Jazz Guitarist. Having played rhythm with multiple generations of the greats, he represents the last link to a bygone era of musicianship. Raised in Southside Virginia, he was introduced to music by playing in his father's jazz band. He moved to New York at 19 to study banjo at the Brooklyn Conservatory; switching to guitar, he was soon a side man for a long list of the notables of the day. As early as 1931, Lucie was performing with Duke Ellington at Harlem's legendary Cotton Club. Thru the 1930s and 1940s, he backed-up Benny Carter, Fletcher Henderson, Coleman Hawkins, Louis Armstrong, and others, and can be heard on many of their recordings. Further, he was the last artist to have accompanied (and recorded with) the fabled Jelly Roll Morton (1885-1941). A busy studio musician for many years, he later had a regular New York television show, and made records with, his wife, Nora Lee King. Lucie remained active well into advanced years, holding a professorship at Borough of Manhattan Community College for 30 years prior to his retirement in 2004, and played at Arturo's in Greenwich Village as late as 2005. He died at a Manhattan nursing home. Asked the secret of longevity, he said: "I didn't have but one woman at a time. I didn't drink a lot of whiskey. I did what my father told me to do".
Jazz Guitarist. Having played rhythm with multiple generations of the greats, he represents the last link to a bygone era of musicianship. Raised in Southside Virginia, he was introduced to music by playing in his father's jazz band. He moved to New York at 19 to study banjo at the Brooklyn Conservatory; switching to guitar, he was soon a side man for a long list of the notables of the day. As early as 1931, Lucie was performing with Duke Ellington at Harlem's legendary Cotton Club. Thru the 1930s and 1940s, he backed-up Benny Carter, Fletcher Henderson, Coleman Hawkins, Louis Armstrong, and others, and can be heard on many of their recordings. Further, he was the last artist to have accompanied (and recorded with) the fabled Jelly Roll Morton (1885-1941). A busy studio musician for many years, he later had a regular New York television show, and made records with, his wife, Nora Lee King. Lucie remained active well into advanced years, holding a professorship at Borough of Manhattan Community College for 30 years prior to his retirement in 2004, and played at Arturo's in Greenwich Village as late as 2005. He died at a Manhattan nursing home. Asked the secret of longevity, he said: "I didn't have but one woman at a time. I didn't drink a lot of whiskey. I did what my father told me to do".
Bio by: Bob Hufford
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