Jeannie Cheatham

Jeannie Cheatham (born Jean Elizabeth Evans, August 14, 1927) is an American blues and jazz singer, pianist, and composer. She is noted most for her musical collaboration with husband Jimmy Cheatham, with whom she formed the Sweet Baby Blues Band in 1984. Her autobiography, Meet Me With Your Black Drawers On: My Life In Music, was published in 2006 by the University of Texas Press.

Biography

Cheatham was born and grew up in Akron, Ohio, the first child of Elizabeth ( Smart) and Ernest Evans. At the age of five, she started having lessons on her aunt's newly acquired piano, which was soon moved to Cheatham's home when it transpired that she had a talent for music her aunt lacked. Not long after, she began playing for services at the church her family attended. Throughout her school years, Cheatham's piano teacher also took her to play at weddings and social events, as well as to give recitals.

Cheatham first played jazz music when, aged 14, she was asked to join a local 15-piece rehearsal orchestra. While still in high school, she began playing in smaller groups, and found herself in demand professionally as most younger musicians were drafted into the US Army during World War II. In 1944, she was accepted as a student at the University of Akron, but was unable to complete more than one year for financial reasons.

In 2006, Jeannie and Jimmy Cheatham received a lifetime achievement award at the San Diego Music Awards, and in November 2022, were inducted into the San Diego Music Hall of Fame.

Discography

Academy Awards in Jazz (1964) Roberta Como & Jean CheathamGrenadier Records Changing with the Times (1993) George LewisNew World Records