Roy Eldridge - Personality

Personality

Eldridge was famously considered competitive by those who knew him, pianist Chuck Folds saying, "I can't imagine anyone more competitive than he was in the 1970s. I've never met anyone scrappier than Roy, ever, ever, ever." Eldridge fully admitted to his competitive spirit, saying "I was just trying to outplay anybody, and to outplay them my way." Jazz trumpeter Jonah Jones reports that Eldridge's willingness to "go anywhere and play against anyone" even led to a cutting contest with his own hero, Rex Stewart. Roy could also become antagonistic, particularly in the face of those he deemed racist. Many noted Roy's constant restlessness, saxophonist Billie Bowen noting that Roy "could never, even as a youngster, sit down for more than a few minutes, he was alwas restless." Eldridge is also said to have suffered from sporadic stage fright. He occasionally found himself in trouble with women, including an incident that involved his being forced to sell his trumpet temporarily in order to reclaim a portion of the money that had been stolen from him by a woman with whom he had drunkenly spent the night. Roy is also said to have developed a fiery temper later in life, according to clarinettist Joe Muranyi, who worked with Eldridge at Ryan's and has called Elridge's temper "Mt. Vesuvius to the fifth power."