Slim Gaillard
Slim Gaillard | |
|---|---|
Gaillard with guitar at the Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, Scotland, 1982 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Bulee Gaillard |
| Born | January 9, 1911 |
| Died | February 26, 1991 (aged 80) London, England |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupations | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, piano, vibraphone, tenor saxophone |
| Years active | 1930s–1989 |
| Labels | Savoy, Dial, Verve |
| Formerly of | Slim & Slam |
Bulee "Slim" Gaillard (January 9, 1911 – February 26, 1991), also known as McVouty, was an American jazz singer and songwriter who played piano, guitar, vibraphone, and tenor saxophone. Gaillard was noted for his comedic vocalese singing and word play in his own constructed language called "Vout-o-Reenee", for which he wrote a dictionary.
In addition to English, he spoke five languages (Spanish, German, Greek, Arabic, and Armenian) with varying degrees of fluency.: 676
He rose to prominence in the late 1930s with hits such as "Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)" and "Cement Mixer (Put-Ti-Put-Ti)" after forming Slim and Slam with Leroy Eliot "Slam" Stewart. During World War II, Gaillard served in the US Army Air Forces. In 1944, he resumed his music career and performed with such notable jazz musicians as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Dodo Marmarosa.
In the '60s and '70s, he acted in films—sometimes as himself—and also appeared in bit parts in television series such as Roots: The Next Generations. Gaillard resumed touring the circuit of European jazz festivals during the 1980s.