Milt Hinton, dean of jazz bass players, was born 112 years ago today.
A jazz double bassist and photographer, Hinton was nicknamed "The Judge."
Born in Vicksburg, Mississippi and living in Chicago, Hinton first learned to play the violin, and later bass horn, tuba, cello and the double bass at school. As a young violinist, he found gainful employment as a bassist. He later switched to double bass.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Hinton worked as a freelance musician in Chicago. During this time, he played with accomplished jazz musicians such as Jabbo Smith, Eddie South and Art Tatum.
In 1936, he joined a band led by Cab Calloway. Members of this band included Chu Berry, Cozy Cole, Dizzy Gillespie, Illinois Jacquet, Jonah Jones, Ike Quebec, Ben Webster and Danny Barker.
Hinton possessed a formidable technique and was equally adept at bowing, pizzicato and "slapping," a technique for which he became famous while playing with the big band of Cab Calloway from 1936 to 1951.
Unusually for a double bass player, Hinton was frequently given the spotlight by Calloway, taking bass solos in tunes like "Pluckin' the Bass." At the same time, Hinton worked as a studio musician. He was part of a large group of studio musicians who played on dozens of hit records written by songwriters who worked at the Brill Building.
He was responsible for the opening bass line on the Drifters "Under the Boardwalk" as well as playing on dozens of hits recorded by Neil Sedaka and many others.
Hinton played a rare Gofriller Double Bass during the latter part of his career. The bass was found in pieces in a cellar in Italy and a musical agent arranged the purchase from the family for Hinton. In his autobiography, Bass Line, Inton described the tone as magnificent and said it was one of the reasons for his long success in the New York recording studios in the 1950s and 60s.
According to The Jazz Discography, Hinton is the most-recorded jazz musician of all time, having appeared on 1,174 recording sessions.
Also a photographer, Hinton documented many of the great jazz musicians via photographs he took over the course of his career. He captured many of the obstacles black musicians endured during the Jim Crow era. Hinton was one of the best friends of jazz trumpeter, Louis Armstrong.
Hinton died in Queens, New York City at age 90 in 2000.
Here, Hinton gives a jazz bass lesson
Mona Hinton, Ike Quebec, Doc Cheatham, Mario Bauza and Shad Collins on tour in Georgia, 1950
Photo by Milt Hinton
Danny Barker and Dizzy Gillespie on train, 1940
Photo by Milt Hinton