Obituary: Terry Pollard

BY LARS BJORN AND JIM GALLERT

Former Detroiter Terry Pollard passed away on December 16 in New York after a long illness. Her musical career was cut short by a stroke she suffered in Detroit in 1979 that limited her to the use of one hand. She lived in Senior Citizens housing in Hazel Park for several years before moving in 2000 to a nursing facility in the Bronx near her son.

Pollard was born in the Motor City on August 15, 1931, and graduated from Pershing High. She eventually became one of the top pianists in the city and achieved national prominence when she was hired by vibraphonist Terry Gibbs in 1953 after he caught her with Billy Mitchell's quintet at the Blue Bird Inn. The year she left Gibbs, 1957, she was selected by Down Beat as the New Star on vibes, an instrument she picked up just six months before joining Gibbs. She recorded several times with the Gibbs quartet and also her own LP in 1955 (Terry Pollard on Bethlehem)

Back in Detroit, Pollard joined Yusef Lateef's group at Klein's Show Bar and had the opportunity to record with the group in 1958 and 1959 for Argo and Savoy. Her last recording for a national label was with Detroit harpist Dorothy Ashby on Jazzland in 1961. The lack of recordings with Pollard is regrettable, since everyone agrees that her playing remained exceptional through the seventies.

One of us (Lars) was privileged to hear her a few times in the last half of the seventies and most memorable was a performance with Lateef's quartet at Baker's in 1976. This was one of Lateef's most high powered New York groups with Bob Cunningham on bass and Al "Tootie" Heath on drums. Pollard was no doubt up-to-snuff and her solos were technically brilliant, hard-swinging and adventurous both melodically and harmonically.

Jim remembers another memorable night at Baker's with Sonny Stitt. Stitt intimidated many musicians, but Pollard was not one of them. She pushed Sonny musically and it is a shame they never recorded together. He also fondly remembers hearing Terry with her trio (Will Austin, Bert Myrick) at the Hobby Bar in the 1970s and the drive, intensity and brilliance of her playing. Terry always had plenty of attitude, perhaps because she worked in a man's world — bebop. She had a strong, swinging style and Detroit was lucky to have her for so many years.