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| Pete Hittle, Trumpet |
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| Brad Hittle, Bass |
The Hittle brothers-- Pete and Brad-- are from a musical family and
they were exposed to the language of Jazz at an early age by their pop Jimmy, a drummer and bandleader in Sioux City for more
than 40 years.
As young musicians, the brothers were influenced by the Chicago-style, which predominated in
Sioux City in those days. The great exponents of that style of "hot" playing included Iowa native sons
Leon "Bix" Beiderbecke and Rod Cless and such stars as Pee Wee Russell, Jimmy McPartland, Eddie Condon, Bobby Hackett,
Jack Teagarden, Boyce Brown and others.
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| Pete, Jimmy and Brad Hittle, early 1970s |
They are also well-educated in the traditional New Orleans style
of playing, having spent much of their childhood in the Crescent City where they have close family ties. They witnessed
some of the last performances by the old Treme' and French Quarter musicians--the originators of Jazz--who were enjoying
an artistic renaissance in the 1960s.
Respectfully referred to as "The Mens," these aging performers
could be heard nightly at Preservation Hall, a ramshackle old converted blacksmith shop on St. Peter Street just
a few paces off Bourbon Street in the Vieux Carre. Pete and Brad spent countless hours there, absorbing the music of
the old Masters: Kid Thomas Valentine, Punch Miller, De De Pierce, Captain John Handy, Willie and Percy Humphrey, Big Jim
Robinson, Narvin Kimball, Sing Miller, Chester Zardis, Placide Adams, Frog Joseph and "The Bell Gal," Sweet Emma
Barrett.
The brothers were too young then to get into New Orleans' sportier night clubs,
so they stood outside on the curb and listened to the sounds emanating from those establishments....the music of Pete Fountain,
Lou Sino & The Bengals, Roosevelt Sykes, Mac Rebennack (Dr. John) and other great musicians in the Big Easy. Brad
and Pete were indelibly touched by the sights, sounds and spicy aromas of New Orleans-- and by the raw, earthy and
spontaneous brand of Jazz they found there.
The brothers got started as
professional Jazz players in Little Chicago in the late 60s and early 1970s and have followed successful individual music
careers since 1979. In the Spring of 2009, they reunited after 30 years
specifically to rediscover their early Jazz roots and the Little
Chicago Syncopators is the result of that effort.
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| Mainstream, a modern jazz unit led by Brad and Pete in the 1970s |
Their respective playing styles
reveal a heavy traditional Jazz influence. Pete's hard-driving horn and Brad's aggressive, walking
bass reflect a bold style of performance that has its roots in marching street parades and that originated
before modern amplification systems, when musicians had to compete with the raucous noise of the crowd.
Pete and
Brad are joined on stage by some of the most accomplished musicians in this genre. They always give the full measure of their
art-- and a little lagniape* too. And yes, they are having a very good time. We hope you will too!
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| Eh La Bas....Komon Se Va! |
Brad Hittle
Although he holds an M.A. degree from Louisiana
State University, Brad says he obtained his music education at "the University of West Seventh Street,"
a reference to his formative years in jazz making the myriad jam sessions that proliferated in Sioux City in the 1960s, especially
in bars and taverns along West Seventh Street on the lower westside of town. When other members of his high school
class were attending homecoming and prom, he was sneaking into after-hours joints on the West side, lugging his string bass--
his ticket for admission to these closed sessions.
Brad later studied double bass formally with Jim Aton and Steve
Novosel, and he has taken master classes with Steve Gilmore, Rufus Reid, Buster Williams and Francois Rabbath.
Brad
first performed professionally in Sioux City with his father's band and with the Don Weinstine Band. Later
he worked with Clarence Kenner, Don Gilbert, Reggie Williams and in the Joe Bata Band. He performed regularly
with pianist Floyd Naylor and drummer Kenny Granning at the Rickshaw Lounge in 1969-1970. In 1973, he
was the bassist for The Tiny Rice Quartet and was later joined there by Pete, who was just beginning his
professional career. Brad moved to Louisiana in 1974 and played in Baton Rouge and New Orleans
until late 1976, renewing friendships with many of "The Mens" whom he had first met as a youngster.
Returning to Iowa in 1977, Brad co-led Mainstream--a contemporary modern Jazz group--with Pete for two years before the
brothers again went in separate directions in 1979.
From 1979-2009, Brad performed with top
Jazz artists in the Baltimore-Washington DC area, including stints with The Ellsworth Gibson Trio and the Larry Eanet
Trio, and with pianist Michael Price and drummer J.C. Jefferson. He backed Jazz singers Alecia Hetzner, Barbara
"Bann" Walker and Georgene Fountain, meanwhile performing blues with Warner Williams & Jay Summerour
and traditional Jazz with David "Little Bix" Jellema, Bags Howard, with Dave Littlefield's
Shieks of Dixie, and with the Jazzophiles, an ensemble led by legendary Yerba Buena Stompers clarinetist Larry
Wright.
In 1995-1998, Brad shifted
gears to tour with legendary mandolin virtuoso, Grammy winner and "Jazz-Grass" originator Frank
Wakefield, including performances at various East Coast venues and over radio station WAMC in New York. He
helped produce Wakefield's critically acclaimed 1997 album That Was Now...This Is Then! on the Rosewood
label, and he also wrote the liner notes for the project. In 1999, he recorded a live project in WashingtonD.C.
with the Wakefield band.
From 2000-2007, Brad led his own Jazz group, the Brad Hittle Trio, with pianist
Lou Jones and percussionist Kevin Lloyd and enjoyed a lengthy stand at Nick's Chophouse in Washington. He also
collaborated on dates with guitarists Hale Bushlow and Henry Gold, drummer Art McKinney and with the Karlton Jackson
Quartet. In 2004, Brad recorded Sunday Morning, DC Time featuring highly respected DC area pianist
Roy Goodman.
In addition to performing, Brad is a prolific writer and has published many articles
about musicians he has known and played with over his career. His stories have appeared in Acoustic
Musician magazine, International Bassist magazine, Bass World Journal, The Weekender and other
publications. His non-jazz professional literary work includes articles in Proceedings,the Journal of the US Naval Institute, Studies
in Intelligence, historical book reviews and a published monograph on the Civil War for the Iowa State Historical
Society Civil War History Project.
Pete Hittle
A well-known music
educator, Pete currently teaches instrumental music in the Sioux City Community School District. Additionally, he served as
adjunct professor at both Morningside College and Western Iowa Tech Community College, where he taught Jazz improvisation,
and coached Jazz combos from 2004-2009. Pete organized the Jazz Town Reunion Festival in 2002 and performed at it for five
straight years. In addition, he coordinated and organized the Jazz Zone Jazz education series for the Sioux City Schools from
2001-2006. Pete played his first gigs with the Jimmy Hittle Orchestra, and was influenced by trumpeters Rockley Beck, Claire
Morse, and Johnny Kopecky. His first lessons in Jazz improvisation were administered "on the job" by a host of "Little
Chicago" sidemen...among them pianists Clyde Wagner, Harry Smith, Dick Aton, and tenor saxophonists Donald "Pappy"
Gilbert, Jay Raiff, and Earl Edwards.
He worked with the Reggie Schive Orchestra from 1985-2004, and Lance Lehmberg's Kaliedoscope Orchestra from 1990-2006.
For the past dozen years has performed with the Dixie Daddy's, a popular NW Iowa Dixie band. In addition, he has led the
Pete Hittle Quartet for the past several years, performing many of his own compositions. He has appeared on stage with such
Jazz notables as Clark Terry, Rich Matteson, Jamey Aeberosold, Phil Woods, Roger Neumann, Scott Hesse, and Ron Wilkins.
More recently he has toured with Doreen's Jazz New Orleans. He has backed singer Dennis Day and Clarinetist-Actor-Comedian
Hal Linden. Pete has three albums to his credit with The Notes, The Bruce Leavitt Sextet and The Dixie
Daddys, and is presently working on a quartet project composed of his original compositions. Pete received his bachelor
of music education degree from Morningside College in 1978, where he studied trumpet with Gary Slechta, and his master of
music from the University of South Dakota in 1985 where he studied with the late Ray DeVilbiss. In addition, he has appeared
as guest soloist with numerous school Jazz ensembles, and conducted master classes in a variety of educational settings. His
articles have been published in many national music journals including the MENC Journal, SBO Music Journal, and regionally
in Weekender Magazine, and the Iowa Band Masters Magazine.
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