It was the summer of 1979, and Radio 2 Shift host Tom Allen was in Chicago, enjoying a summer of trombone lessons and encountering some fascinating people in music. One such person was Renold Schilke, a former trumpet player in the Chicago Symphony and world famous brass instrument maker. He was, as Allen describes, a very small, very intense man who looked more like a tailor than a musician. When you walked out of the elevator into his third floor music shop, Schilke would immediately start to sell you things. On first encountering Allen’s trombone, he exclaimed, “This thing leaks like a sieve! If you played one of my trombones, you’d have a giant sound!”
If Schilke’s salesmanship wasn’t enough to convince you of his expertise, the shop itself certainly conveyed that. There was a hall of fame with pictures of all the famous patrons of Schilke’s shop. Allen noticed that in the top corner, there was a picture of a tall beautiful man with a big fuzzy afro and Dizzy Gillespie trumpet that pointed upwards, and it was signed with a scrawled black sharpie.
Allen realized that this picture was of Rahmlee Michael Davis, the lead trumpet player for Earth, Wind & Fire. He was the great high-note man, and a very dashing, exciting musician. Just then the elevator doors opened, and out walks the six-feet-five or six inches Davis. Schilke, who came up to Davis’s chest at best, yelled out “Rahm!” Allen watched as the two men hugged each other and did a complicated, yet cool, handshake.
And with that, two worlds collided. This old man, who along with being a world class trumpet player and maker was also a target expert who used to coach the Chicago police on target accuracy, was completely at home talking with this dashing R&B star. Allen watched, and then quietly left and didn’t bother telling Mr. Schilke he was going.
Rahmlee Michael Davis, standing tall in the horn section.
Related links:
Rahmlee Michael Davis
Shift's Tom Allen shares his shuffle playlist