Fats
Waller was a major influence on Tatum. From infancy, Tatum had impaired vision.
Several explanations for this have been posited, most involving cataracts. He
had eye operations, which meant that at the age of eleven he could see things
that were close to him, and perhaps could distinguish colors. Any benefits from
these procedures were reversed, however, when he was assaulted, probably in his
early twenties. As a result, he was completely blind in his left eye and had
very limited vision in his right. Despite this, there are multiple accounts of
him enjoying playing cards and pool.
Accounts
vary on whether Tatum's parents played any musical instruments, but it is
likely that he was exposed at an early age to church music, including through
the Grace Presbyterian Church that his parents attended.
He also began playing the piano from a young
age, playing by ear and aided by an excellent memory and sense of pitch.
Other musicians reported that he had perfect
pitch.
As
a child he was sensitive to the piano's intonation and insisted it be tuned
often. He learned tunes from the radio, records, and by copying piano roll
recordings. In an interview as an adult, Tatum denied the story that his
playing style had developed because he was able to reproduce piano roll
recordings made by two pianists. He also had a lifelong interest in sports and
displayed an encyclopedic memory for baseball statistics.
Tatum
first attended Jefferson School in Toledo, then moved to the School for the
Blind in Columbus, Ohio, late in 1924. He was there for probably less than a
year before transferring to the Toledo School of Music.
He had formal piano lessons with Overton G.
Rainey at either the Jefferson School or the Toledo School of Music. Rainey,
who was also visually impaired, taught the classical tradition, as he did not
improvise and discouraged his students from playing jazz.[28] Based on this
history, it is reasonable to assume that Tatum was largely self-taught as a
pianist.] By the time he was a teenager, Tatum was asked to play at various
social events, and he was probably being paid to play in Toledo clubs from
around 1924–25.
Growing
up, Tatum drew inspiration principally from Fats Waller and James P. Johnson,
who exemplified the stride piano style, and to some extent from the more modern
Earl Hines, six years Tatum's senior. Tatum identified Waller as his biggest
influence, while pianist Teddy Wilson and saxophonist Eddie Barefield suggested
that Hines was one of his favorite jazz pianists.
Another
influence was pianist Lee Sims, who did not play jazz, but did use chord
voicings and an orchestral approach (i.e. encompassing a full sound instead of
highlighting one or more timbres) that appeared in Tatum's playing.