Rozelle Ivory Gayle (February 24, 1919 – December 6, 1986) was an American jazz pianist, comic entertainer and actor.
Biography
editBorn in Chicago, he studied at the American Conservatory of Music before working as a pianist with Roy Eldridge's band, recording with them in 1943.[1][2] A follower of Art Tatum, he moved to southern California in 1948, and started performing as a solo act in clubs. In 1953, he had a residency in Santa Ana, California. A review in Jet magazine described his "boogie-to-Bach repertoire" and claimed he was being hailed as "the new Fats Waller".[2] He recorded several tracks for the Combo label in the mid-1950s, including some using the name Paul Preston.[1]
In 1958, he recorded the album Like, Be My Guest – An Evening With Rozelle Gayle for Mercury Records. The album combined jazz with hipster comedy.[3] He also recorded with Benny Carter in 1964.[1] He released a second album, Sex Cracks on the Dooto label in 1967; the album was promoted as "America's maddest album yet", containing "super sidesplitting sex-humor galore!"[4] Gayle also acted in many movies, including The Devil's Daughter (1973), Coast to Coast, The Man with Bogart's Face (both 1980), and Honkytonk Man (1982).[5]
He died of cancer in Los Angeles in 1986, aged 67.[6]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1949 | The Joint is Jumpin' | Himself | |||||
| 1973 | The Devil's Daughter | Fedora | TV movie | ||||
| 1973 | Blood, Black and White | ||||||
| 1975 | The Jeffersons | Bill Simpson | Episode: "Mr. Piano Man" | ||||
| 1975 | Let's Do It Again | Exhibition Boxing Match Announcer | Uncredited | 1975 | ‘’Good Times’’ | Annoying barfly |
Episode: “Florida’s Rich Cousin” |
| 1976 | Starsky & Hutch | Toby | Episode: "Losing Streak" | ||||
| 1976 | Sanford and Son | Sgt. Perkins / Dan | 2 episodes | 1978 | ‘’Good Times’’ | Frazee |
Episode: “The Boarder” |
| 1976-1978 | Barnaby Jones | Rambo / Alf Wortman | 2 episodes | ||||
| 1980 | The Man with Bogart's Face | Mastodon | |||||
| 1980 | Coast to Coast | Orderly | |||||
| 1982 | Honkytonk Man | Club Manager |
Discography
edit- Like, Be My Guest (Mercury, 1958)
- Sex Cracks (Dooto, 1967)
References
edit- ^ a b c Bob Eagle, Eric LeBlanc, Blues: A Regional Experience, ABC-CIO, 2013, p.65
- ^ a b "West Coast Hails Pianist-Singer Called The 'New Fats Waller'", Jet, 3 September 1953, pp.56-57
- ^ "Like, Be My Guest – An Evening With Rozelle Gayle", DustyGroove.com. Retrieved 16 September 2015
- ^ Billboard, 13 May 1967, p.20
- ^ To Zelle Gayle also did television appearances. Gayle appeared in Barnaby Jones; episode titled,"The Lonely Victims"(01/08/1976). Rozelle Gayle, IMdB.com. Retrieved 16 September 2015
- ^ "Service Set Today for Entertainer Rozelle Gayle", LA Times, 11 December 1986. Retrieved 16 September 2015
7. Demetria Fulton previewed Rozelle Gayle in Barnaby Jones; episode titled, "The Lonely Victims"(01/08/1976).