Many drummers have imitated the sounds and moves of tap dancers, but this important swing drummer actually was one and at first kept his practice on the drums a sideline. As he played more, he came to the attention of another drummer named William McKinney who was something of a driven bandleader, fronting a variety of outfits; the first of these groups to employ Austin was the Synco Jazz Band. The leader seemed to be grooming the drummer as something of a replacement. McKinney was a drummer himself, but believed he could more effectively direct the music as a conductor. In 1926, McKinney formed the first version of McKinney's Cotton Pickers, a band that would record frequently and with much success. Austin took over as full-time drummer, while McKinney's actual involvement transitioned to purely managerial. Austin is on quite a few of the McKinney recordings done under both the name of the Cotton Pickers and the Chocolate Dandies. The subject of the names of these groups actually opens up something more like a can of worms than a cotton ball or a box of chocolates. The latter name was used by Don Redman for some of his own ensembles as well as sessions he was involved with for the McKinney outfit, for which he was a key player and arranger. As for the McKinley Cotton Pickers, in 1931, the band actually splintered into two completely opposed factions, one of them under the direction of Austin himself. This group was called the Original Cotton Pickers and toured a great deal over the next three years. Naturally, much confusion exists over the activities of some of these later versions of the band. When Austin disbanded his version, he settled in Baltimore where he went into business, although he continued to drum part time in orchestras under the direction of pianist Rivers Chambers, as well as his own groups. Austin is regarded as an early innovator on drums in the swing and hot jazz styles. For one thing, he was one of the first drummers to get the newfangled hi-hat and some of the McKinney recordings feature quite early examples of this soon to be taken for granted device in action. There are quite a few re-releases of the Cotton Pickers sides, such as the Scat! collection on the Frog label that features a rare Austin appearance on glockenspiel. He also shows up on some recordings by trumpeter Rex Stewart and is regularly featured on a track or two of compilations focusing on the history of jazz drumming or big band music in the '20s. Top-notch swing drummer Gene Krupa has cited Austin as an important influence. ~ Eugene Chadbourne