Eddie Jones

Biography

Eddie Jones (March 1, 1929, Greenwood, Mississippi – May 31, 1997, West Hartford, Connecticut) was an American jazz double bassist.

Jones grew up in Red Bank, New Jersey, and played early in the 1950s with Sarah Vaughan and Lester Young. He graduated from Red Bank High School in 1946 and graduated in 1951 from Howard University, where he majored in music.

Jones taught music in South Carolina from 1951 to 1952, and became a member of Count Basie's orchestra in 1953, remaining there until 1962. He recorded frequently with this ensemble, and also played with Basie in smaller ensembles; these featured both Basie sidemen (Joe Newman, Frank Foster, Frank Wess, Thad Jones, Ernie Wilkins) and others (Milt Jackson, Coleman Hawkins, Putte Wickman). Jones quit music in 1962 and took a job with IBM; he later became vice president of an insurance company. In the 1980s he returned to jazz and played on and off in swing jazz ensembles.

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