Biography Wikipedia
from Wikipedia:
Cecil McBee (born May 19, 1935) is an American post bop jazz bassist, described by the Guinness Who's Who of Jazz as "a full-toned bassist who creates rich, singing phrases in a wide range of contemporary jazz contexts." Allmusic called him "One of post-bop's most advanced and versatile bassists".
Biography
McBee was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on 19 May 1935. He studied clarinet at school, but switched to bass at the age of 17, and began playing in local nightclubs. After gaining a music degree from Ohio Central State University, he spent two years in the army, during which time he conducted the band at Fort Knox. In 1959 he played with Dinah Washington, and in 1962 he moved to Detroit, where he worked with Paul Winter's folk-rock ensemble in 1963-1964. His jazz career began in earnest in the mid-1960s, after he moved to New York, when he began playing and recording with a number of significant musicians including Miles Davis, Andrew Hill, Sam Rivers, Jackie McLean (1964), Wayne Shorter (1965–66), Charles Lloyd (1966), Yusef Lateef (1967–69), Keith Jarrett, Freddie Hubbard and Woody Shaw (1986), and Alice Coltrane (1969–1972).
He established his own group in 1975, and has made a number of recordings under his own name, but is best known for his work as a sideman; he continues to be in high demand, and has gone on to work with many jazz musicians.
McBee was a member of the group Almanac, with Bennie Maupin (flute, tenor saxophone), Mike Nock (piano) and Eddie Marshall (drums). The group released one album in 1977.
In the 2000s, McBee unsuccessfully sued a Japanese company that opened a chain of stores under his name.
He teaches at the New England Conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts.
Grammy awards
Pharoah Sanders/David Murray/McCoy Tyner/Cecil McBee/Roy Haynes, Blues for Coltrane: A Tribute to John Coltrane (MCA, 1987) Winner, Best instrumental performance, individual or group, Grammy Awards, 1988.
