Phil Urso

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Philip "Phil" Urso (* 2. October 1925 in Jersey City , New Jersey ; † 7. April 2008 in Denver , Colorado ) was an American jazz - saxophonist ( tenor saxophone , baritone saxophone , alto saxophone ) and composer .

Live and act

Phil Urso mastered the clarinet at the age of 13 and later switched to the saxophone. After his family moved to Denver in the mid-1930s , he did his military service in World War II in the Pacific; In 1943 he narrowly escaped a Japanese aircraft attack. While being treated for his post-traumatic disorder in California, he discovered jazz, came to New York in 1947 and was initially heavily influenced by Chu Berry , later by Sonny Rollins . In 1948 he made several records with Bob Karch, Tom O'Neil and Howie Mann.

From 1948 to 1950 he worked with Elliot Lawrence , in 1950/51 with Woody Hermans Third Herd , then with Jimmy Dorsey (1951) and Terry Gibbs (1952). In February 1952, another four pieces were written in New York with a band made up of Tony Fruscella , Herb Geller , Gene Allen , Bill Triglia , Red Mitchell and Howie Mann , and Urso contributed his own compositions to the session. He had his first recording session in April 1953 for Savoy Records when he recorded the album The Philosophy of Urso with Walter Bishop Jr. , Clyde Lombardi and Howie Mann. This was followed by recordings with Kai Winding , a debut session with Oscar Pettiford on cello and Charles Mingus on bass; In late 1953 and early 1954 he toured with Miles Davis ' band , which then also included JJ Johnson and Milt Jackson .

Urso then worked as a freelance musician for some time, and he also recorded a number of records with Chet Baker in various formations such as quintets and big bands. In 1956 Urso appeared with Baker, Francy Boland , Scott LaFaro and Lawrence Marable on the Tonight Show , where the band played two of his compositions, "CTA" and "Phil's Extra Mild".

Since then he has stayed mainly in Denver and Las Vegas , without making himself noticeable as a jazz instrumentalist on a national level, only recorded occasionally and limited himself to local club appearances. In 2002 he returned to the studio with trumpeter Carl Saunders and recorded a tribute album to Chet Baker.

Discographic notes

Albums under your own name

  • The Philosophy of Urso (Savoy, 1953)
  • Salute to Chet Baker (2002) with Carl Saunders

With Chet Baker

  • Big Band ( Pacific Jazz Records , 1954)
  • Playboys (also: Picture of Heath , Pacific Jazz, 1956)
  • Chet Baker And Crew (Pacific Jazz, 1956)
  • Chet Baker Cools Out (Pacific Jazz, 1956)
  • Baby Breeze (Limelight Records, 1965)
  • At The Forum Theater 1956 ( Fresh Sound Records , 1991)
  • Ensemble And Sextet 1953/54 (Fresh Sound, 1992)

With others

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Urso, Phil
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Urso, Philip (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American jazz saxophonist (tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, alto saxophone) and composer
DATE OF BIRTH October 2, 1925
PLACE OF BIRTH Jersey City , New Jersey
DATE OF DEATH April 7, 2008
Place of death Denver , Colorado