Home / Biography / Clyde McCoy

Clyde McCoy

Biography

Clyde McCoy was a bandleader and trumpet participant whose signature melody through the 1930s was “Glucose Blues” — but his profession extended good beyond that 10 years. He originated from a family which was one of the better known in the united states, possibly on the planet, however, not for music — he was a primary descendant from the McCoys of Kentucky, renowned for his or her long-running (and, certainly, famous) feud using the Hatfields. His family members left its house condition when he was nine and shifted to Portsmouth, OH, and it had been while living there that he 1st used the trumpet, along with the trombone. It had been for the second option device that he used the Loyal Temperance Legion Music group, at age group nine. Before his teenagers he had turned towards the trumpet and was playing at college and church occasions, with 14 he found out work playing for the riverboats, which still plied the rural Midwest, Southern, and boundary states in those times. By 1920, at age group 16, he’d constructed his first music group to get a two-week engagement at a favorite Knoxville vacation resort. Miraculously, though they’d under no circumstances performed collectively before their 1st gig, they demonstrated very popular, and their agreement was prolonged to 8 weeks. McCoy felt prepared for the big style despite the fact that he was still in his teenagers and made a decision to make for NEW YORK, but the following few years had been frustrating because they under no circumstances quite captured on correctly, at the proper moment to help make the next thing, whatever it could be, easy. Finally, in 1924, McCoy made a decision to try for a brand new start by shifting the music group to California, where they spent a couple of years working the region around LA. They began touring, and it had been during this time period that McCoy began utilizing a mute upon this trumpet, creating the “wah-wah” impact that became his personal over the device. In 1930, lightning finally struck when he was showing up with the music group on the Drake Resort in Chicago and performed “Glucose Blues.” The market responded well and shortly it was obtaining carried on the radio, along with a documenting agreement with Columbia Information followed in past due 1930 — the causing 78 rpm one ended up offering an incredible number of copies early another year, no little feat within the depths of the fantastic Depression, which acquired generally began tearing up record product sales. He also appreciated more modest but nonetheless substantial strikes with “Within the Great of the night time,” “The Goona Goo,” and “Wah Wah Blues,” and produced a successful one discharge of “Smoke cigarettes Rings,” that was most widely known as Glen Gray’s theme. McCoy produced Chicago his bottom before middle of the 10 years, appearing regularly on the Drake and in addition carrying out vaudeville engagements. That they had developed a particular make of Dixieland-flavored golf swing music that discovered a ready market amid the big-band period, as well as the group also sometimes organized musical face-offs with various other, rival rings that proved popular with customers. They turned from Columbia towards the Decca label in 1935 and continuing to sell many records (including a fresh edition of “Glucose Blues” that apparently shifted a million copies) for the rest of the 10 years. He was also one particular in charge of co-founding Downbeat mag. McCoy might have continued to be on the sidelines during Globe Battle II, but rather he and his music group all enlisted in america Navy, where these were permitted to continue executing together, enjoyable sailors along with other troops, in addition to individuals at naval private hospitals, throughout the battle. He came back to civilian existence in 1945 and attempted to restart the music group, plus they still experienced an audience at that time. He come up with a big music group that do well for a while, and also cut some essential records, including an excellent rendition of “Basin Road Blues,” growing considerably around the edition he’d cut for Columbia in the first ’30s; but steadily their audience dropped with the moving in public flavor, and in 1955, the entire year that rock and roll & roll overran the graphs, he disbanded the group. McCoy and his wife, Maxine Means — who’d been area of the Bennett Sisters, the vocalists for his music group in the past due ’30s — opened up a membership in Denver, where these were often featured for the entertainment costs, but it didn’t pay its method, and McCoy was compelled to resume executing to produce a living, fronting a septet. He finally retired to Memphis in the past due ’70s, and began teaching music, with periodic performances tossed in whenever he could arrange them. He could possibly be seen executing with Dixieland groupings around Memphis until his wellness begun to fail within the 1980s.

Quick Facts


Full Name Clyde McCoy
Died June 11, 1990, Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Profession Actor, Musician, Screenwriter
Nationality American
Spouse Maxine Bennett
Music Songs Tear It Down, Sugar Blues, Farewell Blues, New Basin Street Blues, It Looks Like Love, Jazz Me Blues, A Lonely Gondolier, Readin', Ritin', Rhythm, Black And Tan Fantasy, Like Me A Little Bit Less, In The Cool Of The Night, I've Found A New Baby, The Nightmare, Wah-Wah Lament, Hot Lips, Smoke Rings, Business On The Q T, Way Down Yonder In New Orleans, Old Fashioned Love, Palooka, Doo wacka doo, That's A-Plenty, Sugar Blues Boogie, Swamp Fire, Opus Number One, Beale Street Blues, Some Of These Days, When My Baby Smiles At Me, I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate, Basin Street Blues, Wabash Blues, South Rampart Street Parade
Albums Jazz Nostalgia, Wah Wah: The Real McCoy, Big Band Hits Of The 1930s, Sugar Blues, The Golden Era Of The Sugar Blues, Clyde McCoy At His Best, Sugar Blues - The Best Of


  • Facts
  • Filmography
  • Awards
  • Salaries
  • Quotes
  • Trademarks
  • Pictures

#Fact
1 Married Maxine Bennett, lead vocalist of his singing group, the Bennett Sisters.
2 Trumpet player and bandleader (from 1920), who had a massive hit in the 1930's with the novelty song "Sugar Blues", which became his theme. He was noted for his muted solos and 'wah-wah' style of playing, and for his use of a miniature trumpet for specialty numbers.
3 Enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1942, along with his entire band. After World War II, he resumed leading a big band. McCoy retired in 1955 to operate a night club in Denver, Colorado. He was back in the music business by 1960, fronting a Dixieland combo at the Round Table in New York. During the next twenty years, he continued to perform in ballrooms and concert halls across the U.S. and Canada.
4 Is a descendant of the McCoy family, involved in the famous Hatfield-McCoy feud (1863-1891) on the West Virginia-Kentucky border.
5 He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6426 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.


Soundtrack

Soundtrack

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Boardwalk Empire 2014 TV Series performer - 1 episode
The Wolf of Wall Street 2013 performer: "Tear It Down" / writer: "Tear It Down"
Cry Baby: The Pedal that Rocks the World 2011 Video documentary performer: "Sugar Blues" / writer: "Sugar Blues"
RocknRolla 2008 as McCoy, "Funnel of Love"
Some Like It Hot 1959 music: "Sugar Blues" 1920 - uncredited / writer: "Sugar Blues - Runnin' Wild" - uncredited
The Jam Session 1937 Short performer: "I'll Sing You a Thousand Love Songs", "Roseland Stomp", "Blue Sugar" - uncredited / writer: "Roseland Stomp", "Blue Sugar" - uncredited
Clyde McCoy and His Orchestra 1936 Short performer: "Sugar Blues", "Ridin' to Glory on a Trumpet", "There'll Be Some Changes Made", "Tear It Down" - uncredited / writer: "Sugar Blues", "Ridin' to Glory on a Trumpet", "Tear It Down" - uncredited

Actor

Actor

TitleYearStatusCharacter
A Midnight Bell 1921 Mac
His Busy Day 1938 Short Clyde McCoy
Clyde McCoy and His Orchestra 1936 Short Clyde McCoy (as Clyde McCoy and His Sugar Blues Orchestra)
The Idle Class 1921 Short Extra (uncredited)

Writer

Writer

TitleYearStatusCharacter
Super Shark 2011 written by

Self

Self

TitleYearStatusCharacter
The Jam Session 1937 Short Himself - Clyde McCoy

Looks like we don't have awards information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have salary information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have quotes information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have trademarks information. Sorry!



Looks like we don't have pictures. Sorry!

Check Also

“Big” Mike McKendrick

This is a little bit of jazz history that most likely happened merely to keep …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.