Harold "Shorty" Baker (May 26, 1914 in St. Louis, Missouri, US – November 8, 1966) was an American jazz trumpeter. [1]
Baker began on drums, but switched to trumpet during his teens. He started his career on riverboats and played with Don Redman in the mid-1930s. [1] He also worked with Teddy Wilson and Andy Kirk before joining Duke Ellington. [1] He married Kirk's pianist Mary Lou Williams [1] and though the two separated shortly thereafter, they never officially divorced.
Baker worked on and off in Duke Ellington's Orchestra from 1942 to 1962. [1] He also worked with Johnny Hodges's group in the early 1950s, during the period when Hodges was not a member of Ellington's orchestra. [1]
He died of throat cancer in New York at the age of 52. [2]
Discography
As leader/co-leader
- The Broadway Beat (King, 1959)
- The Bud Freeman All-Stars featuring Shorty Baker (Swingville, 1960) with Bud Freeman [1]
- Shorty & Doc (Swingville, 1961) with Doc Cheatham [1]
As sideman
With Johnny Hodges
- The Blues (Norgran, 1952–54, [1955])
- Used to Be Duke (Norgran, 1954)
- The Big Sound (Verve, 1957)
With Billy Strayhorn
- Cue for Saxophone (Felsted, 1959)
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 27/8. ISBN 0-85112-580-8.
- ^ Owsley, D. (2006). City of Gabriels: The History of Jazz in St. Louis, 1895-1973. United States: Reedy Press, p. 57
External links
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