Bill Perkins (saxophonist)
Encyclopedia
Bill Perkins was a cool jazz
saxophonist and flutist popular on the West Coast jazz
scene, known primarily as a tenor saxophonist. Born in San Francisco, California
, Perkins started out performing in the big bands of Woody Herman
and Jerry Wald
. He also worked for the Stan Kenton
orchestra, which subsequently led to his entry into the cool jazz idiom. He began performing with musicians like Art Pepper
and Bud Shank
, to name just a few. He was also a member of The Tonight Show
band from 1970–1992. He is probably most remembered, however, for playing tenor for The Lighthouse All-Stars.
Cool jazz
Cool is a style of modern jazz music that arose following the Second World War. It is characterized by its relaxed tempos and lighter tone, in contrast to the bebop style that preceded it...
saxophonist and flutist popular on the West Coast jazz
West coast jazz
West Coast jazz refers to various styles of jazz music that developed around Los Angeles and San Francisco during the 1950s. West Coast jazz is often seen as a sub-genre of cool jazz, which featured a less frenetic, calmer style than bebop or hard bop. The music tended to be more heavily arranged,...
scene, known primarily as a tenor saxophonist. Born in San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, Perkins started out performing in the big bands of Woody Herman
Woody Herman
Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...
and Jerry Wald
Jerry Wald
Jerry Wald was an American producer and screenwriter for motion pictures and radio shows.Born Jerome Irving Wald in Brooklyn, New York, he had a brother and sons who were active in show business. Jerry began writing a radio column for the New York Evening Graphic while a student at New York...
. He also worked for the Stan Kenton
Stan Kenton
Stanley Newcomb "Stan" Kenton was a pianist, composer, and arranger who led a highly innovative, influential, and often controversial American jazz orchestra. In later years he was widely active as an educator....
orchestra, which subsequently led to his entry into the cool jazz idiom. He began performing with musicians like Art Pepper
Art Pepper
Art Pepper , born Arthur Edward Pepper, Jr., was an American alto saxophonist and clarinetist.About Pepper, Scott Yanow of All Music stated, "In the 1950s he was one of the few altoists that was able to develop his own sound despite the dominant influence of Charlie Parker" and: "When Art Pepper...
and Bud Shank
Bud Shank
Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank, Jr. was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and throughout the decade worked in various small jazz combos. He spent the 1960s as a first...
, to name just a few. He was also a member of The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
band from 1970–1992. He is probably most remembered, however, for playing tenor for The Lighthouse All-Stars.
Discography
- The Bill Perkins Octet on Stage with Carl FontanaCarl FontanaCarl Charles Fontana was an American jazz trombonist. Because Fontana rarely recorded under his own name and toured only occasionally after 1958, he is significantly less famous among mainstream jazz fans, although well-known amongst trombonists.-Birth to 1958:Born in Monroe, Louisiana, Fontana...
, Russ FreemanRuss Freeman (pianist)Russell Donald Freeman was a bebop and cool jazz pianist and composer.Initially, Freeman was classically trained...
, Mel LewisMel LewisMel Lewis was an American drummer, jazz musician and band leader. He was born Melvin Sokoloff in Buffalo, New York to Russian immigrant parents....
, Red MitchellRed MitchellKeith Moore "Red" Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell (September 20, 1927, New York City - November 8, 1992, Salem, Oregon, was an American jazz double-bassist, composer, lyricist, and poet. He was the brother of Whitey Mitchell....
, Gerry MulliganGerry MulliganGerald Joseph "Gerry" Mulligan was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though Mulligan is primarily known as one of the leading baritone saxophonists in jazz history – playing the instrument with a light and airy tone in the era of cool jazz – he was also...
, Jack NimitzJack NimitzJack Nimitz was an American jazz baritone saxophonist.He played in a variety of genres including jazz and rock...
, Art PepperArt PepperArt Pepper , born Arthur Edward Pepper, Jr., was an American alto saxophonist and clarinetist.About Pepper, Scott Yanow of All Music stated, "In the 1950s he was one of the few altoists that was able to develop his own sound despite the dominant influence of Charlie Parker" and: "When Art Pepper...
, Shorty RogersShorty RogersMilton “Shorty” Rogers , born Milton Rajonsky in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, was one of the principal creators of West Coast jazz. He played both the trumpet and flugelhorn, and was in demand for his skills as an arranger. Rogers worked first as a professional musician with Will Bradley and...
, Bud ShankBud ShankClifford Everett "Bud" Shank, Jr. was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and throughout the decade worked in various small jazz combos. He spent the 1960s as a first...
, Stu WilliamsonStu WilliamsonStu Williamson was an American jazz trumpeter.Born in Brattleboro, Vermont, Williamson was the younger brother of jazz pianist Claude Williamson. Williamson relocated to Los Angeles in 1949 and became a regular on the West Coast scene, playing with Stan Kenton , Woody Herman , Billy May, and...
, 1956 - 2 Degrees East, 3 Degrees West with John LewisJohn Lewis (pianist)John Aaron Lewis was an American jazz pianist and composer best known as the musical director of the Modern Jazz Quartet.- Early life:...
, Jim HallJim Hall (musician)James Stanley Hall is an American jazz guitarist.-Biography:Educated at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Hall moved to Los Angeles where he began to attract national, and then international, attention in the late 1950s...
, Percy HeathPercy HeathPercy Heath was an American jazz bassist, brother to tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath, with whom he formed the Heath Brothers in 1975...
, Chico HamiltonChico HamiltonChico Hamilton , is an American jazz drummer and bandleader.-Early life through 1960s:Hamilton was born in Los Angeles, California. He had a fast-track musical education in a band with Charles Mingus, Illinois Jacquet, Ernie Royal, Dexter Gordon, Buddy Collette and Jack Kelso...
, 1956 - Tenors Head-On with Hampton HawesHampton HawesHampton Hawes was an American bebop and hard-bop jazz pianist, recognized as one of the finest and most influential of the 1950s.-Biography:...
, Pete JollyPete JollyPete Jolly was an American West Coast jazz pianist and accordionist....
, Richie KamucaRichie KamucaRichie Kamuca , was an American jazz tenor saxophonist born in Philadelphia.-Musical career:Like many players associated with West Coast jazz, Kamuca grew up in the East before moving west around the time that bebop changed the prevailing style of jazz...
, Stan LeveyStan LeveyStan Levey was an American jazz drummer. Born in Philadelphia, Levey is considered one of the earliest bebop drummers, one of the very few white drummers involved in the formative years of bebop and accepted as one of bop's most important drummers, along with Kenny Clarke and Max Roach...
, Mel Lewis, Red Mitchell, 1956 - Just Friends with Art Pepper, Richie Kamuca, 1956
- Bossa Nova, 1963
- Quietly There with Larry BunkerLarry BunkerLawrence Benjamin "Larry" Bunker was an American jazz drummer, vibraphonist, and percussionist. He also played timpani with the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra.-Biography:...
, Victor FeldmanVictor FeldmanVictor Stanley Feldman was a British jazz musician, best known as a pianist.-Early history:...
, Red Mitchell, John PisanoJohn PisanoJohn Pisano is a jazz guitarist born in Staten Island, New York.John has accompanied in concert or recording some of music's biggest names, including Burt Bacharach, Tony Bennett, Herb Alpert, Natalie Cole, Michael Franks, Diana Krall, Peggy Lee, Julie London, Joe Pass, Frank Sinatra, Barbra...
, 1966 - Confluence, 1978
- Front Line with Pepper AdamsPepper AdamsPark Frederick "Pepper" Adams III was a jazz baritone saxophonist and composer. He composed 43 pieces, was the leader on twenty albums, and participated in 600 sessions as a sideman.-Biography:...
, Gordon GoodwinGordon GoodwinGordon L. Goodwin is a Grammy award-winning American studio pianist, saxophonist, composer, arranger and conductor. He now lives in Southern California with his wife Lisa, daughter Madison and two sons, Trevor and Garrison.- Early years :...
, Lou LevyLou Levy (pianist)Louis A. Levy , generally known as Lou Levy, was a bebop-based pianist who worked with many top jazz artists, later coming to embrace the cool jazz medium and playing in that style as well .Levy was born to Jewish parents in Chicago and started playing piano when he was 12...
, Bob MagnussonBob MagnussonBob Magnusson is a bassist best known for his jazz and studio work and has a personal discography in excess of 150 albums and CDs.-Career:...
, Carl Burnette, 1978 - Many Ways to Go with Gordon Goodwin, Clare FischerClare FischerClare Fischer is an American composer, arranger, pianist and organist. His parents were of German, French, Irish-Scot, and English backgrounds.-Early years:...
, Bob MagnussonBob MagnussonBob Magnusson is a bassist best known for his jazz and studio work and has a personal discography in excess of 150 albums and CDs.-Career:...
, Vince LateanoVince LateanoVince Lateano is an American jazz drummer who has toured with numerous great jazz musicians over the years, including Cal Tjader, Woody Herman, Vince Guaraldi, and Stan Getz....
, 1980 - The Other Bill, 1981
- Journey to the East with Frank StrazzeriFrank StrazzeriFrank Strazzeri is an American jazz pianist.Strazzeri began on tenor saxophone and clarinet at age 12, then switched to piano soon after. He attended the Eastman School of Music, then took a job as a house pianist in a nightclub in Rochester in 1952. While there he accompanied visiting musicians...
, Joel Di Bartolo, Peter DonaldPeter DonaldPeter Donald was a British-born actor who worked in American radio and television.-Radio:He was famed as the character of Ajax Cassidy on Fred Allen's radio show, the Irishman who continually complained that he was "not long for this world."In addition to his long run on "Allen's Alley," Donald...
, 1984 - Remembrance of Dino’s with Alan BroadbentAlan BroadbentAlan Broadbent, MNZM , is a jazz pianist, arranger and composer best known for his work with artists such as Woody Herman, Diane Schuur, Chet Baker, Irene Kral, Sheila Jordan, Charlie Haden, Warne Marsh, Bud Shank, and many others.Broadbent studied piano and music theory in his own country, but in...
, Gene ChericoGene ChericoEugene Valentino "Gene" Cherico was an American jazz double-bassist....
, Putter SmithPutter SmithPutter Smith is an American jazz bassist, teacher and retired actor.-Acting performances:He famously played the part of homosexual assassin Mr. Kidd alongside partner Mr...
, John Tirabasso, 1986 - Right Chemistry with James ClayJames Clay (musician)James Earl Clay was an American hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist and flutist. While in school Clay played alto saxophone, became a professional musician, and played with local bands in Dallas, including with Booker Ervin...
, Joel DiBartolo, Billy Mintz, Frank Strazzeri, 1987 - I Wished on the Moon with dem Metropole Orkest, 1989–90
- Two as One with Frank Strazzeri, 1990
- Our Man Woody with Rick Baptist, Wayne BergeronWayne BergeronWayne Bergeron, American jazz musician and trumpet player, was born in 1958 in Hartford, Connecticut and grew up Southern California. His interest in music started on the French Horn before he switched to, his claim to fame, the trumpet, in 8th grade...
, Richard BullockRichard BullockRichard "Dick" Bullock was a Cornishman who once sang in a Methodist choir and later became a legendary figure of the Wild West Cowboy era...
, Bob CooperBob Cooper (musician)Bob Cooper was a West Coast jazz musician known primarily for playing tenor saxophone, but also for being one of the first to play solos on oboe. He worked in Stan Kenton's band starting in 1945 and married the band's singer June Christy...
, Joseph Davis, Clay Jenkins, Paul Kreibich, Charles Loper, Andy MartinAndy Martin (American musician)Andy Martin is an American virtuoso jazz trombonist. Among other acts, he is a member of Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band and the Bill Holman big band. He has played in over 100 movies, including the trombone solo in the opening credits of Monsters Inc. He has played with T.V. shows such as Family...
, Jack Nimitz, Brian Scanlon, Dave StoneDave Stone-Biography:Stone has written many spin off novels based on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who and Judge Dredd.Stone also contributed a number of comic series to 2000AD and the Judge Dredd Megazine, focusing on the Dreddverse...
, Frank Strazzeri, Bob Summers, [Arrangements By: Jim Knight, John LaBarbera, Frank Strazzeri, Mark Taylor] 1991 - Frame of Mind with Bill BergBill BergWilliam Daniel Berg is a retired Canadian ice hockey player.-Playing career:Playing on both wing and defense, after a minor league apprenticeship with the Springfield Indians of the American Hockey League - with whom he won a Calder Cup in 1990 - Berg started his National Hockey League career with...
, Ken FilianoKen FilianoKenneth S. Filiano is an American jazz double bassist. He is associated with the modern free improvisational scene....
, Clay Jenkins, Bob LeatherbarrowBob LeatherbarrowBob Leatherbarrow is a notable jazz drummer and vibraphonist who lives and works in Los Angeles.-Biography:Bob Leatherbarrow is originally from Buffalo, New York. He studied the drums with Charlie Lorigo, orchestral percussion with John Rowland of the Buffalo Philharmonic, and the vibraphone with...
, Frank Strazzeri, Tom Warrington, 1993 - Perk Plays Prez with Dave CarpenterDave CarpenterDave Carpenter was an American bass player.After studying music at Ohio State University, he launched his professional career by moving to New York...
, Paul Kreibich, Jan LundgrenJan LundgrenJan Lundgren is a Swedish jazz musician , known for his solo work, and his own jazz trio.Born in Kristianstad and raised in Ronneby, Jan Lundgren was formerly in the group "St...
, Jack SheldonJack SheldonJack Sheldon is an American bebop and West Coast jazz trumpeter, singer, and actor. He is a trumpet player and was a comedian on The Merv Griffin Show, as well as the voice heard on several episodes of the educational music television series Schoolhouse Rock.-Biography:Sheldon was born in...
, 1995 - Live at Cappozzoli’s with Steve Huffsteter, 2000
- Bill Perkins Danny Pucillo Quartet Plays Charles Mingus Like Nobody Else with Jinshi Ozaki, Chris Colangelo, Danny Pucillo, 2003