Curtis Counce
Background information
Born(1926-01-23)January 23, 1926
Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
DiedJuly 31, 1963(1963-07-31) (aged 37)
Los Angeles, California
GenresJazz, hard bop
Instrument(s)Double bass
LabelsContemporary

Curtis Counce (January 23, 1926 July 31, 1963)[1] was an American hard bop and West Coast jazz double bassist.

Biography

Counce was born in Kansas City, Missouri and moved to California in 1945. He began recording in 1946 with Lester Young, and in the 1950s in Los Angeles with musicians such as Shorty Rogers, Stan Kenton,[2] Shelly Manne, Lyle Murphy, Teddy Charles, and Clifford Brown.[3] Counce formed his quintet in 1956 featuring tenor saxophonist Harold Land, trumpeter Jack Sheldon, pianist Carl Perkins and drummer Frank Butler. Elmo Hope replaced Perkins after his death at age 29 in 1958.[4] Gerald Wilson replaced Sheldon on some recordings.[4] The four albums originally released on Contemporary Records were reissued in 2006 on a double CD by Gambit Spain. Counce died in Los Angeles, California, of a heart attack.[1] He was survived by his wife, Mildred Counce, his daughter, Celeste Counce, and a son. Counce's son, born April 10, 1961, was placed for adoption by his biological mother. Curtis knew of his son, but due to his life circumstances, Counce could not be a part of his life. Curtis's son died on January 23, 2022.

Discography

As leader

As sideman

With Maynard Ferguson

With Herb Geller

  • Herb Geller Plays (EmArcy, 1954)
  • Jazz Studio 2 from Hollywood (Decca, 1954)
  • Jazz Studio 2 from Hollywood Part II (Brunswick, 1954)

With Shorty Rogers

With others

References

  1. 1 2 Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. pp. 105/6. ISBN 0-85112-580-8.
  2. Liner notes from "You get more bounce with Curtis Counce" (Contemporary C7539).
  3. "Curtis Counce". Concord Music Group. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  4. 1 2 Chell, Samuel (11 June 2007). "Curtis Counce/Jack Sheldon/Harold Land/Carl Perkins/Frank Butler Quintet: Complete Studio Recordings". All About Jazz. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  5. Otis, Johnny, Johnny Otis:The Capitol Years, COL CD 2773, Collectables Records, Narberth PA, 2000, liner notes

Further reading

  • Richard Morton and Brian Cook, The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD, London, Penguin, 2nd Edition, 1994 & 6th Edition, 2002
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