Sidney "Big Sid" Catlett was born on January 17, 1910, in Evansville, Indiana. He began his music career at an early age, instructed in the rudiments of piano and drums under the tutelage of a music teacher hired by his mother. In 1928, he began playing with violinist and clarinet player Darnell Howard before joining pianist Sammy Stewart's Orchestra in New York City. Throughout the 1930s, Catlett recorded and performed with multiple musicians including Benny Carter, McKinney's Cotton Pickers, Fletcher Henderson, and Don Redman. Between 1938 and 1942, Catlett was Louis Armstrong's drummer of choice, regularly featured in Armstrong's big band, while periodically joining Benny Goodman's group. Catlett was one of the few drummers to successfully transition into bebop, appearing on Dizzy Gillespie's progressive recordings in 1945. He died of a heart attack on March 25, 1951, while visiting friends backstage at a Hot Lips Page benefit concert in Chicago. In 1996, he was inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame.
