Lottie Hightower

It is hard to imagine a name as vivid as Lottie Hightower going forgotten, but that's the music business. The vocalist, pianist, and bandleader picked up the surname from her husband, Willie Hightower, who played the cornet and, like her, was ambitious enough to front a combo. Their family legacy in jazz has to be considered of only slight importance -- obviously, the concept of a Hightower is more vital in medieval military strategy. Hubbie's background was down in the river in New Orleans, where he was leading his own seven-piece called the American Stars as early as 1915. But Lottie Hightower was a Chicago gal -- the couple got together after the cornet blower blew into the Windy City in the early '20s. Lottie Hightower and her Eudora Night Hawks was the official name of the band Willie Hightower himself wound up joining. Prior to that he had been with Carroll Dickerson, who decided to turn his entire orchestra over to Louis Armstrong. There is a possible implication that dealing with one's wife as a bandleader would still be less intimidating then having Satchmo call the shots. For whatever reason, Willie Hightower joined up with the medium-sized ensemble that actually grew out of the accompaniment for a dance class held in Mason Hall in Chicago. Madame Hightower took the group's name from the Eudora dance methodology, although a different philosophy dominates sides such as "Squeeze Me", a 1927 recording for the Black Patti label. This could be a reflection of the somewhat shortened band name which showed up on the labels of these records, Hightower's Night Hawks. Hightower husband and wife performed in theater bands in the following decade, then descended to the basement in terms of professional music visibility. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, All Music Guide