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Many people find difficulty in focusing on constructive matters for even eight minutes. Sam Reed has been blocking out all distractions for the last eight decades.
At 7 p.m. Saturday, the Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz and Performing Arts, 738 S. Broad St., and The Poor People Caravan for Christ will honor the 75-year-old’s diligence with its “Night to Remember” celebration, where the saxophonist will do what he knows best: Jamming with fellow jazz enthusiasts and stretching his art’s reach to locals. State Rep. Kenyatta Johnson will join with state Sen. Anthony Williams, U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah’s office, and City Council in presenting him with a plaque and a legislative citation.
Though born in Kingtree, S.C., Reed has called Point Breeze home for most of his life, as his parents ventured north when he was 2. Now residing on the 2200 block of Sears Street, he has remained a fervent lover of jazz since he took up the saxophone at age 14.
Saturday, he will let his tenor saxophone stroll down memory lane. The night will include three performances, with two vocalists joining Reed on the bill. A portion of the proceeds from the event will benefit Grands As Parents, a North Philly-based organization honoring grandparents who are rearing their grandchildren.
“Mr. Reed is a great man. He has been playing the saxophone with such passion for longer than many people have been alive,” Leola M. Stowall-Muse, the director and founder of The Caravan, which aims to help the impoverished to escape poverty, said.
Reed began his musical infatuation shortly before picking up a sax, being a part of the drum and bugle corp at the American Legion Lincoln Post 89, 1940 Federal St. Frequent blisters necessitated his switch when at Norris S. Barratt Middle School, formerly at 1599 Wharton St. Attending Mastbaum Vocational/Technical High School in Kensington, he intensified his skills, leading to the formation of his first band, a nine-member ensemble dubbed “Sam Reed and the All Stars.”
“We had a few local weekend gigs, playing at dances and house parties in the beginning,” Reed said. “One of my favorite places was the [defunct O.V. Catto] Elks Lodge on 16th and Fitzwater. After some time, we kind of became a city band and moved to locations in West and North Philly.”
Patterning their sound after jazz behemoths such as Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie “Yardbird” Parker, Reed and his mates grew in confidence each time their instruments rent the air.
“We were young cats hoping to play with big acts,” Reed, who wielded an alto saxophone in his formative years, said.
While a teenager, he encountered Parker while taking in a show at the now-demolished Earle Theater in Center City. On a break, the legendary Kansan asked Reed to hold his sax. Shaking while holding the device, Reed inadvertently drew laughter from the crowd. In ’97, he learned that a Kansas City resident had purchased that horn for $165,000, placing it in a museum in Parker’s honor.
“To think, I once held $165,000 in my hands,” Reed said with a chuckle.
Once an adult, he lost all apprehension when dealing with headliners. In ’54, he traveled to Wildwood, N.J. for a gig at the renowned Club Bolero. His success there led to his joining the band of Johnny Lynch, a trumpeter who had played with Gillespie, two years later at Atlantic City’s Club Harlem.
“When he hired me, Johnny had me playing a baritone. The next year, I switched to an alto,” Reed said.
His talent helped to accentuate performances by luminaries such as Louis Armstrong and Nat King Cole.
“The club had something called ‘The Breakfast Show,’ where Cole or Armstrong would start at around 6. I also came into contact with Sammy Davis Jr. and Sarah Vaughan, so I was really able to thrive.”
Good fortune continued for Reed in ’59 when he began a 12-year stint at North Philadelphia’s Uptown Theater. Shortly into his tenure, he became the house leader, a title that eventually morphed into musical director. Beginning in ’63, when “Sam Reed and His Band” backed a Labor Day weekend performance by Jackie Wilson, and ending in ’71, Reed and his cohorts provided accompaniment for a veritable compilation of showstoppers.
“We tested for Little Stevie Wonder and were able to keep him from having to bring musicians to the Uptown. We also worked with Diana Ross and the Supremes, Martha and the Vandellas, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations and The Four Tops, to name a few,” he recalled.
Prior to his ascension to director, the Uptown focused on rhythm and blues and rock ‘n’ roll.
“I was a bebopper at heart,” Reed said, referring to the early form of modern jazz. “Therefore, I added jazz to the other shows.”
His move allowed Ramsey Lewis, Gloria Lynne, Nancy Wilson and others to complement Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, Isaac Hayes, Wilson Pickett, Lou Rawls and Otis Redding, all who benefited from Reed’s adept hands.
Closer to home, the ’60s gave him opportunities to mingle with Frankie Avalon, Bobby Darin, Fabian Forte and Frankie Lymon at the old Broadway Theater, which stood at 2042 S. Broad St. He also performed studio work for Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, heads of Philadelphia International Records.
“I also was in charge of hiring horn players for sessions,” Reed said of contributing to the pair’s influential Philadelphia Sound. “My last work for them came on [Billy Paul’s ’72 No. 1 hit] ‘Me and Mrs. Jones.’”
Reed moved to Los Angeles in ’72. He partnered up with Teddy Pendergrass following the latter’s defection from Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes.
“I worked with Teddy as his musical director until his accident,” Reed said of an ’82 car accident that left Pendergrass paralyzed from the waist down.
Upon his return to South Philadelphia following his father’s death, Reed joined with other community members to form The Point Breeze Performing Arts Center, 1717-21 Point Breeze Ave., in ’84.
“I play there periodically. South Philly could use a bit more jazz. West Philly has taken over the scene,” he said.
To stay sharp, Reed also has delighted ears at IKEA, 2206 S. Columbus Blvd., and Robert’s Twi-Lite Lounge, 700 S. 20th St. Having hit the three-quarter century mark last month, Reed has accumulated scores of scores, aiming to craft thoughtful interpretations of his predecessors’ pieces.
“Jazz never stops advancing,” he said of changes he has observed in his genre since his days as a young cat. “I took to jazz in the beginning because we can always revisit pieces. There is something to be said every day on the same tune.”
Far removed from his blister days, Reed concentrates on delivering blistering renditions of tunes. Spry and eager, he looks forward to Saturday and beyond.
“There is so much going on in music,” he said. “I am happy to take part in any celebration of music’s power.” SPR
Tickets are $15. For more information, call 215-893-9912.
Contact Staff Writer Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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