E D D I E D U R H A M
Big-Band Jazz Guitarist, Trombonist
Brass Choreographer, Composer & Arranger
1906 - 1987
Carnival of Swing Fest (with Count Basie) 1938
N.A.R.A.S. Hall of Fame 1983
Harlem Week Honoree (with Ella Fitzgerald) 1986
American Jazz Hall of Fame 1989
Eddie Durham Annual Festival San Marcos,Texas 2002 (next: Oct. 10, 2026)
Calaboose African American History Museum permanent exhibit 2002
SIGNATURE Centennial Hollow-Body Electric Guitars 2006
Eddie Durham Park & Pavilion opens San Marcos,Texas 2013
Civil Rights Trailblazers Medallion, Texas 2014
Swingin' The Blues Eddie Durham Book Series 2022
A.S.C.A.P. Screen Music Award (top rated streaming series: "Lessons In Chemistry") 2024
WHAM Re Bop Boom Bam! PBS Documentary (Emmy nominee) 2024
Austin Jazz Hall of Fame, Fall 2026

FALLOUT VIDEO GAME: "I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire"
Composer: #EddieDurham, et.al.


3 Books about EDDIE DURHAM
In Volume 1 "VIRTUOSITY" Eddie's brothers/cousins attended music school daily where they learned multiple instruments and to read and notate music - very unusual for African Indian Americans.They toured with SW circus,vaudeville and minstrel troupes. As a result, Eddie became a master arranger, composer, trombonist and guitarist.
Major Band leaders, black and white, hired his unique ability to produce big-band swing music HITS: Bennie Moten, Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, The Sweethearts of Rhythm, Harry James. He masterminded the "dueling tenors" of Lester Young and (Eddie's cousin) Herschel Evans; Choreographed Brass Sections; Co-composed "I Don't Want To Set The World on Fire" for The Ink Spots; and he arranged the NARAS Hall of Fame hit: "In The Mood" for Glenn Miller !
Eddie recorded big hits on amplified guitar on "Honey Keep Your Mind On Me", and resonated guitar on "Hittin' the Bottle". John Hammond, Sr., produced Eddie showcasing electric guitar on : "KC5 Lester Young Sessions". Dave Dexter produced Eddie showcasing a new esoteric guitar sound on"I Want A Little Girl" and "Magic Carpet." Read all about it! The book VIRTUOSITY ends at World War II. Volume 2, "Eddie Durham and the Ladies of Jazz," explores his history working with women, beginning with Maime Smith, ending with Miss Rhapsody and including Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald among many others. Volume 4, "Eddie Durham and The Harlem Blues & Jazz Band" is a diary over the 1970s decade of touring. The books contain over 100 photos each.
Speech by Topsy M. Durham (Julliard 2024) - PBS Documentary Screening
REVIEWS, INTERVIEWS
JAZZ ON THE TUBE audio interview by Lester Perkins
South Texas Jazz Project: audio Interview by DJ Kory Cook
Texas State Historical Asso. - disquisition by Dave Oliphant
Eddie Durham Media Collection - TSU
THE SYNCOPATED TIMES article by David Radlauer
JAZZ MUSEUM IN HARLEM audio interview by Loren Schoenberg
PICTORIAL DISCOGRAPHY YouTube videos
Let's SWING - DANCE Classes in HARLEM, NY

Swingin' the Blues series (Volume 4):
Harlem Blues & Jazz Band - tour with the legends - over 100 pictures!
"Tour itinerary/diary/photos"
Volume4: 1977-1987. Includes the 1985 tour with iconic Mama LuParks & The Savoy Lindyhoppers.
Book Cover Art by BRIAN KRAMER
Volume One Reviews & Interviews:
"THE VIRTUOSITY OF EDDIE DURHAM"
"JAZZ AROUND TOWN" by Scott Yanow
"JAZZ RAG MAG": Issue#169 Winter 2022 by Ron Simpson (J.Witherspoon on the cover)














