File:Fats_Waller_edit.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Fats Waller
Sign in to saveAlso known as Thomas Wright Waller, Thomas Fats Waller
American jazz pianist and composer (1904–1943)
OverviewAI-generated
Fats Waller, born Thomas Wright Waller in New York City in 1904, was an American pianist, composer, singer, and songwriter. He began his work period in 1918 and was educated at DeWitt Clinton High School. A student of James P. Johnson, Waller performed in the jazz genre, with additional tags including swing, piano, blues, and jazz piano. He played the organ, piano, and voice, and his native language was English.
Waller died of pneumonia in Kansas City in 1943 due to natural causes. He received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His birth name was Thomas Wright Waller, and he was also known by the nickname Fats. He is recognized for his contributions to jazz and blues music as a male artist from the United States.
Synthesized by Vinony from 32 facts across 5 sources: Wikidata, MusicBrainz, Last.fm, Europeana Sparql, TMDb. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Film & TV
New York, New York, U.S
Known for
- The Harlem Nocturne — Fats Waller2018
- Howard — Self (archive footage)2018
- This Joint Is Jumpin': Jazz Musician Fats Waller — Self (archive footage)2008
- The Harlem Renaissance — Self (archive footage)2004
- It's Black Entertainment — Self (archive footage)2002
- The Glass Box — Self (archival footage)1985
- Your Feet's Too Big — Singer1983
- Ain't Misbehavin' — Self (archive footage)1974
- Take It or Leave It — (archive footage) (uncredited)1944
- Stormy Weather — 'Fats' Waller1943
via TMDB
Listeners · Last.fm
- Listeners
- 412,115
- Total plays
- 3,526,907
Tags
Fats Waller (Thomas Wright Waller, May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer. His greatest success came with "Fats Waller & his Rhythm". Thomas Wright Waller was the youngest of four children, born in New York to Adeline Locket Waller and Reverend Edward Martin Waller. He started playing the piano when he was six and graduated to the organ of his father's church four years later. <a href="https://www.last.fm/music/Fats+Wa
Key facts
- Born
- Thomas Wright Waller , ( 1904-05-21 ) May 21, 1904, New York City, U.S.
- Died
- December 15, 1943 (1943-12-15) (aged 39), Kansas City, Missouri , U.S.
- Occupations
- Jazz pianist organist composer singer
- Years active
- 1918–1943
- Spouses
- Edith Hatch ( married</span>"}]]}'>m. 1920 ; divorced</span>"}]]}'>div. 1923 ) Anita Rutherford ( married</span>"}]]}'>m. 1926 )
- Relatives
- Darren Waller (great-grandson)
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- United States
- Place of birth
- New York City
- Place of death
- Kansas City
- Occupation
- bandleader
- Educated at
- DeWitt Clinton High School
- Languages spoken
- English language
- Native language
- English language
- Student of
- James P. Johnson
- Genre
- jazz
- Instrument
- piano
- Image
- Fats Waller edit.jpg
Show 13 more facts
- Commons category
- Fats Waller
- date of birth
- 1904-05-21
- date of death
- 1943-12-15
- cause of death
- pneumonia
- manner of death
- natural causes
- birth name
- Thomas Wright Waller
- pseudonym
- Fats Waller
- nickname
- Fats
- start of work period
- 1918-00-00
- copyright representative
- American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers
- name in native language
- Fats Waller
- ethnic group
- African Americans
Sources (7)
via Wikidata · CC0
Works in European collections
1 object attributed to Fats Waller, held across European museums, libraries & archives · via Europeana
~24 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star in the jazz and swing eras, he toured internationally, achieving critical and commercial success in the United States and Europe. His best-known compositions, "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Honeysuckle Rose", were inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1984 and 1999, respectively.
Waller copyrighted over 400 songs, many of them co-written with his closest collaborator, Andy Razaf. Razaf described his partner as "the soul of melody... a man who made the piano sing... both big in body and in mind... known for his generosity... a bubbling bundle of joy". It is likely that he composed many more popular songs than he has been credited with. When in financial difficulties, he had a habit of selling songs to other writers and performers who claimed them as their own. He died from pneumonia, aged 39.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Fats Waller” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.