Eugene "Fats" Heard

Eugene ”Fats” Heard (10 October 1923 – 5 December 1987) was an American jazz drummer. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he graduated from the old Central High School and studied the piano at the Cleveland Institute of Music before taking up the drums as his primary instrument. He played with Coleman Hawkins and Lionel Hampton and was part of Erroll Garner's band from 1952 to 1955. He played on Garner's original 1954 recording of "Misty".In the late 1950s, Heard ran the Modern Jazz Room (formerly Cotton Club) in downtown Cleveland with his friend Jim Bard.