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Jack Nimitz

Although he has had a long and productive career, Jack Nimitz has long been underrated, not getting a chance to lead his own record session until a 1995 set for Fresh Sound, when he was already 65.

He started on the clarinet when he was 12, switching to alto two years later, and gigging locally at 15. In 1949, Nimitz started specializing on the baritone and soon was playing with such territory bands as those led by Bob Astor, Johnny Bothwell, and Daryl Harpa.

From 1952-1953, he was back in Washington, D.C., before touring with Woody Herman (October 1953 to September 1955) and a few months with Stan Kenton (1955-1956). He was a regular in the house band at the Savoy and then spent an additional year with Kenton (1958-1959).

Settling in Los Angeles, Nimitz became a busy studio musician and also played with Bill Berry, Benny Carter, Gerald Wilson, Supersax (since its beginning in 1972), Bill Perkins' Big Band, Bud Shank, Frank Strazzeri's Woodwinds West, the Lighthouse All-Stars, and any other high-quality jazz group that needed a talented baritonist. Source: Scott Yanow

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4
Album Review

Stan Kenton and His Orchestra: In a Lighter Vein

Read "In a Lighter Vein" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Stan Kenton was a man of many moods, as was his intrepid and popular orchestra, which endured until his passing in August 1979 and whose renown is kept alive even today by the Stan Kenton Legacy Orchestra. Kenton dons his carefree hat on In a Lighter Vein, an assortment of straight-ahead themes from the orchestra's jazz library, preserved in five concert performances from 1953-55 beneath the umbrella of NBC radio's All Star Parade of Bands. Original compositions ...

843
Big Band Report

Jack Nimitz: Baritone-in-Chief

Read "Jack Nimitz: Baritone-in-Chief" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Baritone saxophonist Jack Nimitz died June 10, 2009 at his home in Studio City, California. He was 79 years old. That's hardly headline news except to a relative handful of jazz enthusiasts who were privileged to hear and appreciate his consummate artistry over the span of more than half a century when Nimitz was at the top of his game.

He was, in fact, playing remarkably well almost to his last labored breath (Nimitz had suffered from emphysema for several ...

214
Album Review

Jack Nimitz and Friends . . .: Yesterday and Today

Read "Yesterday and Today" reviewed by Jack Bowers


Yesterday and Today comprises two sessions recorded half a century apart, each of which offers a rare chance to sing the praises of baritone saxophonist Jack Nimitz, a longtime standout on the West Coast scene. Somehow he has managed to produce only three albums with his name above the marquee, the first of which--Confirmation--was released in 1995, the same year he turned old enough to start cashing Social Security checks. While it's not true that Nimitz' picture appears next to ...

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406

Obituary

Jack Nimitz Baritone Sax Player Dies

Jack Nimitz Baritone Sax Player Dies

Source: Michael Ricci

Jack Nimitz played clarinet and alto saxophone before discovering the baritone sax and falling in love with the instrument's voice. “It sounded so warm and nice and dark and rich," he said.

Nimitz played with Woody Herman, Stan Kenton and Herbie Mann and had a busy career as a studio musician in Hollywood.

Jack Nimitz, a jazz baritone saxophonist who played in the Woody Herman and Stan Kenton big bands and in the group “Supersax," died Wednesday of complications from ...

291

Obituary

Jack Nimitz: 1930-2009

Jack Nimitz: 1930-2009

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey

Sometimes fate does not distribute her gifts based on merit. Jack Nimitz never achieved the recognition, popularity or record sales of Gerry Mulligan, Pepper Adams or Serge Chaloff. Nonetheless, he was fully their peer as a baritone saxophonist of the post-bop era. Nimitz died last week in Los Angeles at the age of 79. From the early 1950s in Washington, DC, with The Orchestra, through the bands of Bob Astor, Johnny Bothwell, Stan Kenton and Woody Herman, Nimitz was a ...

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Recording

Jack Nimitz

Jack Nimitz

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey

Jack Nimitz, Yesterday And Today (Fresh Sound). “Yesterday" was 1957, when the distinctive baritone saxophonist recorded a long-playing album for ABC-Paramount. The LP sat unissued for half a century. “Today" was early last year, when Nimitz went into the studio to record new music to add to the 1957 material and round out a compact disc. Nimitz's tone has more heft and his soloing more aggressiveness than fifty years ago. In both instances, his playing is superb.

In New York ...

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

In a Lighter Vein

Sounds of Yesteryear
2020

buy

Yesterday and Today

Fresh Sound Records
2008

buy

Silver 'n Wood

Blue Note Records
1976

buy

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