Stan Levey

When I was in college I often listened to Symphony Sid Torem, a jazz disk jockey on Boston radio. Sid had spent time in New York and personally knew many of the musicians of the modern jazz era. One of the musicians he introduced me to was Stan Levey, a drummer with Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker and a member of the Lighthouse All-Stars. He died last month.

The obituary in today’s New York Times had two interesting facts in addition to his drummig talent. He was only 19 when he played with Gillespie and Parker. He gave up music completely when he was less than fifty years old and became a commercial photographer. He was a helluva talented guy.