Jazz guitar great Herb Ellis passed away this morning at the age of 88, following a long struggle with Alzheimer's disease. Herb grew up near Dallas TX and was inspired to play guitar after hearing the great George Barnes on the radio. He joined the Casa Loma Orchestra and then the Jimmy Dorsey Band. In 1947 Herb formed the Soft Winds Trio with Lou Carter and Johnny Frigo; in 1952 he replaced Barney Kessel in the Oscar Peterson Trio with Ray Brown. Oscar Peterson said that in Herb he found his truest musical peer. Herb played with many jazz greats over the decades including Ben Webster, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Roy Eldridge, Jimmy Giuffre, Sweets Edison, Buddy Rich, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Red Mitchell, Chuck Israels, Joe Pass and many others. Later in his career, Herb formed the Great Guitars with Barney Kessel and Charlie Byrd (with Tal Farlow replacing Kessel after the latter's stroke).
Rest in peace, Herb. You can find many performances by Herb on YouTube.
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