Parrish, Avery
Parrish, Avery
Parrish, Avery, jazz pianist, arranger; b. Birmingham, Ala., Jan. 24, 1917; d. N.Y. Dec. 10, 1959. He was best known for his work with the Erskine Hawkins band and will always be remembered for his creative blues solo “After Hours” (1940). His cousin was pianist-vocalist Gladys Palmer. Parrish attended Ala. State Coll. and while there began working with Erskine Hawkins. He went with the band to N.Y. in 1934, and continued to work with them until early 1941. He relocated to Calif., where he worked as a soloist until suffering severe injuries in a L.A. bar skirmish in 1942, suffered partial paralysis, and never again played professionally. He worked day jobs for the rest of his life that ended under mysterious circumstances in N.Y.
—John Chilton, Who’s Who of Jazz/Lewis Porter