Count Basie Alumni

[Jerry_Jelinek]

Hi all,

I did a Benny Goodman alumni show a few weeks ago and got tremendous response. So I thought I would do something like this on a regular basis.

Next up is Count Basie Alumni!!! Here is a partial list, divided by instruments. I'm trying to limit this to personel that were members of the regular band at one time. Not feature performers like Ella and Sassy who recorded, but didn't really tour with the band.

Here goes:

Freddie Green

Earl Warren
Tab Smith
Marshal Royal

Illinois Jacquet
Lester Young
Herschel Evans
Paul Gonsalves
Buddy Tate
Charlile Rouse
Chu Berry
Don Byas
Ernie Wilkins
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
Paul Quinichette
Frank Foster
Frank Wess
Eric Dixon

Serge Chaloff

Buddy DeFranco

Snooky Young
Joe Newman
Shad Collins
Ed Lewis
Emmett Berry
Buck Clayton
Harry "Sweets" Edison
Clark Terry
Thad Jones
Emmett Berry
Marshal Royal
Lin Biviano
Byron Stripling

J.J. Johnson
Benny Morton
Vic Dickenson
Dickie Wells
Eddie Durhman
Al Grey
Curtis Fuller

Walter Page

Jo Jones
Shadow Wilson
Gus Johnson
Sonny Payne
Butch Miles
Dennis Mackrel

Bille Holiday
Helen Humes

Jimmy Rushing
Joe Williams
Tony Bennett (?)

Others you can think of?

[CafeSavoy]

You can check his biography which lists all the band personnel by era.
I'm not sure whether they toured with him but other vocalists included Irene Reid, O.C. Smith, Bill Johnson, Al Hibbeler, Richard Boone, Mary Stallings, Bill Caffey, Eddie Cleanhead Vinson, and Big Joe Turner.

Others who recorded with Basie include Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Anita O'Day, Dinah Washington, Tony Bennett, Sammy Davis Jr, Frank Sinatra, Bill Henderson, Mills Brothers, The Deep River Boys, Zoot Sims, Oscar Peterson, Keter Betts, Lambert Hendricks & Ross, Billy Eckstine, Teresa Brewer, Quincy Jones, and Jackie Wilson.

I think Dennis Rowland played trombone for Basie for a bit too; i'm not sure if he ever also sang.

[Jerry_Jelinek]

.....I think Dennis Rowland played trombone for Basie for a bit too; i'm not sure if he ever also sang......

Thanks Rayned. I had forgotten Dennis. I know Dennis sang with Basie in the late 1960s or so. I seem to recall Dennis telling me he sang the Nat Adderly famous "Work Song" with Basie. I didn't realize Dennis also played trombone.

With the giants like Goodman and Basie, you can play a weeks worth of music from people who toured with these bands. I'm trying to limit my focus to the most significant members of each instrument. Especially those who were stars outside of the Basie band. The one exception being Freddy Green.

Thanks.

[main_stem]

Bass:

Buddy Catlet
John Clayton

[julius]

Didn't Louie Bellson play drums for Basie on the Live At the Sands album?

[Shorty Dave]

Benny Powell, trombone!

Eddie Jones - bass; Wendell Culley - trumpet; Henry Coker - trombone; Jack Washington - sax

Also, I think Claude "Fiddler" Williams was the guitarist before Freddie