Philip Paul was born on August 11,
1925 in Harlem, New York and raised in
Manhattan . He learned to play the drums
when he was nine years old . His father, Philip
Paul, Sr . arrived in the US from St . Croix with
his brothers, Fred and John . They worked
construction during the day and performed in
their own Afro-Caribbean jazz band at night .

Paul Jr . became mesmerized by the drums
played by his uncle, John . When Paul was
nine years old, his father bought him a drum
set, along with lessons . By the time he was
13 years old, he began playing with his
father’s band .
 

Paul was just out of this teens when he began
playing at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem with
various legends including Arthur Prysock,
Buddy Johnson’s Big Band, Sonny Stitt, Bud
Powell, and Dizzy Gillespie .
 

In 1951, he was playing with Buddy Johnson
one night, when Tiny Bradshaw heard him
play and invited him to move to Cincinnati
and join his band . Johnson’s band played at
the Cotton Club in Newport, Kentucky, just
across the river from Cincinnati . The club was
considered the premier nightspot for the
black community . While Paul and his parents
were initially opposed to leaving New York,
Paul accepted the offer and moved to
Cincinnati . From 1951 to 1964, he was often
called on as the “go to” studio drummer for
bands playing at the club .

It was while working with Bradshaw that Paul
met his future wife, Juanita Snyder, who was
a Cotton Club dancer and close friends with
one of the band members . They were
married in 1952 . Paul has stated that while
he preferred living in New York, his marriage
to Juanita removed any intent to move back
to New York .
 

Soon after arriving in Cincinnati, Paul met Syd
Nathan, president and owner of King Records
. From 1952 to 1965, Paul became the studio
drummer for King Records, as well as two of
its subsidiary labels, Federal and Bethlehem .
He played drums on over 350 recordings with
artists such as Hank Ballard, Milt Buckner,
Freddie King, Grandpa Jones, Cowboy Copas,
and Bonnie Lou .
 

Paul created the beat for “The Twist” and was
on the original recording by Hank Ballard and
the Midnighters . He was also on the original
recordings of Little Willie John’s “Fever”,
Charles Brown’s “Please Come Home for
Christmas”, Tiny Bradshaw’s “Train Kept a
Rollin’”, Wynonie Harris’ “Good Rockin’
Tonight” and nearly every Freddie King
record, including his biggest hits “Hide Away”
and “Tore Down” .
 

Outside of King, Paul also performed with
blues legends John Lee Hooker, Albert King,
and Smokey Smothers . He was also in the
Roy Meriwether Trio, when they recorded

their classic “Popcorn and Soul” . He recorded
two albums with the Meriwether Trio on the
Columbia Records label . He also toured the U
.S . and Canada with Jimmy Smith, Nat
Adderley, Herbie Mann, and George Weins’
Newport Jazz All-Stars .

After leaving King, Paul joined the Woody
Evans Trio, performing for 25 years at local
country clubs, including Cincinnati’s Playboy
Club and the Beverly Hills Supper Club .
During this time, he and his wife Juanita and
bassist Ed Conley also toured the country
together, performing as the rhythm section
with Juanita singing for Jazz stars in cities all
over the US .
 

In 2003, Paul released his own CD “It’s About
Time” under the Stork Music
Productions label . The recording featured
Peter Frampton, Kenny Poole, and Marcos
Sastre on guitar; Steve Schmidt, Roland
Ashby, and Sam Jackson on keyboards; and Ed
Conley and Mike Scharf on bass . That same
year, Paul served as the drummer on Big Joe
Duskin’s final album, “Big Joe Jumps Again!”,
which was nominated for the W . C . Handy
Blues Award Comeback CD of the Year . The
award is considered the most prestigious
honor for blues artists .
 

In 2002, Paul was honored by the Cincinnati
Enquirer with a Lifetime CAMMY Award for
his contributions to the music and culture of
the city .
 

In 2009, Paul and his wife, Juanita were
honored at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
and Museum in Cleveland, as part of their
“From Songwriters to Soundmen: The People
Behind the Hits” . The presentation included a
retrospect of his recording background at
King Records, his nationwide tours, and his 50
year career as a studio drummer in the
Cincinnati nightclubs .
 

In July 2009, he was honored with the Ohio
Heritage Fellowship . The Fellowship was
presented during the CityFolk Festival in
Dayton . The summer-long festival was a
statewide celebration of his lifetime of work
in the music industry . The Ohio Heritage
Fellowship is Ohio’s highest honor bestowed
on traditional artists on behalf of the city of
Cincinnati .
 

As of 2012, Paul lives in the Evanston
neighborhood of Cincinnati . He continues to
perform on the weekends at The Cincinnatian
Hotel .

Mary Ellen made her public singing debut as a
child in the choir of the Main Street
Methodist Church in Covington . Encouraged
by her father to sing professionally, at age 12
she appeared at park concerts with the Deke
Moffett Big Band . Then sang locally at dances
at the Castle Farm on Reading Road in
Cincinnati, at the Newport Stadium, at county
fairs and in other local settings .
 

After graduating from Beechwood High
School in Fort Mitchell, Tanner appeared as a
contestant on the national CBS television
show “Ted Mack Amateur Hour” in 1964 . She
attended classes at Northern Kentucky State
College (now Northern Kentucky University)
and worked as a secretary for a few years
before beginning to sing professionally .
She sang with groups such as Dee Felice and
his Mixed Feelings Band at regional nightclubs
. Later she performed with the Frank Vincent
Trio .
 

Tanner studied voice while she performed as
a regular on Nick Clooney’s WCPO variety
television show in the early 1970s . After
guest appearances on the “50-50 Club,” she
joined the live midday television program as a
regular cast member in 1978 and stayed until
it ended in the early 1980s . In addition to her
role as a cast singer, Tanner interviewed
guests and supported Bob Braun with many
program duties .
 

Following her tenure with Braun, she sang at
numerous local venues and served as house
vocalist at the Celestial in Mount Adams for
more than 15 years and later at Michael G’s
Restaurant on Kellogg Avenue in Cincinnati
and was a long time regular singer at Chez
Nora in Covington .
Tanner was married for a short time to pianist
Frank Vincent . After her divorce, she was
later the long time partner of drummer John
Von Ohlen .

Tanner taught as an adjunct professor for 11
years in the jazz department at the University
of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
and recorded numerous jazz albums .
She became one of the Midwest’s most
respected vocalists, performing with the
Illinois Philharmonic, the Dayton
Philharmonic, the Les Brown Orchestra, and
others . She received the local Cammy award
for Best Jazz Vocalist multiple times .

Lynn Seaton was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
July 18, 1957 . He began studying classical
guitar at age seven, switching to string bass at
age nine . While studying music at the
University of Oklahoma, he began working
the clubs around the state .
In September of 1980, Lynn relocated to
Cincinnati, Ohio to join the Steve Schmidt Trio
and then the Blue Wisp Big Band with John
Von Ohlen . He was awarded a Jazz Studies
Fellowship in the summer of 1981 from the
National Endowment for the Arts to study
with Rufus Reid .
 

Lynn has been a faculty member at the
College Conservatory of Music in
Cincinnati, Long Island University, State
University of New York at New Paltz, and
William Patterson College . He accepted a
position at the University of North Texas in
1998 and holds the title of Professor . He
thoroughly enjoys teaching workshops,
coaching ensembles, and doing artist-in
residence programs, having done many
throughout America, Asia, and Europe
including numerous schools, kindergarten
through college, Jamey Aebersold’s and UNT
jazz camps, and Clark Terry’s Institute of Jazz
Studies . He currently has private students as
well .
 

During September of 1984, Lynn joined
Woody Herman and the Young Thundering
Herd . July of 1985 brought him a position

with the Count Basie Orchestra . During this
time he moved to New York City (1986)
where he resided until 1998 . After his two-
year engagement with the Basie Band, he did
an extended tour with Tony Bennett and a
six-month tour with George Shearing . Much
of 1991 was spent touring with Monty
Alexander . 1992 through 1994 was spent
freelancing in the New York area . 1995 until
the fall of 2000 was with the Jeff Hamilton
Trio . He has performed in over 35 countries,
49 of the 50 United States . He has played
festivals worldwide including Bern, Concord,
JVC, Kool, Kyoto, Chicago,
Nice, Elkhart, Kansas City, Montreal,
Edmonton, Newport, North Sea, Perugia,
West Coast, San Sebastian, Ottercrest,
Topeka, Sarasota, Paradise Valley and Poori .
Lynn has worked alongside many outstanding
musicians, including: Toshiko Akiyoshi,
Ernestine Anderson, Buck Clayton, Al Cohn,
Kenny Drew Jr ., Blossom Dearie, Bob
Dorough, Harry “Sweets”
Edison, Herb Ellis, John Fedchock, Frank
Foster, Freddy Green, Tim Hagans,
Jeff Hamilton, Scott Hamilton, Wynard
Harper, Thad Jones, Mel Lewis, Marian
McPartland, Jay McShann, Mark Murphy, Ken
Peplowski, Bucky Pizzarelli, Jimmy
Raney, Emily Remler, Diane Schuur, Maria
Schneider, Bud Shank, Carol Sloane, Marvin
“Smitty” Smith, Maxine Sullivan, Mel Torme,
Frank Wess, Joe Williams, Nancy Wilson,
Steve Wilson, Mark Vinci and Teddy Wilson .
In addition, he has worked in the jingle
studios, pit bands for shows, with the
Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and the Dallas
Symphony .

 

Lynn Seaton has performed on
television broadcasts including CBS Sunday
Morning, Japanese, Dutch, Swiss and German
National TV, and radio broadcasts including
NPR and several European stations .
 

Lynn has participated in over 125 recording
sessions, including: the Grammy Award
winning “Diane Schuur and The Count Basie
Orchestra” plus two the
Grammy nominated recordings: “Woody
Herman 50th Anniversary”, and John
Fedchock’s “No Nonsense” .
 

He is currently living in Highland Village,
Texas, working and recording with many great
jazz artists, and leading his own trio . At
present, Lynn is freelancing and touring as a
performer and clinician with a variety of
people . He has conducted AllState Big Bands
in OK and NY . Lynn has several critically
acclaimed recordings under his own name:

“Bassman’s Basement” is available on
Timeless Records, “Solo Bass Flights” on
Omnitone, “Live!!!” on ISB, “Puttin’ on the
Ritz” on Nagel Heyer and “Zoom Blewz” on
Armored Records . Kendor Press has
published his book “Jazz Solos for Bass” .

 

Lynn was inducted into the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of
Fame, honored as a Sammons Artist of the
year, named a Sigma Alpha Iota National Arts
Associate, and selected to be a Fulbright
Scholar to teach and perform in Riga, Latvia .

Guitarist Kenny Poole was a staple in the
Cincinnati jazz scene for over forty years . A
native of the Queen City, Kenny got his start
at the age of 14 after he bought a guitar from
a friend for $5 .00 . Soon after he began
taking private lessons .
 

He was told by his teacher that in his 40 years
of teaching that Kenny was the best student
he’d ever had and Kenny himself said “I took
to it like a bug take to air .”
 

Favoring the guitar to school work Kenny
devoted four to six hours a day to his new
craft . After 18 months he had outgrown his
first teacher and began branching out on his
own .
 

In his long and impressive career Kenny
played with some of the greatest names in
the music industry including James Brown,
Johnny Mathis, Chuck Mangione, Joe Pass,
Herb Ellis, Jack McDuff, Jerry Mulligan, Jack
Wilkins and Sonny Stitt . But the Cincinnati
native prefered to keep rooted at home and
maintain a satisfying but largely local career .
Playing with the best and brightest jazz
musicians the city had to offer . His strong
family ties meant a great deal to him, so
remaining local suited him well .
 

He was best known for his outstanding solo
guitar work and his impeccable interpretation
of the bossa nova, both rhythmically and
harmonically . Of his playing singer Katie Laur
may have summed it up best . “He played like
nobody else, especially the sweet yearning
rhythms of the bossa nova . He was changing
chords constantly, something I’ve never seen
anybody else do .”
 

Later in his career he was given the
opportunity to record three albums on the J-

Curve label: “East Meets West” a duo set with
Gene Bertoncini, “Su’s Four” a duo with Cal
Collins and “For George” a salute to the late
guitar great and mentor of Kenny, George
Van Eps .
 

He was a guitarist’s guitarist and was well
loved and heralded by his peers . His work
with other great and fellow hall of fame
inductee, Cal Collins is some of the most
prolific guitar duet work ever plucked from
the strings . His style was honest, free of
needless showmanship and purely devoted to
the craft .

Lee Stolar got his start on piano at age 7,
taking private piano lessons until the age of
11 .
 

He started playing in bands at age 16 for $5
per night . Eventually, his reputation grew
and he began playing club dates in 1954 .
After a few years of playing in small clubs, he
landed at the Living Room in Downtown
Cincinnati . It was there was there he met and
began accompanying singer/pianist Amanda
Ambrose .
 

While playing there with his First trio
featuring drummer Jim Seward, and bassist
John Parker, he also worked with singers
Betty Carter, Jackie Paris and his wife, ann
Marie Moss, Judy James, Irene Reid, Ethel
Ennis, Etta Jones, and others . His trio later
played behind Billy Mitchell & Howard
McGhee .
 

In 1967, Lee played for Amanda Ambrose at
Carnegie Hall with Drummer Dick Berk, and
Bassist Chris White . He later worked with her
in Toronto and in The Virgin Islands .
 

In 1973, he started playing in the house trio at
Cincinnati’s Playboy Club . While playing there
he began a 41 year association with singer
Mary Ellen Tanner . They played all around
Cincinnati in many of the best clubs —
including a 16 year stint at the Celestial and
later a seven year run at Chez Nora .
 

For the last 29 years, Lee has been at the Dee
Felice Cafe every Thursday with the house
trio . This trio includes the incomparable John
Von Ohlen on drums and Bill Jackson on bass .
John Lee began working together while Lee
was was at the Celestial with Mary Ellen . Bill
joined the group later while at Chez Nora . For

the last 13 years, he has been playing solo at
the Cincinnati Country Club on Saturdays .
 

Over the years , Lee has recorded three CDs
with Mary Ellen and the trio, and two other
solo CDs as well as a solo piano with vocals by
Mary Ellen Tanner .

Larry Kinley was an expert jazz vocalist .
His style reflected not only his years of
experience with Merv Griffin, Henry Mancini,
and Tony Bennett, but also his many years of
being a staff vocalist on television stations
WLW and WCPO in Cincinnati . For more than
23 years he was as a vocalist with the
renowned Frank Vincent Trio, performing
long-running engagements at the Harley
Hotel, the Omni-Netherland Plaza, and the
Dee Felice Cafe .
 

His TV credits have been both local and
national including appearances on variety
shows by Merv Griffin, Nick Clooney, and
Vivian Della Chiesa . Larry brought his talents
to the stage at the Celestial restaurant in
Cincinnati on Saturday evenings, as well as at

many jazz concerts each year . And very
special to Larry was singing at the Community
of the Good Shepherd church on Sundays .
With an appealing stage presence and
eloquent vocal delivery, Larry complimented
the American songbook of George and Ira
Gershwin, Cole Porter, and many more . His
smooth baritone and warm demeanor
provided a relaxing and enjoyable experience
for all who fortunate to have seen him
perform .
 

Jazz drummer John von Ohlen remembers
the first time he played with Larry. “It only
lasted a couple of minutes, but it was just
swinging like crazy . I couldn’t believe it . And
it was Larry Kinley singing and he could really
swing hard . As a jazz drummer that means a
lot because a lot of times I’m behind, I’ve
played behind millions of singers .”
 

As Jazz Alive Director of Senior Services, Larry
delighted thousands of senior citizens at
nursing homes, retirement centers, and
assisted living facilities . He averaged over
one hundred performances a year for seniors,
providing entertainment to a forgotten
audience of jazz lovers whom he cherished
seeing their reactions from hearing his great
delivery of standards .
 

Larry Kinley was a master of jazz vocals, and a
great human being . He is greatly missed .

Born in New Jersey, trombonist Eddie Morgan
was transplanted to Cincinnati in 1954 when
his father relocated to the area for work . His
parents were both musicians and helped
Eddie get his start by enrolling him in piano
lessons while still in grade school . His mother
introduced him to Andy Brady, who took
Eddie under his wing, helped develop his
talent and connected him with Al Jordan of
WLW-TV for lessons .
 

After high school, he attended the The
College Conservatory of Music . While in
school he began to venture out in the
evenings to listen to and sit in with the jazz
musicians at clubs like Babe Baker’s and
the Cabana Club .

 

Leaving the CCM, he transferred his junior
year to the Berklee School of Music, in
Boston, attending school by day and gigging
by night to pay for his room and board . But
an especially cold Massachusetts winter, saw
Eddie packup and move back to Cincinnati,
with only his trombone and the clothes on his
back .
 

Back in the Queen City, Eddie began to play
with Dee Felice at Mother’s and at Herm
Kirschner’s Piano Lounge and did a mid-
western tour with Al Belleto’s jazz sextet.

During this period he met his first wife, Kay
with whom he had two daughters and a son.
 

While performing with his “Night Train” band
in Cincinnati, famed trombonist and big band
leader Buddy Morrow heard Eddie at a local
gig and invited him to join his band . After a
few years on the road, Eddie wanted to find a
job that would allow him to be with his family.

 

Las Vegas was coming of age and many
musicians of the time were finding steady
work there . In 1966, he accepted a job there
and moved there with his family .
 

Eddie and Kay divorced after 20 years . Las
Vegas was going through a period transition
from live music to boxed orchestras . So Eddie
went back on the road with the likes of Frank
Sinatra and Paul Anka traveling all over the US
and the world . It was during this period of his
life that he met his wife and love of his life
Cincinnati vocalist Ann Chamberlin .
 

After moving back to Cincinnati, Eddie played
with his wife Ann for eleven years at the
Pacific Moon in Montgomery. He also
continued to do small tours with Frank
Sinatra Junior . He could also be heard
periodically at many of the local jazz venues
such as Chez Nora, Jeff Ruby’s, Jay’s and the
Iron Horse .
 

Eddie Morgan lyrical sensitivity combined
with his strong command of the trombone
and bebop language made him a true joy to
listen to . He was truly one of the great
musical gems of Cincinnati .

Once in awhile, a group of musicians who are
at the beginning of their careers will meet an
older musician and learn from him what can’t
be taught in books or learned from records .
 

That group of musicians will coalesce into a
loose group of music makers, forever marked
by their experience with the older person .
 

Bobby Guyer was one of those musicians, a
man who had a successful career playing with
bandleaders like Benny Goodman and Woody
Herman and then moving into his own second
act when he was back in Cincinnati and
northern Kentucky .

 

He was born in Richmond, Indiana, home of

Gannett Records,which was a recording center

for swing music. It’s easy to imagine Bobby coming

into the world swinging and leaving a stamp of his
own brand of swinging when he left the world.
 

He got his early start with big bands like Hal
McIntyre, Woody Herman, Benny Goodman,
and the Dorsey Brothers Band in the early
fifties.
 

He played with Goodman’s big band on
movies like “The Gang’s All Here” and on tour.

He was a gifted trumpet player, probably
influenced by trumpeter Bobby Hackett, and
like Hackett he played both the jazz and the
lead trumpet seats in any band . To hear that
silvery, slippery golden trumpet sound he
had, you may end up thinking of Bobby
playing Harry James’ “You Made Me Love You.”

Every note filled with a kind of yearning.
 

Back in the midwest, he played at the Beverly
Hills, the Rendezvous, became well known
among those who frequented those places,
and knew the gangsters who ran northern
Kentucky in those days.

 

He married a woman named Ginny, whom
everyone called Red, because of the bright
color of her hair, which was obviously home
dyed . Together they adopted a dachshund
named Fritz . Bobby loved the dog as much as
he loved the trumpet .
 

When the places in Northern Kentucky began
to fold in the late seventies and early eighties,
Bobby found local bands and steady work at
Joe’s Bar, Arnold’s, eventually the Dee Felice
Cafe . Bobby also sang occasionally . “Just a
Gigolo” was one of his most popular as well
as “It’s the Talk of the Town .” He was a great
influence on younger musicians around
Cincinnati .
 

Like the old jazz players, “B” as trombonist Bill
Gemmer called him, had a flashy side He
wore silk shirts from the forties with polyester
slacks, white patent leather loafers and
slicked his longish hair back with Vitalis . He
wore a gold pinky ring, and he was well
manicured at all times . In summer, playing
outside at Arnold’s, he wore long bermuda
shorts and long silk socks with brogue-style
shoes, and he smoked his long cigarettes in a
holder occasionally . One night when he was
particularly well got up, Bill Gemmer said to
him, “Bobby! You look like the test pattern
on my television set .”
 

If you ever see “The Gang’s All Here” be sure
to watch for the guy with his trumpet pointed
toward the sky and a twinkle in his eye,
you’re listening to Bobby Guyer, the one and
only .