Shooby Taylor



William H. Taylor, better known by his stage name Shooby Taylor (a.k.a The Human Horn) was an extreme scat singer.

Career
William H. Taylor was born in Indiana Township (Allegheny County) in Pennsylvania on September 19, 1929. When he was 18 months old, Taylor was brought to New York by his family. He was raised there and considered himself a New Yorker. During high school Taylor was embarrassed about his stuttering and due to that, didn't finish high school. He married a woman named Sadie (nicknamed Peaches) and had a son whom they named William H. Taylor, Jr. Their son was born when Taylor was 17. The two divorced and remained friends until the 1980s when Sadie passed away. In 1953, Shooby entered the military and trained in Augusta, GA for an assignment to Korea when the war ended. Shooby was discharged in 1955.

Shooby later worked for the post office in New York, at many different locations and positions, but not as a letter carrier. He grew up listening to many Jazz musicians such as Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, and Sarah Vaughan. Taylor always heard sounds in his head and wanted to express them through music. Taylor tried to play the saxophone, but to no avail. Taylor then realized that his real musical talent was in his voice, "the human horn". He then started to create his iconic scat style using odd phrases not normally used in scat singing.

Apparently, Shooby met Dizzy Gillespie asked if he could use the name "Shooby" for himself. Dizzy approved and Taylor officially used the name from there on. Shooby estimated about paying $30/hr studio time at Angel Sound. He also recorded at another studio on 23rd Street. At the recording studio, jazz session recording artist Freddie Drew played the Farfisa organ on a few tracks such as "Stout-Hearted Man".

Around this time Shooby was a heavy drinker, and has stated himself that he cleaned up through the AA and Jesus Christ. Shooby has also said that he was a "whoremongler" which may have coincided with his marriage. Shooby tried to go and perform at the Apollo Theater but was booed offstage. This is the only video recording of Shooby and is what he is mostly recognized for. He also attended many NYC jam sessions but was rarely given a chance. Shooby started to make cassettes, dubbing his scatting over artists such as the Ink Spots, the Harmonicats, Christy Lane, Johnny Cash, Miles Davis, Dexter Gordon, Shirley Caesar, Errol Garner, Elvis Presley, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

In 1993, Shooby performed at a bar on West 23rd Street. In 1995, The David Letterman Show wanted bring Shooby as a guest star onto the show after hearing a cassette of Shooby released by WFMU. However he was recovering from and a stroke and could not sing anymore. Shooby has since said that his gift was gone.

Meeting with Irwin Chusid
Still in progress

Discography
Please note that all released of Shooby Taylor were private and not released to the public.


 * 1980s
 * Shooby Taylor - The Human Horn - Cassette features tracks dubbing over the Ink Spots, Miles Davis, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. No exact date is known for this release, although it was probably release in the 80s.
 * 1) Ink Spots-You Were Only Foolin'
 * 2) Miles Davis- The Theme
 * 3) Wolfgang Mozart- Rondeau. Allegretto
 * The Human Horn (and then some) - Dexter Gordan / Coltrane / Elvis - Cassette features tracks dubbing over Dexter Gordan, John Coltrane, and Elvis Presley. As well as for this release, it was probably released in the 80s.
 * The Human Horn (and then some) - Johnny Cash - Featuring a track dubbing over Johnny Cash. This cassette was also probably released in the 80s.
 * The Human Horn (and then some) - Country & Jazz - Released in the 80s.


 * 1990s
 * {name unknown} - Promotional cassette released by WFMU. Released in the 90s.