Gordon Jack is a frequent contributor to the Jazz Journaland a very generous friend in allowingJazzProfilesto re-publish his insightful and discerning writings on various topics about Jazz and its makers.
Gordon is the author of Fifties Jazz Talk An Oral Retrospectiveand he also developed the Gerry Mulligan discography in Raymond Horricks’ bookGerry Mulligan’s Ark.
The following obituary was published in the 15 June, 2020 edition of Jazz Journal.
“Lennie Niehaus made an important contribution to the buoyant west coast jazz scene of the nineteen-fifties with his creative work for Stan Kenton and his own distinctive small group recordings. His acknowledged influences were Charlie Parker and Lee Konitz but Benny Carter, Phil Woods, Joe Maini, Cannonball Adderley and Sonny Criss were all important too.
Born on 1 June 1929 in St. Louis, Missouri he came from a highly musical family. His father had attended the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in Russia together with Jascha Heifetz. During the twenties he played the violin in orchestras that accompanied silent films in St. Louis before moving the family out to Los Angeles where he joined one of the Hollywood studio orchestras. His sister Agnes later became a concert pianist and as a youngster Lennie learnt the violin, oboe and bassoon before concentrating on the alto. He saw Charlie Parker perform at Billy Berg’s in 1945 and remembered being “Blown away by bebop”. While at high-school he arranged and played in Phil Carreon’s band that included Herb Geller, Herbie Steward, Teddy Edwards, Warne Marsh, Jimmy Knepper and Billy Byers at different times. In 1946 he enrolled at the Los Angeles City College for two years where Jack Sheldon and Jack Montrose were fellow students. This was followed by three further years studying at Cal State [Los Angeles] Music School where he graduated Cum Laude in composition.
Early in 1952 Dick Meldonian recommended him to Stan Kenton who invited him to audition as a replacement for Art Pepper. The first chart was Gerry Mulligan’s up-tempo Limelight which he sight-read with ease, convincing the leader that he had his man. The band stayed mostly close to home in Los Angeles but there were some road trips to the Blue Note in Chicago and the Rustic Cabin in New Jersey. A few months after his audition Niehaus was drafted into the military serving two years at Fort Ord in Monterey where he met Clint Eastwood during basic training. In the evenings he had a quartet that played in the non-commissioned officer’s club where Eastwood was the bartender. While in the army he occasionally sat-in with Shorty Rogers’ Giants at the Haig and Howard Rumsey’s All-Stars at the Lighthouse. When he was discharged he re-joined Kenton taking over from Lee Konitz and with the encouragement of Shelly Manne he signed with Les Koenig of Contemporary Records who allowed him to record anything he wanted.
His first session for the label in 1954 was a piano-less date with Jack Montrose, Bob Gordon, Monty Budwig and Shelly Manne. His prodigious technique and long flowing lines on numbers like Whose Blues, You Stepped Out Of A Dream and Day By Day are probably what convinced Down Beat magazine to select him as The New Star on Alto in 1955. Bill Perkins won a similar award for the tenor that year and Stan Kenton presented their plaques to them on a radio broadcast from Birdland. He went on to record four more albums for Contemporary featuring a variety of quintets, sextets and octets including one memorable date with strings. His highly original contrapuntal writing on these dates was interpreted by people like Jimmy Giuffre, Bill Perkins, Pepper Adams, Stu Williamson and Frank Rosolino. In the mid-fifties Dizzy Gillespie’s big band came to town and Lennie was asked to deputise for one of the altos who was unwell. In a Jazz Journal interview he told me, “It was one of the biggest thrills of my life playing Groovin’ High with Dizzy”. He toured Europe with Kenton in 1956 and was heard on many of the band’s notable albums including Back To Balboa, Contemporary Concepts, Kenton In Hi-Fi, Cuban Fire and The Stage Door Swings. His own favourite ballad feature can be heard on the band’s 1959 performance at the Tropicana in Las Vegas where he is inspired on a poignant End Of A Love Affair.
He left Kenton and full-time playing in 1959 to begin concentrating on writing for television shows featuring the King Sisters, Mel Torme’, Dean Martin and Carol Burnett. He had a lengthy collaboration with Jerry Fielding who had been blacklisted [by the Congressional/House Un-American Activities Committee] during the fifties. Their films included The Bad News Bears, The Outlaw Josey Wales and Escape From Alcatraz. During the seventies his Jazz Conception For Saxophone was published becoming an essential resource for players. After Fielding’s death in 1980 he started working with Clint Eastwood on a succession of notable film scores like Pale Rider, Bridges Of Madison County, Million Dollar Babyand Clint’s homage to Charlie Parker – Bird. One of Lennie’s tasks was to make sure that Forest Whitaker looked convincing in the title role when playing the saxophone. He won an Emmy for the 1993 movie Lush Life which is when he started performing again. His 1997 Seems Like Old Times CD is a reunion with Bill Perkins and Jack Nimitz celebrating the years they spent sitting together in Stan Kenton’ saxophone section during the fifties. The sleeve-note has this little note from Clint Eastwood, “Lennie Niehaus never stopped being an alto player. On this CD his chops are as great as ever. Always – just friends.”
Lennie Niehaus died on 28 May in Redlands California. He is survived by his wife Patricia, his daughter Susan and his grandchildren Josh and Emily.”
“Charlie Haden has a large, warm tone, the subtle vibrato, richness, and manipulations of which are central elements in his improvisational vocabulary."
- Mark Gridley, The New Grove Encyclopedia of Jazz
“Charlie Haden once said “One of the prerequisites in musical improvisation is ‘knowing how to listen.’
I first heard Charlie Haden when he was playing with Ornette Coleman in 1959. Playing with Ornette required extraordinary resourcefulness, resilience and a quality of inner musicianship that could not be thrown off balance. Since then, Haden has worked with a wide range of challenging leaders and has headed his own distinctively original ensembles - notably his Liberation Music Orchestra.
He is an accompanist who truly supports - rather than trying to dominate - the soloist. And as a soloist, he too "sings." His solos tell a story rather than show how many notes he can play.
In a music that is composed of individualists, Charlie Haden has always been unafraid to listen ahead - and to listen as deeply as he can, to himself. And that is why - to use a phrase of Duke Ellington’s - Charlie Haden is ‘Beyond category.’”
- Nat Hentoff, Jazz author and critic
For the quiet man he was and the quiet instrument he played, Charlie Haden left a huge and lasting sonic imprint on the landscape of Jazz for over fifty years.
He seemingly worked with everyone, because every Jazz musician who heard his playing wanted to work with him. He left behind an incredible legacy of recorded music as a testimony to how much he and his playing were universally adored.
Charlie Haden’s name became almost synonymous with the natural beauty of the Jazz bass. Mention Charlie Haden’s name to a Jazz musician anywhere in the world and a smiling look of recognition would immediately form on the face of that person. No words, just a smile - and sometimes a nod.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1956 from Springfield, Missouri [he was born in Shenandoah, Iowa in 1937] to attend the Westlake College of Music, he worked around town with Dexter Gordon, Art Pepper and Hampton Hawes.
While giging at the Hillcrest Club in Hollywood, CA in 1958 with vibraphonist Dave Pike, pianist Paul Bley and drummer Lenny McBrowne, McBrowne introduced him to Ornette Coleman and that music changed Charlie Haden’s musical life forever.
“Ornette invited me over to his pad and started playing music that I'd never heard in my life.
"It was very exciting to me. There was a feeling there that I was sure was very, very valid. I was startled by his music because he wasn't playing on the chord changes—and in 1958, everyone was still doing that. To play with Ornette, you really had to listen to everything he did because he was playing off the feeling."
Haden played a crucial role on the seminal Coleman albums The Shape Of Jazz To Come (1959), Change Of The Century (1960), This Is Our Music (1961) and Free Jazz (1961), all recorded for Atlantic. He traveled to New York City to play a famous extended engagement at the Five Spot Cafe with Coleman.
In addition to his influential work with Coleman—whose quartet also included trumpeter Don Cherry and drummer Ed Blackwell—Haden collaborated with a number of jazz giants throughout the '60s and '70s, including John Coltrane, Alice Coltrane, Archie Shepp, Billy Higgins, Chet Baker and Joe Henderson. He was a member of Keith Jarrett's trio as well as the pianist's American Quartet with drummer Paul Motian and tenor saxophonist Dewey Redman from 1967-77.
In 1969, Haden commissioned pianist-composer Carla Bley to arrange music for a large cast of improvisers he called the Liberation Music Orchestra.
In 1976, Haden formed Old And New Dreams with Redman, Cherry and Blackwell to perpetuate Coleman's music as well as their own original material. The group was active until 1987.
In 1986, he formed Quartet West with saxophonist Ernie Watts, pianist Alan Broadbent and drummer Larance Marable (later replaced by Rodney Green). The group continued to perform until 2013.
Haden befriended Pat Metheny and played on the guitarist's double album 80/81 (ECM). The two collaborated frequently over the years, and both appeared on Coleman and Metheny's acclaimed 1986 album Song X and subsequent tour.
Haden can be heard on various live and recorded projects throughout the 1990s and 2000s with the likes of guitarists Metheny, John Scofield, Bill Frisell and John McLaughlin; drummers Ginger Baker and Jack DeJohnette; saxophonists Michael Brecker, Joe Lovano and Ravi Coltrane; trumpeter Tom Harrell; and vocalist-pianist Shirley Horn. He earned a reputation for performing intimate duo recordings and participating in small-group collaborations with such pianists as Hank Jones, Kenny Barron, Brad Mehldau, Ethan Iverson, Jarrett and Gonzalo Rubalcaba.
Haden's experience and influence reached far beyond the jazz realm. He was outspoken regarding the universality of his diverse musical associations, which included projects with pop artists Rickie Lee Jones and Ringo Starr, blues harmonicist-vocalist James Cotton, Brazilian guitarist Egberto Gismonti, Portuguese guitarist Carlos Paredes, Argentinian bandoneon player Dino Saluzzi and classical composer Gavin Bryars.
In 2008, Haden brought his personal history full circle to record Rambling Boy (Decca), which connected the music of his childhood to his present family, which includes his wife, vocalist Ruth Cameron; triplet daughters Petra, Rachel and Tanya; son Josh; and son-in-law Jack Black. The following year, Swiss film director Reto Caduff released a Rambling Boy documentary about Haden's life that was a major hit at jazz festivals and on the international film festival circuit.
Haden's most recent album releases include 2010's Jasmine (ECM), a duet with Keith Jarrett; 2011's Sophisticated Ladies (Emarcy/Decca) with Quartet West, strings and several contemporary vocalists; 2011's Live At Birdland (ECM) with saxophonist Lee Konitz, Mehldau and Motian; and 2014's Last Dance (ECM) with Jarrett. (See sidebar on page 34 written by Jarrett.)
The reactivated Impulse! label recently release a live album that was recorded during a duo performance by Haden and guitarist Jim Hall at the 1990 Montreal Jazz Festival.
Haden won multiple Grammys—one for his 1997 duet recording with Metheny, Beyond The Missouri Sky; another for his 2001 CD Nocturne, which included boleros from Cuba and Mexico and featured Cuban pianist Gonzolo Rubalcaba; and a third for his 2004 CD Land Of The Sun, which explored the works of Mexican composer Jose Sabre Marroquin with arrangements by Rubalcaba.
Among his crowning achievements were a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award and a 2012 NEA Jazz Master Award. A longtime critical favorite, he was named New Star Bassist in DownBeat's 1961 Critics Poll and was elected to the DownBeat Hall of Fame in August 2013.
Upon receiving the news of his Hall of Fame induction last year, Haden expressed gratitude and elation to Ed Enright of the Institute for Jazz Studies and Downbeat.
"You know, for a while there I wasn't getting very much recognition," he said. "And I was thinking, I'm doing all of these different things, all these different kinds of music, Brazil and Portugal and Argentina and hillbilly music with my daughters, and doing all this different stuff that I don't think any other jazz people do. I thought maybe it was my political leanings that were keeping me from getting recognition. So all of these recent awards and honors have really made me feel good. I have a lot to be thankful for. And I want to make sure I give back to everybody."
Charlie Haden inspired legions of musicians who were fortunate enough to work with him, as well as those who received his encouragement: His colleagues attest to his quiet leadership, determination and love of a strong melody.
Pianist Carla Bley met Haden in the mid-1950s when he came out to live in Los Angeles. They worked together frequently, especially in the Liberation Music Orchestra.
"I was already in Los Angeles with Paul Bley, and Paul, being a connoisseur of bass players, immediately scooped him up," Carla recalled. "He had a very interesting and exquisite taste in all things. It wasn't just music. Although we agreed on a lot of music—he had certain chords, notes and composers. He'd get infatuated over furniture, and have to get the money to buy that piece of furniture. I couldn't see what he saw but I trusted that it indeed must have been beautiful. He had this sense of taste, very sure of himself at a young age.
"The way he played, he had an instantly recognizable style," Carla added. "He felt that way about the notes he played: This is the right note and no other note will do.' And he always called himself 'Whole Note Haden'; he played really slow and the notes were perfect and in the perfect place. He would play notes that weren't in the chord changes, but were so perfect that you waited for the chord change, and when the correct note came in, it was more thrilling than if it had been offered."
Haden formed Quartet West in the 1980s and its members included saxophonist Ernie Watts, who worked in the group for 25 years.
"Charlie had a beautiful, deep singing sound," Watts said. "It was very, very warm and very, very even all over the instrument. Besides that, he had so much harmonic knowledge and so much melodic knowledge from the years he was playing. He really was in touch with how things work with duration of time. A lot of times you don't count a bar — you feel the duration of time that it takes four bars to go by and he had a beautiful, intuitive nature of duration of time, in phrasing. When he played within a pattern or within a phrase, his time was totally on in a horizontal way rather than a vertical way.
"What made him a great leader is that he let everybody be who they were," Watts added. "We just all understood each other, understood the music and all loved each other and knew each other as people."
Along with Haden's groups, he also worked in duets throughout the 1990s, including with pianist Kenny Barron on such recordings as Night And The City (Verve, 1996).
"One of the things I loved about Charlie's playing, in addition to the sound, is he left a lot of space," Barron said. "And his playing was deceptively simple. With the bottom, it was just perfect. There was room for you to breathe, and there was interaction, too. It was a challenge: There was a lot for a pianist to do. You had a lot of space to fill, but that's a good thing. You had to learn how to not put too much in there. Not to fill it up, but using it. Charlie played just the right notes. I often say that he played 'b-a-s-e'; he really supplied the bottom, which made my stuff work."
After Haden's death, a more recent colleague, pianist Brad Mehldau, wrote:
"An untouchable, eternal hipness. A feeling of dance, with an element of danger. Sometimes, something like a polished diamond, precious to behold, unbreakable. Other times, just as remarkable: something like a sand sculpture or mandala—a beauty that is breaking apart and blowing away, disappearing even as you witness it.”
Another recent partner, saxophonist Joshua Redman, mentioned on his Facebook page, "Charlie had the biggest ears. He heard everything. He was right there with you every step of the way. And he took what he heard and helped you try to make something lovely out of it."
Bassist Ben Allison had been listening to Haden's music since he was a teenager and the elder bassist's "Sandino" inspired his own composition "Hey Man." The two bassists encountered each other periodically on the festival circuit.
“As much as he’s a bass player, and the bassist’s role is to play the root of the chord—and he did—I felt his mind work throughout the harmonies in a way where he is not just consigned to playing root notes,” Allison said. "He was thinking of freely harmonizing whatever the soloist was doing. In Ornette [Coleman's] band, Ornette would spin out a melodic line and it would sound like Charlie would hear what Ornette was playing and find a note that would fit well with it. Charlie would have a deep tonality that wasn't necessarily tied to predetermined harmonies,
but was just the way he thought."
Pianist Keith Jarrett observed of his close friend and frequent band mate:
“People will always love his playing, but no one will ever imitate him. He was a rare, true original. Perfect intonation, the biggest ears, the warmest most captivating tone in the history of Jazz bass; and always musical. And I never had a better partner on a project for his honest input and deep understanding of our intentions in choosing the tracks for Jasmine and Last Dance. … Charlie wrapped himself around the bass while he played it; inhabited it; made love to it. The bass really became the bass again in his hands.”
Charlie Haden died on July 11, 2014. He was seventy-six years old [76].
J.J. Johnson, trombone, Freddie Hubbard, trumpet, Clifford Jordan, tenor sax, Cedar Walton, piano. Arthur Harper, bass and Albert "Tootie" Heath on drums.
For the most part, the Columbia Masterworks Series [CMS] was Sony’s way of representing classic or iconic Jazz recordings in its catalogue in a CD format. Or as they advertised it in an early media release:
“Columbia Records is proud to present the legends who created that uniquely American art form called "jazz." Throughout the development of jazz, Columbia has recorded performances of jazz's greatest artists. Now these recordings can be experienced as never before, through the exciting Columbia Jazz Masterpieces series.
This series signifies a complete dedication to bringing the listener the finest sound quality possible. All recordings in the series have been digitally remastered from the original analog tapes using state-of-the-art equipment and original producers when possible. Every selection is available on compact disc, cassette, and Lp.
The packaging meets an equally high standard, in many cases retaining and enhancing the original artwork. Liner notes document the historical importance of these masterpieces, using original notes and new research.
There are 75 titles available right now. In coming months there will be landmark works and new compilations from many other giants — keeping the history of jazz alive for all time.”
Generally the CMS releases focused on a single recording - Louis Armstrong: The Hot Fives, Volume I, Benny Goodman: Live at Carnegie Hall, Miles Davis: Kind of Blue - but occasionally the series included compilations such as Buck Clayton: Jam Sessions from the Vaults, The Dave Brubeck Quartet: Plays Music from West Side Story and Other Shows and Films, and J.J. Johnston: Trombone Master.
Columbia describes the Johnson anthology this way:
“J. J. Johnson: "The Trombone Master" [CK,CJ,CJT: 444431]
There is little argument to J. J. Johnson's being 'the' master of the
trombone. The variety of sounds that he can evoke from the
instrument are startling. This brand new collection showcases his
virtuosity.
I’ve always enjoyed these samplers as they provide a chance to hear the artist in a variety of settings with different front line partners, rhythm sections, and song/tune selections. Since its costly to own all the recordings by a major artist, compilations provide a vehicle to hear some of their music from many of their notable recordings.
As an example “J. J. Johnson: "The Trombone Master" brings together tracks from four of J.J.’s Columbia LPs: J.J. In Person [CS 8009], Blue Trombone [CS8109], A Touch of Satin [CS 8537], and First Place [CL 1030].
And since there are no “original notes” to these collections, another great feature is that the label usually contracts with knowledgeable and experienced writers to provide an overview of the music.
Thus, we get the following insights about J. J. Johnson: "The Trombone Master from Ira Gitler who is deservedly legendary in Jazz writing circles.
“I first heard J.J. Johnson in 1946 sitting in with Dizzy Gillespie’s group at the Spotlite on 52nd Street. A couple of months later, in the late spring, at the same club, I heard him again this time with a quartet which included Bud Powell on piano. I hung out all night and listened to as many sets as possible. That is how taken I was with the startlingly fluid stylist who was translating the language of Gillespie and Parker to the trombone. “My original influences were Prez and Roy, then Bird and Diz,” J.J. once explained.
Adding Cecil Payne's alto saxophone to the quartet, Johnson cut four sides for Savoy in June, probably right around the time he was at the Spotlite. Those two 78s, particularly "Coppin' the Bop" and "Jay Jay,'' the first to be issued, quickly become part of every young trombonist's consciousness. I remember playing it for a trombonist in Raymond Scott's band one night after a dance gig at the University of Missouri where I was in attendance. "That's not a slide trombone, it's got to be a valve," he exclaimed, as he asked me to play both sides again. By this time I was a confirmed and serious J.J. fan. I remain one to this day.
One of my biggest disappointments as an A&R man for Prestige was in 1953 when J.J., who had opted out of music and gone to work as a blueprint inspector for Sperry Gyroscope, made several of the rehearsals for a Miles Davis record date but then couldn't do the actual session because of the Sperry job. It was a record date with Kai Winding that brought him out of retirement in 1954. This led to the formation of the Jay & Kai group which stayed together into mid-1956. The two eventually recorded for Columbia, and when J.J. formed his own group, it was on this label that it made its debut. The material in this collection comes from four of the outstanding albums J.J. taped with several of his groups for Columbia between 1957 and 1960. There are actually three different combinations represented, two quartets and a quintet with cornetist Nat Adderley as the other horn in the front line, with Tommy Flanagan as a constant.
At the end of August 1988, I was sitting in a dressing room with J.J. before he and Stan Getz went on at the Chicago Jazz Festival to reprise their celebrated Opera House appearance with Jazz at the Philharmonic from 1957. I told him that Columbia was planning to reissue some tracks from three decades ago. This led him to tell me about a project of Jamey Aebersold's which included a recording of Johnson and an accompanying book with the solos written out. "He asked me to rate my solos on a scale from 1 to 10," recounted J.J. "There were no 10s, one 91/2, a couple of 9s, an 8 and a 7." Since I gave up the star system when I left down beat in 1970, I won't attempt to place any numerical rating on the nine selections which comprise The Trombone Master.
Thelonious Monk's "Misterioso" is the opener, a blues in steps that J.J. recorded a year before (1957) as a sideman with Sonny Rollins. Flanagan is first; then he and J.J. state the theme. Adderley has a fiery lead-off solo combining elements of Diz and Clark Terry with his own funky self. J.J., the smoothie, eases in and proceeds to heat up with rhythmic variations that alternate between stutter stops and flying starts (and finishes).
'Laura,' from the same date, is not balladized, but swings easily with Albert 'Tootie' Heath's brushes. Johnson's velvet sound and compositional structuring are outstanding in his solo, which stretches over two choruses. Flanagan's elegant swing enters for a half-chorus before Johnson returns with the melody.
Flanagan again sets the table with a hard-digging solo, as the quintet is up once more. Johnson and Adderley do some riffing as Heath plays some fills. Then J. J. takes the bridge before both horns finally reveal the melody of Cole Porter's "What Is This Thing Called Love." In solo, Nat displays prime chops and J.J., the great technician, uses his considerable t-bone resources to spin a mesmerizing story. Wilbur (Little) walks and Tootie gets in a few licks.
The lovely old ballad, "My Old Flame," is warmed like a fine brandy in Johnson's hands. This one is all J.J. and makes for thoughtful, as
well as easy listening.
Tommy sets the tone of "Blue Trombone" with some hip blues choruses. J.J. is fully into it from bar one of his solo, the rhythm trio of Flanagan, Paul Chambers and Max Roach grooving him along os he combines intense concentration and total relaxation, wording in a quote of "Side walks of Cuba" along the way. After a typically musical solo by Max, J.J. comes back for a second solo helping, this time quoting "The Hymn," "The Jumpin' Blues" and a Lester Young via Dexter Gordon riff paraphrased into a closing board fade.
In Bob Haggart's evergreen, a muted J.J. answers the musical question "What's New?" with an oblique reference to "Everything Happens To Me." Flanagan has a half-chorus before Johnson returns.
A quasi-"For Dancers Only" intro brings "Satin Doll'' into the spotlight. J.J. is backed here by Cannonball Adderley's rhythm section of that time: Victor Feldman, piano; Sam Jones, bass,- and Louis Hayes, drums. He had toured Europe with them in 1959 and wanted to record in their company. J.J. displays a pleasant burr in his sound as he goes about his no-nonsense swinging. Feldman has a short, but romping, two-handed solo bit before Johnson trades thoughts with Hayes and Jones.
"Cry Me A River," a song popularized by vocalist Julie London, first appeared on J.J.'s album First Place but only in the monaural version. This is the first time it has been issued in stereo. Johnson is muted as the theme is backed alternately with a Latin beat and 4/4 brushed neatly along by Roach. Flanagan weaves some minor-key magic with JJ. murmuring underneath. Then J.J. and Max alternate "eights," and the Latin backing of the lament is topped with a funky ending.
Gordon Jenkins' "Goodbye '' is this collection's two-minute closer. Cannonball's rhythm section is the accompanying unit once more, but this time Feldman lends his vibraphone to J.J.'s muted, melancholy mood, a succinct, signature statement.
In 1960, Johnson disbanded his sextet of that year out of a need for personal revaluation and a desire to spend more time with his wife and two sons. He played again with Winding, and then toured for a while with Miles Davis, but as the '60s progressed, he began to devote his time to composing and arranging more extended works. In 1970, J.J. moved from New Jersey to California, and by 1975 he was concentrating almost exclusively on writing for films and television. In 1984, he traveled the European festival circuit and, from mat time, has continued to become increasingly active as a player once again. In 1988, he relocated to his home town of Indianapolis, using it as a base to take off for all global points.
The title of this collection reminds me that it was my downbeat piece on J.J. (May 11,1961) which formed the basis for the sample chapter of Jazz Masters of the Forties, the book I wrote that Macmillan published in 1966. Trombone master he was then, as he is now, a truth he reinforces every time he picks up his horn.”
- Ira Gitler, author Swing To Bop: Jazz Masters of the Forties, Oxford University Press
