Teddy Powell
Some of his compositions were written under the pseudonym Freddy James. Teddy Powell was born in Oakland, California, Powell began playing violin when he was eight years old and picked up the banjo when he was fourteen. During the late 1920s to the early 1930s, he was a member of the Abe Lyman orchestra, taking on the additional tasks of gathering radio bands.
Also recorded as Marguerite James · Freddy James
Teddy Powell
- Name
- Teddy Powell
- Birth Name
- Teodoro Paolella
- Born
- 1 March 1905
- Birthplace
- Oakland, California, U.S.
- Died
- 17 November 1993
- Place of death
- New York City, U.S.
- Occupation
- Musician, bandleader
- Nationality
- United States
- Fields
- jazz
- Languages
- English
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Some of his compositions were written under the pseudonym Freddy James. Teddy Powell was born in Oakland, California, Powell began playing violin when he was eight years old and picked up the banjo when he was fourteen. During the late 1920s to the early 1930s, he was a member of the Abe Lyman orchestra, taking on the additional tasks of gathering radio bands.
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In this article
Biography
Biography
He formed the Teddy Powell Orchestra in 1939 and it performed through the 1940s. Powell's sidemen included Tony Aless, Gus Bivona, Pete Candoli, Irving Fazola, and Charlie Ventura, but his best sideman left for better paying work. "Snake Charmer", a song Powell published in 1937 (with lyrics by Leonard Whitcup), is still a popular song among partner dancers in Finland, where it is usually performed as a translation: "Kuningaskobra fi"). It placed 69th on the 1952–1959 Finnish charts, and is still being recorded by modern performers, as listed in the recordings database of the Finnish national broadcasting company Yle. After the band folded, Powell wrote music and arrangements. He had hits with "Bewildered" and "If My Heart Could Only Talk". During the latter part of his career, he worked in music publishing. Powell moved to Newark, New Jersey, where he opened his club Teddy P's. managed by Clarence Avant.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Teddy Powell • Alias — Freddy James • Birth Name — Teodoro Paolella • Born — 1 March 1905 • Birthplace — Oakland, California, U.S. • Died — 17 November 1993 • Place of death — New York City, U.S. • Genre — Jazz, swing • Occupation — Musician, bandleader • Instrument — Guitar • Label — Decca, Bluebird
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1993
Teddy Powell died at New York City.
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Oakland.
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New York City.
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Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Teddy Powell. En.notrecinema.com.
- 2.Teddy Powell | Biography & History. AllMusic.
- 3.Colin Larkin. The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Guinness Publishing. 1985/6. 1992. 0-85112-939-0.
- 4.Nyman, Jake. Suuri suomalainen listakirja. Tammi. 2005. 951-31-2503-3.
- 5.Fono - Äänitetietokanta. Fono.fi.
- 6.Recalling Newark Night Life.
- 7.Teddy Powell.
- 8.Hulbert, Dan. In Newark, the Sound of Jazz. The New York Times. 1978-04-09. 0362-4331.
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Teddy Powell is recorded as bandleader, composer, conductor, jazz guitarist and singer.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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