Grady Tate

Video

Oral History Information

Interview Date
Birth Date
Deceased Date
Job Title
Musician, Drummer

This audio only interview was conducted for a radio program by Dan Del Fiorentino and donated to the NAMM Oral History program: Grady Tate was a prolific jazz drummer who laid the beat for such performers as Ella Fitzgerald, Lionel Hampton, Quincy Jones, Count Basie, and Ray Charles. He gained a wider fan base when he performed as the drummer on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for seven years and as the percussionist for the famous Simon & Garfunkel Concert in Central Park in 1981. As a leader, Grady recorded several albums for Skye and Impulse Records including "Feeling Life".