Herb Ellis

An excellent bop-based guitarist with a slight country twang to his sound, Herb Ellis became famous playing with <a href="spotify:artist:6zkX5fhrSD4tdVOmimR9wB">the Oscar Peterson Trio</a> during 1953-1958. Prior to that, he had attended North Texas State University and played with <a href="spotify:artist:2RLpFsSPsiB1LKXcDVac4Q">the Casa Loma Orchestra</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:3xPpQCRiTBxgmL4PD8J5ek">Jimmy Dorsey</a> (1945-1947), and the sadly under-recorded trio Soft Winds. While with <a href="spotify:artist:6zkX5fhrSD4tdVOmimR9wB">Peterson</a>, Ellis was on some <a href="spotify:artist:1MrfEFvDJwmXQJADGBSEPV">Jazz at the Philharmonic</a> tours and had a few opportunities to lead his own dates for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Verve%22">Verve</a>, including his personal favorite, Nothing But the Blues (1957). After leaving <a href="spotify:artist:6zkX5fhrSD4tdVOmimR9wB">Peterson</a>, Ellis toured a bit with <a href="spotify:artist:5V0MlUE1Bft0mbLlND7FJz">Ella Fitzgerald</a>; became a studio musician on the West Coast; made sessions with <a href="spotify:artist:0GLjY74A6lDzGCGg2J73aq">the Dukes of Dixieland</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0BGNyKGO4LaL69kurXlaSI">Stuff Smith</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:0i5yrKtlP4URcRBXQQwnik">Charlie Byrd</a>; and in the 1970s became much more active in the jazz world. He can be heard on the first three releases issued by the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Concord%22">Concord</a> label, interacting with <a href="spotify:artist:4DuZTASH5eSyd0K73W6fuZ">Joe Pass</a> on the initial two, and he toured with the Great Guitars (along with Byrd and <a href="spotify:artist:6pVkGhtBvjj1P52yn0tNLG">Barney Kessel</a>) through much of the 1970s into the '80s. After a long series of <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Concord%22">Concord</a> albums, Ellis cut a couple of excellent sessions in the 1990s for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Justice%22">Justice</a>, as well as 1999's Burnin' on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Acoustic+Music%22">Acoustic Music</a>. After battling Alzheimer's disease, Herb Ellis died at the age of 88 at his home in Los Angeles on March 28, 2010. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi