James Charles Heard (August 10, 1917 – September 27, 1988) was an American swing, bop, and blues drummer.
Heard was born in Dayton, Ohio and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. As a young child, he performed as a tap dancer in amateur contests and vaudeville shows. Around the age of 11, Heard began to switch his focus to the drums. He started out teaching himself to play, then took lessons as a student at Cass Technical High School.... meer