Billy Mitchell (saxophonist)
Billy Mitchell (born November 3, 1926 in Kansas City , Missouri , † April 18, 2001 in Rockville Center , New York ; fully Willie Melvin Mitchell ) was an American jazz saxophonist.
Live and act
Mitchell grew up in Detroit . At the age of six he took piano lessons, later the clarinet and saxophone. His professional career began at the age of seventeen in the band of Nat Towles . In 1948 he became a member of Lucky Millinder's Band in New York City . He also worked with Milt Buckner , Gil Fuller and Jimmy Lunceford and was a brief member of Woody Herman's band in 1949 .
In 1950 he returned to Detroit, where he formed his own band with Tommy Flanagan , Thad Jones and Elvin Jones . 1956–1957 he was a member of Dizzy Gillespies Big Band, from 1958 to 1961 in the Count Basie Orchestra . He then led a band with Al Gray until 1964 and worked again with Count Basie from 1967 to 1968 . He also performed in Europe in 1963 and 1970 with the Big Band of Kenny Clarke and Francy Boland ; since 1975 he worked again with Gillespie.
Since the 1970s he devoted himself increasingly to teaching; he participated in the Jazzmobile project in Harlem and gave seminars at Hofstra University and Yale University . He toured Europe and Japan until the 1990s and performed regularly at Sonny's Place , a restaurant in Seaford .
In the early 1940s Mitchell worked occasionally as an actor, including in WC Fields ' film The Bank Dick . In the 1970s he produced the film The Marijuana Affair , in which the trombonist Melba Liston made an appearance.
Discography
- This Is Billy Mitchell Featuring Bobby Hutcherson with Dave Burns , Clarence Anderson , Otis Finch , Bobby Hutcherson , Herman Wright , Billy Wallace , 1962
- Little Juicy , 1963
- Ragtime Recycled , 1973
- Now's the Time with Roland Prince , Wes Belcamp , Earl May , Ron Turso , Al Beldini , 1977
- De Lawd's Blues with Benny Bailey , Tommy Flanagan , Rufus Reid , Jimmy Cobb , 1980
- Colossus of Detroit with Barry Harris , Sam Jones , Walter Bolden , 1978
- Night Flight to Dakar , 1980
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Mitchell, Billy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Mitchell, Willie Melvin (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American jazz saxophonist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 3, 1926 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Kansas City , Missouri |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 18, 2001 |
| Place of death | Rockville Center , New York |