Roy Eldridge in 1944.

From the mid-1940s to 1950, Brannon led his own groups in New York, while performing as a sideman at sessions led by Rubberlegs Williams (1945), with whom he recorded "Bring It On Home," featuring an 18-year old Miles Davis on trumpet, Don Byas (1946), and Dinah Washington (1947–8). Washington recorded several songs with the Teddy Brannon Quartet, including "Stairway to the Stars," "I Love You, Yes I Do," and "I Wish I Knew the Name of the Boy."

In the 1950s and 1960s Brannon worked in the studios with doo wop groups and played extensively in jazz idioms, including with Don Byas, again with Roy Eldridge (recording in 1951), Buddy Rich, Bennie Green (recording in 1951), Johnny Hodges, Illinois Jacquet and recorded with Tab Smith. He also accompanied singers such as Ruth Brown, Billie Holiday, Babs Gonzales (Brannon's cousin). During the 1950s and 1960s, he also was a member of the Grammy Award winning Jonah Jones Quartet, and appeared with them on the 1958 televion special "An Evening with Fred Astaire" and the 1959 special "Another Evening with Fred Astaire."

Birth and Death Data: Born September 27, 1916 (Moultrie), Died February 24, 1989 (Newark)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1944 - 1949

Roles Represented in DAHR: piano, arranger, songwriter

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor D9VB-1183 10-in. 8/16/1949 Swallow dollow Gay Crosse ; Good Humor Six (Gay Crosse) Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band songwriter  
Decca 72430 10-in. 10/13/1944 Fish market Roy Eldridge Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 72431 10-in. 10/13/1944 Twilight time Roy Eldridge Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 72432 10/13/1944 St. Louis blues Roy Eldridge Orchestra instrumentalist, piano  
Decca 73767 12/27/1946 The blues are brewin' Billie Holiday arranger  
Decca 73768 12/27/1946 Guilty Billie Holiday arranger  
Signature SRC 141 10-in. 1945 Hand in hand blues Dickie Thompson and his Blue Five instrumentalist, piano  
Signature SRC 142 10-in. 1945 Tailor made gal Dickie Thompson and his Blue Five instrumentalist, piano  
Signature SRC 143 10-in. 1945 Swing song Dickie Thompson and his Blue Five instrumentalist, piano  
Signature SRC 144 10-in. 1945 Star dust Dickie Thompson and his Blue Five instrumentalist, piano  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Brannon, Teddy (Ted)," accessed March 28, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201050.

Brannon, Teddy (Ted). (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved March 28, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201050.

"Brannon, Teddy (Ted)." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 28 March 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/201050

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