Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 1904 – December 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid the groundwork for modern jazz piano.
Viper's Drag was written as a dance tune for a ragtime dance called a slow drag, often shortened to drag by songwriters of the day. The song has been performed by Waller and countless other jazz artists, including Cab Calloway and Judy Carmichael, who recorded it for her Grammy award-nominated Two-Handed Stride on the Progressive label in 1980.
