|
|
|
Back in 1938, when Leonard hosted a get-together of the No. 1 Rhythm Club in London, the group was astonished by the performance of a blind 19-year-old pianist named George Shearing. It turned out that he also played accordion, which prompted Leonard to write a letter of apology to Accordion Times, taking back his previous contention that there was no such thing as "jazz accordion."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
George and Leonard kept in touch, and when George moved to New York a decade later, Leonard approached a few club owners about booking him. One or two offered the opinion that people would find a blind artist a depressing sight. Nonetheless, George began picking up regular gigs at the Hickory House and the Three Deuces. His quintet built a local following, and his records for MGM, some of which Leonard produced, brought a much larger one. Fans came to know him for his humor as well as his elegant playing. Once an interviewer asked George if he'd been blind all of his life; he replied "Not yet!"
|
|
|
Link to Leonard's article
Even a Londoner...
|
|
|
