Oscar Pettiford

During the 1945-1960 era, Oscar Pettiford stood alongside Charles Mingus as one of the era's premier bassists and took up the mantle left by the late Jimmy Blanton. He also earned distinction as the first major jazz soloist to feature the cello. As a bop pioneer, Pettiford's potential contributions to the avant-garde developments of the 1960s remain a matter of speculation, given his unexpected death in 1960. He began on piano before switching to bass at age 14, at which point he joined a family band. In 1942 Pettiford performed in Charlie Barnet's ensemble as one of two bassists, the other being Chubby Jackson; the following year he gained widespread recognition through his participation in Coleman Hawkins' landmark "The Man I Love" session and additional recordings with Earl Hines and Ben Webster. He co-led an early bop ensemble with Dizzy Gillespie in 1944, then accompanied Coleman Hawkins to the West Coast in 1945, where the pair appeared together on a single track in the film The Crimson Canary alongside Howard McGhee. Pettiford served in Duke Ellington's orchestra for most of 1945-1948, thereby extending the innovations previously associated with Jimmy Blanton, before joining Woody Herman in 1949. Throughout the 1950s he primarily led his own groups on bass and occasional cello, while also contributing to numerous sessions both as a sideman and leader, among them dates with Thelonious Monk in 1955-1956. After relocating to Europe in 1958, he made Copenhagen his base and collaborated with local players as well as Stan Getz, Bud Powell, and Kenny Clarke. Pettiford's more widely recognized compositions include "Tricotism," "Laverne Walk," "Bohemia After Dark," and "Swingin' Till the Girls Come Home."