Jan 13, 2026 2:09 PM
More Trump-Kennedy Center Cancellations
The fallout from the renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to include President Donald…
Louie Bellson, known for his dynamic big band drumming, died Feb. 14 in Los Angeles. He had been hospitalized in late January due to a broken hip. He was 84.
Bellson was known for his dynamic big band drumming. He was born in Rock Falls, Ill., on July 26, 1924. His early professional career included a variety of big band stints with, in succession, Benny Goodman (1943, 1946), Tommy Dorsey (1947-‘49) and Harry James (1950-‘51). In 1950, Bellson and former Dorsey bandmate Charlie Shavers co-led a sextet. During 1951-‘53, the drummer joined the Duke ElIington band, replacing Sonny Greer. While with the Duke, Bellson also composed some material that has stood the test of time as Ellington features: “Skin Deep” and “The Hawk Talks.” In 1952, Bellson Married singer Pearl Bailey, with whom he worked as her musical director over the next few years, leading his own band.
Bellson also became a member of the Jazz at the Philharmonic aggregate during different periods (1955, 1967 and 1972). During the mid ‘50s, he rejoined the Dorsey band (1955-‘56), and again in 1964. Big band gigs continued in the ‘60s with Ellington (1965-‘66) and James (1966).
Over the past 40 years, Bellson also developed a reputation as an educator, and leader his own big bands and small groups, serving as one of its principal arrangers. He continued to perform through last year.
Belá Fleck during an interview with Fredrika Whitfield on CNN.
Jan 13, 2026 2:09 PM
The fallout from the renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to include President Donald…
Peplowski first came to prominence in legacy swing bands, including the final iteration of the Benny Goodman Orchestra, before beginning a solo career in the late 1980s.
Feb 3, 2026 12:10 AM
Ken Peplowski, a clarinetist and tenor saxophonist who straddled the worlds of traditional and modern jazz, died Feb. 2…
The success of Oregon’s first album, 1971’s Music Of Another Present Era, allowed Towner to establish a solo career.
Jan 19, 2026 5:02 PM
Ralph Towner, a guitarist and composer who blended multiple genres, including jazz — and throughout them all remained…
Rico’s Anti-Microbial Instrument Swab
Jan 19, 2026 2:48 PM
With this year’s NAMM Show right around the corner, we can look forward to plenty of new and innovative instruments…
Hammond came to the blues through the folk boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s, which he experienced firsthand in New York’s Greenwich Village.
Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
