Bill Doggett was an American jazz and rhythm and blues pianist and organist born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His mother, a church pianist, introduced him to music when he was nine years old. By the time Doggett was 15, he had joined a Philadelphia area combo, playing local theaters and clubs while attending high school.
In 1942, he was hired as The Ink Spots’ pianist and arranger. In 1949, he replaced Will Bill Davis in Louis Jordan’s Tympany Five. It was there that Doggett first achieved success playing the Hammond organ and is also reputed to have written one of Jordan’s biggest hits, “Saturday Night Fish Fry.” In 1951, Doggett organized his own trio and began recording for King Records. His best known recording is “Honky Tonk,” a rhythm and blues hit of 1956 which sold four million copies.
Doggett won the Cash Box award for best rhythm and blues performer from 1957 to 1959. He arranged for many bandleaders and performers, including Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, and Lionel Hampton. As a jazz player, Doggett started in swing music and later played soul jazz. He continued to play and arrange until he died of a heart attack in New York City.
