Mitchell Herbert Ellis (August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010) was a guitarist who played jazz music. In the 1950s, he played in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson.

Biography

Herb Ellis was born in Farmersville, Texas, and grew up on a farm. He first heard guitar music when he listened to the Light Crust Doughboys on the radio. At age three, Ellis played the harmonica, and by six, he played the banjo. His brother had a guitar, but he tuned it incorrectly. Ellis wanted to play better than his brother, so he bought a book to learn how to tune a guitar properly. This helped him develop a strong interest in guitar. He later became inspired to play jazz guitar after hearing George Barnes on a radio program.

By the time Ellis entered North Texas State University, he was already skilled on the guitar. He studied music but did not have a guitar program at the university, so he studied the bass instead. He left college and toured with a band from the University of Kansas for six months. From 1943 to 1945, Ellis joined Glen Gray and the Casa Loma Orchestra. After that, he joined the Jimmy Dorsey band, where he played some of his first recorded solos.

Ellis stayed with the Dorsey band until 1947, traveling and recording music in dance halls and movie theaters. In 1996, Lou Carter told a journalist, "The Dorsey band had a six-week break in their schedule. We stayed at the Peter Stuyvesant Hotel in Buffalo for six months. That’s how the group Soft Winds was formed." With Lou Carter and John Frigo, Ellis wrote the classic jazz songs "Detour Ahead" and "I Told Ya I Love Ya, Now Get Out."

The Soft Winds group was modeled after the Nat King Cole Trio. They remained together until 1952. In 1953, Ellis joined the Oscar Peterson Trio, replacing Barney Kessel. This group became known as one of the most memorable jazz trios in history.

Ellis became well-known for performing with the Oscar Peterson Trio from 1953 to 1958, alongside pianist Oscar Peterson and bassist Ray Brown. At that time, he was the only white member of the group, which made him a somewhat controversial figure because racism was still common.

The trio also worked as the "house rhythm section" for Norman Granz’s Verve Records, supporting famous musicians like Ben Webster, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, and others. Ellis played in these recordings but did not always perform solos. With drummer Buddy Rich, they also supported the comeback albums of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong.

The trio was a main part of Granz’s Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts, touring the United States and Europe. In 1958, Ellis left the Peterson Trio and was replaced by drummer Ed Thigpen. From 1957 to 1960, Ellis toured with Ella Fitzgerald. He also worked in Hollywood recording studios, playing on many different music sessions. Eventually, he focused on his jazz career, performing live and recording music.

The trio performed a jazz version of "Tenderly" as a background for the 1958 cartoon The Tender Game. Ellis also played with other famous guitarists, including Barney Kessel, Charlie Byrd, and Tal Farlow, forming a group called the Great Guitars.

Herb Ellis appeared on an episode of Sanford and Son, playing guitar while Fred Sanford sang. He also taught guitar to cartoonist Gary Larson, who drew the cover for Ellis’s 1988 album Doggin’ Around.

In 1987, Ellis moved to Arkansas. In 1994, he was inducted into the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame. In 1997, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of North Texas College of Music.

Herb Ellis died from Alzheimer’s disease at his home in Los Angeles on March 28, 2010, at the age of 88.

Discography

• Ellis in Wonderland (Norgran, 1956)
• Nothing but the Blues (Verve, 1957)
• Herb Ellis Meets Jimmy Giuffre (Verve, 1959)
• Softly…but with That Feeling (Verve, 1961)
• Three Guitars in Bossa Nova Time (Epic, 1963)
• Together! with Stuff Smith (Epic, 1963)
• 4 to Go! with Andre Previn (Columbia, 1963)
• Guitar/Guitar with Charlie Byrd (Columbia, 1965)
• Man with the Guitar (Dot, 1965)
• Herb Ellis and the All Stars (Epic, 1974)
• Soft Shoe (Concord Jazz, 1974)
• Seven, Come Eleven with Joe Pass (Concord Jazz, 1974)
• Jazz/Concord with Joe Pass (Concord Jazz, 1974)
• Two for the Road with Joe Pass (Pablo, 1974)
• Rhythm Willie with Freddie Green (Concord Jazz, 1975)
• In Session with Herb Ellis (Guitar Player, 1975)
• After You've Gone with Ray Brown, Harry "Sweets" Edison (Concord Jazz, 1975)
• Great Guitars with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1976)
• A Pair to Draw To with Ross Tompkins (Concord Jazz, 1976)
• Poor Butterfly with Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1977)
• Herb (Sony, 1978)
• Great Guitars: Straight Tracks with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1978)
• Windflower with Remo Palmier (Concord Jazz, 1978)
• Soft & Mellow (Concord Jazz, 1979)
• Great Guitars at the Winery with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1980)
• At Montreux Summer 1979 (Concord Jazz, 1980)
• Interplay with Cal Collins (Concord Jazz, 1981)
• Great Guitars at Charlie's Georgetown with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1983)
• Anniversary in Paris with Marc Hemmeler (Phoenix, 1986)
• Doggin' Around with Red Mitchell (Concord Jazz, 1989)
• Roll Call (Justice, 1991)
• Memories of You: A Tribute to Benny Goodman with Terry Gibbs, Buddy DeFranco (Contemporary, 1991)
• Texas Swings (Justice, 1992)
• The Jazz Masters with Ray Brown, Serge Ermoll (AIM, 1994)
• The Return of the Great Guitars with Charlie Byrd, Mundell Lowe, Larry Coryell (Concord Jazz, 1996)
• Down-Home (Justice, 1996)
• Herb Ellis Meets T. C. Pfeiler (Tonewheel, 1997)
• Burnin' (Acoustic Music, 1998)
• An Evening with Herb Ellis (Jazz Focus, 1998)
• Blues Variations (Live at EJ's, 1998)
• Conversations in Swing Guitar with Duke Robillard (Stony Plain, 1999)
• Great Guitars Live with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord, 2001)
• More Conversations in Swing Guitar with Duke Robillard (Stony Plain, 2003)

Collaborations with Monty Alexander and Ray Brown
• Trio (Concord Jazz, 1981)
• Triple Treat (Concord Jazz, 1982)
• Overseas Special (Concord Jazz, 1984)
• Triple Treat II (Concord Jazz, 1988)
• Triple Treat III (Concord Jazz, 1989)

As a member of the Oscar Peterson Trio
• Oscar Peterson Plays Count Basie (Verve, 1956)
• Oscar Peterson at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival (Verve, 1956)
• Pastel Moods (Verve, 1956)
• Oscar Peterson at the Concertgebouw (Verve, 1957)
• Oscar Peterson at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival (Verve, 1957)
• Soft Sands (Verve, 1957)
• The Modern Jazz Quartet and the Oscar Peterson Trio at the Opera House (Verve, 1957)
• The Oscar Peterson Trio with Sonny Stitt, Roy Eldridge and Jo Jones at Newport (ARS/Verve, 1957)
• On the Town with the Oscar Peterson Trio (Verve, 1958)
• Jazz at the Philharmonic Blues in Chicago 1955 (Verve, 1983) – recorded 1955
• Tenderly (Just a Memory, 2002) – recorded 1958
• Vancouver 1958 (Just a Memory, 2003) – recorded 1958

Reunion with Oscar Peterson
• Hello Herbie (MPS, 1970)
• The Legendary Oscar Peterson Trio Live at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1990)
• A Tribute to Oscar Peterson Live at The Town Hall (Telarc, 1997)