Chelsea residents pay homage to Chick Corea with street

Chelsea residents pay homage to Chick Corea with street

How many of us get to have the street where we lived named after us? Jazzman Chick Corea achieves that honor this weekend, thanks largely to the efforts of three African American men who grew up in the same Chelsea neighborhood.

"I'd be walking down Everett Avenue past the corner of Chestnut St. where Chick lived and I could hear Chick play 'cause he practiced constantly, piano and trumpet too," recalls Lenny Nelson, who notably was Corea's drummer in his first professional group and famously, in Chelsea lore, the 25th child of a brood of 26 Nelsons.

They went to the same public schools: Corea, Lenny Nelson and the Robinson brothers, Leo and Ron. The latter two men are Chelsea historians, most notably promoters of the Lewis H. Latimer Society which brings public attention to the Chelsea-born 19th century inventor of the light switch and a host of other important scientific products.

Also, Leo is a Chelsea City Councilor. the second African American in the history of the city to hold the position (the first being William Williams in 1906). Three of the soldiers in the fabled 54th that fought in the Civil War were from Chelsea. The African American population in Chelsea has increased over 100 percent in the last ten years.

The festivities for the street naming start at 3 p.m. with a public celebration on Everett Avenue between Walnut and Arlington Streets.

Armando "Chick" Corea was born in Chelsea in 1941 and lived there until 1958. He attended the Williams School, k - 9, where he was class president his final year.

After Chelsea High, Corea went on to be a renowned jazz keyboardist. playing with Miles Davis and his most widely known electric group from 1968-'70, among others, and fronting his own group Return to Forever. He has won eight Grammys out of 25 nominations. His most recent release, "Past, Present & Futures" (Stretch Records) includes a tribute to Chelsea, "The Chelsea Shuffle."

Later in the week, May 23 and 25, Corea will be featured in a Boston Pops program at Symphony Hall, "Born in Boston." The evenings led by conductor Keith Lockhart will also spotlight jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard and jazz singer Jane Monheit in a tribute to the Boston-born songwriter Jmmy McHugh.

Walk down Everett Ave. nowadays where the Chick Corea Way sign will be posted and you'll see the new Windham Chelsea Hotel and the world famous old Chelsea Clock Company. Of course, there's a Dunkin' Donuts, but there's also a sausage factory, a deli, a pastry shop, an office building, an auto body shop and some residential apartments, businesses typical of a largely blue collar, small New England city.

"The sign honoring Chick's going up to show kids from Chelsea it's possible for you to do great things," says Ron Robinson, who adds that the Latimer Society is another example of the ongoing effort "to present role models."

Corea has been true blue to his Chelsea roots. In 1997 when he gave the commencement address at Berklee, which began with his reminiscing about his home town, he advised the graduates of the music school to be creative and to be themselves.

Some years previous, his former drummer Lenny Nelson had taught drumming at Berklee. That was before joining the MBTA, where Nelson earned nine consecutive medals for safe driving and now is the collector at Roxbury Crossing.

Drumming continues to have his heart, however, and Nelson, who now lives in the South End, has embarked on the unique project of video taping "the tradition of great drumming." He has recorded the playing of 550 different drummers thus far beginning with Buddy Rich. His goal is 720 tapes. He says that each of his tapes begin with the drummer he is memorializing then continues with his reflections on the drumming using his own drumming skill "to break down the style."

Nelson has fond memories of playing with Corea and recalls how "his Mom and Dad stood by him. His mother was so wonderful, very peaceful and an excellent cook. I remember we'd get back from a gig at 2 a.m. and she'd get up and cook for us. That was every single time."

On Corea's new CD, he has a musical tribute to his mother "Anna's Tango."

Nelson says that family support makes all the difference. His own dad, a blacksmith, who'd drive his carriage with six horses across Chelsea bridge into Boston, "worked three jobs for 15 or 20 years to support such a big family. We all worked around the clock. I'm proud of that."

Photo (Ron Robinson, Lenny Nelson, Leo Robinson)