Alvin Stoller
b. 7 October 1925, New York City, USA, d. 19 October 1992. Taking up the drums as a child, Stoller's dues were paid while he was still a teenager with stints in bands led by Raymond Scott, Teddy Powell, Benny Goodman and Charlie Spivak. In 1945 he followed Buddy Rich into the drum chair with the Tommy Dorsey band, bringing with him much of his predecessor's enthusiasm—and not a little of his fiery temperament. Through the late '40s and '50s, Stoller's career found him playing in name bands such as those led by Georgie Auld, Harry James, Billy May, Charlie Barnet, Claude Thornhill and Bob Crosby. This same period saw him in constant demand as a studio musician, especially for Norman Granz, backing artists such as Erroll Garner, Billie Holiday, Ben Webster, Ella Fitzgerald and Benny Carter, with whom he appeared on ADDITIONS TO FURTHER DEFINITIONS. Tastefully discreet when backing singers or in a small group setting and powerfully propulsive when driving a big band, Stoller was one of the best late swing era drummers even if he was sometimes overlooked thanks to his long service in film and television studios in late years. = ADDITIONS TO FURTHER DEFINITIONS (1966)