Jean-Baptiste Frédéric Isidor, Baron Thielemans (29 April 1922 – 22 August 2016), known professionally as Toots Thielemans ([tutstiləmans]), was a Belgian jazz musician. He was mostly known for playing the chromatic harmonica, as well as his guitar and whistling skills, and composing. According to jazz historian Ted Gioia, his most important contribution was in "championing the humble harmonica", which Thielemans made into a "legitimate voice in jazz".[2] He eventually became the "preeminent" jazz harmonica player.[3]
Thielemans was born in Brussels on 29 April 1922.[5] His parents owned a café.[4] He began playing music at an early age, using a homemade accordion at age three.[6] During the German occupation of Belgium beginning in 1940, he became attracted to jazz, but was then playing on a full-size accordion or a harmonica, which he taught himself to play in his teens.[4][7]
After being introduced to the music of Belgian-born jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, he became inspired to teach himself guitar, which he did by listening to Reinhardt's recordings.[6] At the time he was a college student majoring in mathematics.[8] By the war's end in 1945, he considered himself a full-time musician.[4] He said in 1950, "Django is still one of my main influences, I think, for lyricism. He can make me cry when I hear him."[9] During an interview in 1988, he recalled, "I guess I was born at the right time to live and adapt and be touched by the evolution in the jazz language."[7]
He played in two Silverio Pisu stories: Giacomino passerotto vagabondo and Manolo gattino sognatore.
I used to think the chromatic had limits. But with the advent of Toots Thielemans, I have come to feel that the limitations are within the player. Because as far as I can see, Toots has no limitations.
During a visit to the U.S. in 1948, an agent of Benny Goodman heard him play at a small New York music club. Not long after he returned to his home in Belgium, he received a letter inviting him to join Goodman's band while they toured in Europe. He readily accepted the invitation and joined their tours in 1949 and 1950.[6] During the tour, Goodman was "shocked" when he learned that these tours were the first time Thielemans had earned money from his playing.[9] Although Thielemans was hired on as a guitarist, when Goodman's group debuted at the London Palladium, he played the harmonica due to union restrictions.[9]
During those years, he also made his first record with fellow band member, tenor saxophonist Zoot Sims. In 1951 he toured with singer-songwriter and compatriot Bobbejaan Schoepen, performing strictly as a guitarist.[12]
Thielemans moved to the United States in 1952 where he was a member of Charlie Parker's All-Stars and worked with Miles Davis and Dinah Washington.[6] In 1957 he became a U.S. citizen.[13] From 1953 to 1959 he played guitar and harmonica with the George Shearing Quintet.[6] With Shearing, he added whistling to his repertoire.[6] While Thielemans was playing in Hamburg in 1960 on tour with Shearing, a young musician and observer —John Lennon— noticed that Thielemans played a Rickenbacker guitar.[14] Lennon was impressed, and felt he had to have an American guitar, on the principle that "if was good enough for Thielemans it was good enough for me." Lennon and the Beatles helped make Rickenbacker guitars world-famous.[15][12]
In 1955, Thielmans recorded his first album as a band leader, "The Sound."[6] During the 1950s, Thielemans had dominated the "miscellaneous instrument" category in Down Beat magazine's poll.[9] Jerry Murad, of Jerry Murad's Harmonicats recalls Thielemans's mastery:
Toots played the harmonica in much the same manner that many of the great jazz artists of that time played their respective instruments. No one played harmonica like Toots. I felt like throwing my harmonica away.[9]
Thielemans in 1961 (Grand Gala du Disque, The Hague)
Toots Thielemans wrote "Bluesette," a jazz standard,[5] which he performed on harmonica[16] or while playing the guitar and whistling in unison.[6][17] He said, "If there's a piece of music that describes me, it's that song."[6] First recorded by him in 1962, with lyrics added by Norman Gimbel, the song became a major worldwide hit.[4] It has since been covered by over one hundred artists.[9] Toots also wrote the ballad "Lady Fingers," which appeared on Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass's album "Whipped Cream and Other Delights."
His music was heard on the Belgian television series Witse, and in the Netherlands, for the Baantjer program. He composed the music for the 1974 Swedish film Dunderklumpen!, in which he also provided the voice of the animated character Pellegnillot. His whistling and harmonica playing was heard on Old Spice commercials in the 1960s.[6][22] He played harmonica on "Night Game" on Paul Simon's 1975 album Still Crazy After All These Years.[23]
1980s and later
Thielemans has the ultimate in technique and fantastic musical ideas of mood and expression—an unbelievable ability to translate these ideas from his mind through the instrument.
In 1984, he recorded with Billy Eckstine on the singer's final album (I Am a Singer), featuring ballads and standards arranged and conducted by Angelo DiPippo. In the 1990s, Thielemans embarked on theme projects that included world music. In 1998 he released a French-flavoured album titled Chez Toots featuring guest singer Johnny Mathis.[27]
During those years, he often recorded songs as personal tributes to those who were influential during his career. On Chez Toots, for example, he included "Dance For Victor," which he dedicated to his sometimes keyboard accompanist, Victor Feldman.[28] Similarly, he recorded "Waltz for Sonny"[29] as a tribute to saxophonist Sonny Rollins.[30] In June 1998, at Germany's Jazzbaltica, he paid tribute to Frank Sinatra who died a month earlier.[31] And during the first Caspian Jazz and Blues Festival in Azerbaijan in 2002, he performed his recorded version of "Imagine," his tribute to its writer, John Lennon.[32]
Thielemans was well liked for his modesty and kind demeanor in his native Belgium, and was known for describing himself as a Brussels "ket," which means "street kid" in old Brussels slang.[33]
Later life
Toots Thielemans in Duisburg, 2005
He was nominated for the title of the Greatest Belgian in 2005. In the Flemish version, he finished in 20th place, and in the Walloon version he came 44th.[34] On 23 January 2009, he joined guitarist Philip Catherine on stage at the Liberchies church (Belgium) in memory of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Django Reinhardt. In 2012, the Jazz at Lincoln Center concerts in New York celebrated Thieleman's 90th birthday with, among others, Herbie Hancock, Eliane Elias, and Kenny Werner. He performed for the occasion and left the stage standing among his friends.[35]
Because of health issues that led to show cancellations, Thielemans announced his retirement on 12 March 2014, cancelling all scheduled concerts. He was also hospitalized for a broken arm.[36][37] His manager stated that Thielemans "wants to enjoy the rest he deserves."[38] However, he did make one more stage appearance, unannounced, in August 2014, at the Jazz Middelheim Festival in Antwerp.[39]
After the announcement, the Netherlands-based jazz and pop orchestra Metropole Orkest, along with American musician Quincy Jones, performed at London's Royal Albert Hall in Thielemans' honor.[40] Another concert was performed at the Grand-Place, Brussels.[40]
Thielemans was buried on 27 August 2016 in La Hulpe, just outside Brussels. Pianist Kenny Werner read a personal message from U.S. President Barack Obama for his widow, Huguette.[41] It read: "Dear Huguette. I was deeply saddened when I heard about your husband's passing. I hope that shared memories will soften your suffering. Lift faith from the support of friends and family. Know that you will be in my thoughts for the next days. May Toots' music lead you and offer you consolation. I'm sure it will do this for all of us."[42][43][44][45]
Toots Thielemans Collection
In December 2016, the Music Division of the Royal Library of Belgium acquired the Toots Thielemans Collection. The collection consists of hundreds of sound recordings (78 rpm, vinyl records and CDs) and thousands of documents, such as photographs, press articles, scores, letters and concert programmes.
^International, Challenge Records. "90 yrs. (1CD 1DVD)". Challenge Records International. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
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