Bob Seeley
Encyclopedia
Bob Seeley is an American
boogie woogie pianist
.
, Michigan
, just outside of Detroit, for over three decades. He has played Carnegie Hall
several times, and major venues throughout Europe. He has released five album
s and is working on a sixth with Bob Baldori
.
His greatest influence was Meade Lux Lewis
. Seeley first met Lewis during a Detroit gig in the late 1940s, and a longstanding friendship through the 1950s and 1960s developed, which influenced Seeley's piano styling. Seeley also played piano with Art Tatum
. Eubie Blake
was also among Seeley's circle of friends.
Seeley worked for a while as accompanist to Sippie Wallace
. Seeley is an all-around pianist whose interest and repertoire span ragtime
, stride
, blues
and boogie woogie.
Seeley also has participated in the so called "Cheek to Cheek Boogie" with Mark Braun
AKA Mr. B.
Peter Silvester wrote: "His solos are notable for their coherence and logical progression, which propels them to a satisfying climax. Of all the contemporary pianists, Seeley reproduces the sound and spirit of Meade Lux Lewis with the most conviction and sometimes even surpasses the master" (p. 247-248).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
boogie woogie pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
.
Biography
Seeley has played piano at Charlie's Crab in TroyTroy, Michigan
Troy is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan, and is a suburb of Detroit. The population was 80,980 at the 2010 census, making it the 11th-largest city in Michigan by population, and the largest city in Oakland County...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, just outside of Detroit, for over three decades. He has played Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
several times, and major venues throughout Europe. He has released five album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
s and is working on a sixth with Bob Baldori
Bob Baldori
Bob Baldori , also known as "Boogie Bob", is an American rock, blues, and boogie musician and attorney.Baldori founded the rock band The Woolies in 1964; the group had a national hit in 1966 with Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love". He has also pursued a solo career, performing in venues all over the...
.
His greatest influence was Meade Lux Lewis
Meade Lux Lewis
Meade Lux Lewis was a American pianist and composer, noted for his work in the boogie-woogie style. His best known work, "Honky Tonk Train Blues", has been recorded in various contexts, often in a big band arrangement...
. Seeley first met Lewis during a Detroit gig in the late 1940s, and a longstanding friendship through the 1950s and 1960s developed, which influenced Seeley's piano styling. Seeley also played piano with Art Tatum
Art Tatum
Arthur "Art" Tatum, Jr. was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso who played with phenomenal facility despite being nearly blind.Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time...
. Eubie Blake
Eubie Blake
James Hubert Blake was an American composer, lyricist, and pianist of ragtime, jazz, and popular music. In 1921, Blake and long-time collaborator Noble Sissle wrote the Broadway musical Shuffle Along, one of the first Broadway musicals to be written and directed by African Americans...
was also among Seeley's circle of friends.
Seeley worked for a while as accompanist to Sippie Wallace
Sippie Wallace
Sippie Wallace was an American singer-songwriter. Her early career in local tent shows gained her the billing "The Texas Nightingale". Between 1923 and 1927, she recorded over 40 songs for Okeh Records, many written by herself or her brothers, George and Hersal Thomas...
. Seeley is an all-around pianist whose interest and repertoire span ragtime
Ragtime
Ragtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...
, stride
Stride
Stride can stand for:* A period of locomotion defined by the complete cycle of a reference limb. See gait* In music:** STRIDE - An indie rock n roll band from North East Scotland** Stride , a type of piano playing...
, blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
and boogie woogie.
Seeley also has participated in the so called "Cheek to Cheek Boogie" with Mark Braun
Mr. B. (Mark Braun)
Mr. B. , is an American musician.-Early life:Born in Flint, Michigan, Mark Lincoln Braun was the youngest of the three children of Phil and Sally Braun. He became interested in the piano through recordings that his father had played and began studying under the likes of Boogie Woogie Red and other...
AKA Mr. B.
Peter Silvester wrote: "His solos are notable for their coherence and logical progression, which propels them to a satisfying climax. Of all the contemporary pianists, Seeley reproduces the sound and spirit of Meade Lux Lewis with the most conviction and sometimes even surpasses the master" (p. 247-248).