Russ Freeman: West Coast Poet

Reprinted from http://jazzwax.com

Russ Freeman was one of the most recorded ensemble pianists on the West Coast in the 1950s and one of the most poetic. His first recording was with Charlie Parker at a Los Angeles club in 1947, but once the LP made inroads in the early 1950s, Freeman recorded steadily with Chet Baker, John Graas, Shorty Rogers, Maynard Ferguson, Shelly Manne and many other artists. Freeman died in 2002 at age 75. Here are a few clips of Freeman's pretty playing and graceful chord voicings...

Here's Freeman with Baker on Long Ago and Far Away...

Here's Freeman on Oscar Brown Jr.'s Jazz Scene USA...

Here's Freeman with the Jerry Fielding Orchestra on a Julie London TV special...

Here's Freeman in a documentary on photographer William Claxton...

Used with permission by Marc Myers