Biography
A skilled trumpeter rooted in bop, Joe Gordon saw his prospects for wider jazz recognition abruptly halted by a fatal fire. He turned professional in 1947, logging engagements alongside Georgie Auld, Lionel Hampton, Don Redman, Art Blakey in 1954, and Charlie Parker on scattered occasions from 1953 to 1955. In 1956 Gordon joined Dizzy Gillespie’s large ensemble for its Middle East tour and contributed a featured solo on “Night in Tunisia.” He next entered Horace Silver’s quintet, later returned to Boston temporarily, and eventually settled in Los Angeles, where he performed and recorded between 1958 and 1960 with Barney Kessel, Benny Carter, Harold Land, Shelly Manne, and Dexter Gordon. Gordon fronted sessions for EmArcy in 1955 and Contemporary in 1961, appeared on a single Thelonious Monk date, and closed his career working as a freelance musician.
Albums