Freddie Slack
| Freddie Slack | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Frederick Charles Slack |
| Born |
August 7, 1910 La Crosse, Wisconsin, United States |
| Died | August 10, 1965 (aged 55) |
| Genres | Swing, boogie-woogie |
| Occupation(s) | Pianist, bandleader |
| Associated acts | |
Frederick Charles Slack (August 7, 1910 – August 10, 1965) was an American swing and boogie-woogie pianist and bandleader.
Slack was born in La Crosse, Wisconsin. He learned to play drums as a boy. Later he took up the xylophone, and at the age of 13 he changed to the piano. He studied with a local teacher throughout high school. At the age of 17 he moved with his parents to Chicago, where he continued his musical training. He met Rosy McHargue, a well-known clarinetist, who took him to hear many leading musicians, including Bix Beiderbecke and Earl Hines. His first job was with Johnny Tobin at the Beach View Gardens. He later moved to Los Angeles, where he worked with Henry Halstead, Earl Burtnett and Lennie Hayton, before joining Ben Pollack in 1934.
He played with the Jimmy Dorsey Band in the 1930s and was a charter member of the Will Bradley Orchestra when it formed in 1939. Known to bandmates as "Daddy Slack," he played the piano solo on Bradley's recording of "Beat Me Daddy, Eight to the Bar", one of the early white boogie-woogie hits and a classic of the Big Band era.
He formed his own band in 1942 and signed with the newly founded Capitol Records. He recorded three songs at his third recording session for Capitol, on May 21, 1942. His recording of "Cow Cow Boogie," sung by the 17-year-old Ella Mae Morse, was the second record Capitol issued on July 1, and by July 25 it had reached number 1 on the Hit Parade. It was Capitol's first gold single.
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