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Bob Whitlock
Bob Whitlock (1931-2015)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Von “Bob" Whitlock, a West Coast jazz bassist and the last surviving original member of the Gerry Mulligan Quartet who joined the influential piano-less group in the summer of 1952, died yesterday in Long Beach, Calif., of a stroke. He was 84. Without a piano in the Mulligan quartet, Bob had to work doubly hard to create not only the metronome-like time-keeping tempo but also play piano-like treble runs when gaps in the music needed fills. In fact, Bob was ...
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Interview: Bob Whitlock (Part 3)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
In the history of post-war jazz, Gerry Mulligan may well have been one of the finest all-around musicians, leaders and arrangers. But he wasn't the nicest guy in the world. Which is easy to understand. Constantly creating a vision, finding musicians to execute that vision and making a success of it—is akin to being the CEO of a start-up. A lot of courage is needed along with high standards and an ego the size of a house. [Photo above of ...
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Interview: Bob Whitlock (Part 4)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
For years, bassist Bob Whitlock has been blamed for getting Chet Baker hooked on heroin in 1952. Bob is named in several books as being the one who set Baker on his ruinous path. The problem is, according to Bob, it's not true. They were together when it happened, but Bob says he didn't encourage Baker to try it or even want him to do so. [Recent photo above of Bob Whitlock by Leslie Westbrook] In Part 4 of my ...
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Interview: Bob Whitlock (Part 2)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Sixty years ago this month, the Gerry Mulligan Quartet was formed. Original members were Mulligan on baritone sax, Chet Baker on trumpet, Bob Whitlock on bass and Chico Hamilton on drums. Much of the credit for the group goes to Bob Whitlock. If not for him, the quartet may never have been—or at least not in its famed formation. [Photo above, from left: Bob Whitlock, Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan] Bob is the one who introduced his roommate and trumpeter ...
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Interview: Bob Whitlock (Part 1)
Source:
JazzWax by Marc Myers
Bassist Bob Whitlock is so far off the grid there isn't even a Wikipedia page for him or a tribute site. An original member of the piano-less Gerry Mulligan Quartet in 1952 and '53, Bob helped establish a new way of playing bass in a small group on the West Coast—light, bright and conversational rather than merely keeping time. In Part 1 of my five-part interview with Bob, 81, the California bassist talks about growing up in Utah and why ...
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Bob Whitlock
Instrument: Bass
Born: January 21, 1931
Died: June 29, 2015
