Career
Shu learned violin and guitar as a child before picking up saxophone as a teenager. His professional career began in 1935 in Brooklyn. For the seven years leading up to his service in the U.S. Army, Shu performed in vaudeville and night clubs as a ventriloquist and a harmonica player with the Cappy Barra Harmonica Band.
U.S. Armed Forces during World War II
Shu played in bands while serving in the Army from 1942 to 1945. Notably, he performed with Maurice Evans in the Pacific. Shu had enlisted in the Army with Stan Harper and they were assigned a special unit put together to entertain the troops.
Post-World War II, 1940s & 1950s
Following Shu's discharge from the Army, he performed with Tadd Dameron (1947), George Shearing, Johnny Bothwell, Buddy Rich, Les Elgart, Lionel Hampton (1949–1950), Charlie Barnet, Chubby Jackson, and Gene Krupa (1954–1958).
1960s, 1970s, 1980s
In the 1960s Shu moved to Florida, playing locally as well as with Louis Armstrong's All-Stars, Hampton, and Gene Krupa again. Shu was a member of the vocal jazz group Rare Silk in 1980. During this period, he performed with this group in and around Boulder, Colorado; and also performed a 6-week Department of Defense tour.
Death in 1986
Eddie Shu died in 1986 in St Petersburg, Florida, while living in Tampa. Shu is buried at Bay Pines National Cemetery, near St. Petersburg, Florida.
Read more about this topic: Eddie Shu
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