Nashville jazz great Beegie Adair dies at 84

25.01.2022
Nashville jazz great Beegie Adair dies at 84 - Похоронный портал

Dave Paulson



Beegie Adair


Jazz pianist Bobbe “Beegie” Long Adair — a revered figure in Nashville's jazz scene for 60 years — died Sunday at her home in Franklin, Tenn. She was 84.

Raised in Cave City, Kentucky, Adair began playing the piano when she was five years old. After graduating from college and working for three years as a music teacher, she moved to Nashville in 1961. That summer, she started playing in Printers Alley, joining a jazz group led by guitarist Hank Garland.

She soon found work as a session musician, and over the years contributed to recordings by everyone from Dolly Parton, Chet Atkins, and Vince Gill to Lucille Ball, Steve Allen and Henry Mancini. She was also seen and heard on TV's "The Johnny Cash Show" and "The Ralph Emery Show."

But Adair would eventually become a star in her own right — not just in Nashville's jazz circles, but around the world. After leading or co-leading a string of bands in the '70s and '80s, she released her first album her own name, "Escape To New York," in 1991.


Jazz pianist Beegie Adair is hitting the keys at her home in Bethesda, Tenn. June 20, 1977. Adair, who has been on the Nashville music scene since the early Ô60s, and her current group, the Gyroscope, will be performing in concert at the Centennial Park as part of the Family Outings series sponsored by the Metro Parks Board.


She went on to make more than 35 albums with bassist Roger Spencer and drummer Chris Brown, known as the Beegie Adair Trio. The group held residencies throughout Nashville for nearly 30 years, including stints at Loew's Vanderbilt Plaza, Bennett's Corner, F. Scott's Restaurant and Jazz Bar and most recently Nashville Jazz Workshop. 

“The jazz situation here, contrary to other places, I think it’s probably in the best shape it’s ever been in,” she told The Tennessean in 2012. “Certainly, the community has more world-class musicians that have moved here for various things — very strong players.”

The trio also traveled the world, performing frequently at New York's Birdland Jazz Club, as well as the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall.

According to Adair's official website, the trio cumulatively sold more than 2 million albums. On YouTube, their live rendition of "Autumn Leaves" has earned more than 16 million views.

Through the pandemic, Adair continued to connect with her fans digitally, hosting a regular "Happy Hour" video chat with her musician friends. Last October, she shared an at-home performance of "Alone Together" with Spencer, and expressed a strong desire to return to the stage.

"We're working on some things so we can get back out there and start giving 'em what for," she said, pumping her fist in the air.

"(We) just thank our lucky stars that we have people that love the music," she soon added, "and like us well enough to let us know it."

Adair is preceded in death by her parents, Bobbe Martin and Arthur Gorin Long, and her husband of 38 years, William “Billy” Adair, Jr.

She is survived by friend, musical collaborator and business partner Monica Ramey; brother-in-law, Tommy (Kimberly) Adair; as well as "her (Nashville Jazz Workshop) family and legions of musical collaborators, friends, and fans from around the world," per an obituary posted by Williamson Memorial Funeral Home

"Her entire life was spent using her exquisite talents to teach, entertain and inspire," read a message posted on Adair's official social media accounts. "By the body of work she created and through legions of her students, colleagues fans and friends the world over, Beegie’s music will be shared and heard for generations to come.

Rest in peace, and God speed, sweet Beegie."

Plans for a Celebration of Life will be will be announced at a later date. Inurnment will be in Williamson Memorial Gardens, and donations in Adair's memory can be made to Nashville Jazz Workshop, Billy Adair Scholarship Fund Vanderbilt University, Williamson County Animal Center or St. Joseph Indian School.



                                                                The Tennessean


Nashville Jazz Legend Beegie Adair Passes
https://musicrow.com/2022/01/nashville-jazz-legend-beegie-adair-passes/

Beegie Adair
https://www.discogs.com/de/artist/1060868-Beegie-Adair


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