Wellman Braud
Wellman Braud | |
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Also known as | Wellman Breaux |
Born | (1891-01-25)January 25, 1891 St. James Parish, Louisiana, United States |
Died | October 29, 1966(1966-10-29) (aged 75) Los Angeles, California |
Genres | Jazz |
Occupation(s) | Musician, bandleader |
Instrument(s) | Double bass, trombone, tuba, violin |
Years active | 1910–1966 |
Formerly of | Duke Ellington, Jimmie Noone, Wilber Sweatman, Spirits of Rhythm |
Wellman Braud (January 25, 1891 – October 29, 1966) was an American jazz upright bassist.[1][2] His family sometimes spelled their last name "Breaux", pronounced "Bro".[1]
Biography
Born in St. James Parish, Louisiana, Braud settled in New Orleans, in his early teens.[1] He was playing the violin and the upright bass and leading a trio in venues in the Storyville District before 1910. He moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1917.[1] In 1923, he visited London with the Plantation Orchestra, in which he doubled on bass and trombone. Next, he moved to New York City, where he played with Wilber Sweatman's band before joining Duke Ellington.[1]
It has been observed by Branford Marsalis that Braud was the first to utilize the walking bass style, that has been a mainstay in modern jazz, as opposed to the 'two-beat' pattern the tuba plays in the New Orleans style. His vigorous melodic bass playing, alternately plucking, slapping, and bowing, was an important feature of the early Ellington Orchestra in the 1920s and 1930s. Braud's playing on Ellington's regular radio broadcasts and recordings helped popularize the slap style of string bass playing, as well as encouraging many dance bands of the time to switch from using a tuba to an upright bass. (Like many of his contemporary New Orleans bassists, Braud doubled on tuba, and he recorded with that instrument on some sides with Ellington).
In 1936, Braud co-managed a short-lived Harlem club with Jimmie Noone, and recorded with the group Spirits of Rhythm from 1935 to 1937. He played with other New York bands including those of Kaiser Marshall, Hot Lips Page, and Sidney Bechet, and returned for a while to Ellington in 1944. In 1956, he joined the Kid Ory Band.[1] In the late 1950s, he joined Barbara Dane's trio alongside pianist/cornetist Kenny Whitson, turning down opportunities to return to Duke Ellington's band or tour with Louis Armstrong.[3]
He is a distant relative of the Marsalis brothers on their mother's side.[4]
He died in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 76.[2]
Duke Ellington subsequently paid tribute to Braud, including the composition ‘Portrait of Wellman Braud' on his 1970 album New Orleans Suite.
References
- ^ a b c d e f Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 58. ISBN 0-85112-580-8.
- ^ a b Goldsby, John (September 1, 2002). The Jazz Bass Book: Technique and Tradition. Backbeat Books. ISBN 9781617132179. Retrieved July 25, 2021 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Home". Barbaradane.net. Retrieved July 25, 2021.
- ^ Gates Jr., Henry Louis (2012). "Full Episode: Musicians Branford Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr". Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates. Retrieved February 7, 2012.
External links
- Works by or about Wellman Braud at Internet Archive
- Wellman Braud recordings at the Discography of American Historical Recordings
- v
- t
- e
- Harlem Jazz, 1930
- Ellingtonia, Vol. One
- Ellingtonia, Vol. Two
- Braggin' in Brass: The Immortal 1938 Year
- The Blanton–Webster Band
- Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band
- Smoke Rings
- Liberian Suite
- Great Times!
- Masterpieces by Ellington
- Ellington Uptown
- The Duke Plays Ellington
- Ellington '55
- Dance to the Duke!
- Ellington Showcase
- Historically Speaking
- Duke Ellington Presents...
- The Complete Porgy and Bess
- A Drum Is a Woman
- Studio Sessions, Chicago 1956
- Such Sweet Thunder
- Studio Sessions 1957 & 1962
- Ellington Indigos
- Black, Brown and Beige
- Duke Ellington at the Bal Masque
- The Cosmic Scene
- Happy Reunion
- Jazz Party
- Anatomy of a Murder
- Festival Session
- Blues in Orbit
- The Nutcracker Suite
- Piano in the Background
- Swinging Suites by Edward E. and Edward G.
- Unknown Session
- Piano in the Foreground
- Paris Blues
- Featuring Paul Gonsalves
- Midnight in Paris
- Studio Sessions, New York 1962
- Afro-Bossa
- The Symphonic Ellington
- Duke Ellington's Jazz Violin Session
- Studio Sessions New York 1963
- My People
- Ellington '65
- Duke Ellington Plays Mary Poppins
- Ellington '66
- Concert in the Virgin Islands
- The Popular Duke Ellington
- Far East Suite
- The Jaywalker
- Studio Sessions, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967, San Francisco, Chicago, New York
- ...And His Mother Called Him Bill
- Second Sacred Concert
- Studio Sessions New York, 1968
- Latin American Suite
- The Pianist
- New Orleans Suite
- Orchestral Works
- The Suites, New York 1968 & 1970
- The Intimacy of the Blues
- The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse
- Studio Sessions New York & Chicago, 1965, 1966 & 1971
- The Intimate Ellington
- The Ellington Suites
- This One's for Blanton!
- Up in Duke's Workshop
- Duke's Big 4
- Mood Ellington
- Duke Ellington at Fargo, 1940 Live
- Black, Brown, and Beige
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1944
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1946
- The Carnegie Hall Concerts: December 1947
- Ellington at Newport
- Dance Concerts, California 1958
- Dance Dates, California 1958
- Newport 1958
- Jazz at the Plaza Vol. II
- Duke Ellington at the Alhambra
- Live at the Blue Note
- Hot Summer Dance
- The Great Paris Concert
- A Concert of Sacred Music
- In the Uncommon Market
- Soul Call
- Yale Concert
- 70th Birthday Concert
- Togo Brava Suite
- Live at the Whitney
- Third Sacred Concert
- Eastbourne Performance
- Blue Rose
- Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book
- Side by Side
- Back to Back
- The Great Summit
- First Time! The Count Meets the Duke
- Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
- Money Jungle
- Duke Ellington & John Coltrane
- Serenade to Sweden
- Ella at Duke's Place
- The Stockholm Concert, 1966
- Ella and Duke at the Cote D'Azur
- Francis A. & Edward K.
- It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing
- "African Flower"
- "All Too Soon"
- "Azure"
- "Black and Tan Fantasy"
- "Black, Brown and Beige"
- "C Jam Blues"
- "Come Sunday"
- "Cotton Tail"
- "Creole Love Call"
- "Day Dream"
- "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue"
- "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me"
- "Don't Get Around Much Anymore"
- "Drop Me Off in Harlem"
- "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo"
- "Echoes of Harlem"
- "Everything but You"
- "I Ain't Got Nothin' but the Blues"
- "I Didn't Know About You"
- "I Got It Bad (and That Ain't Good)"
- "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart"
- "I'm Beginning to See the Light"
- "I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So"
- "In a Mellow Tone"
- "In a Sentimental Mood"
- "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)"
- "Just A-Sittin' and A-Rockin'"
- "Just Squeeze Me (But Please Don't Tease Me)"
- "The Mooche"
- "Mood Indigo"
- " Prelude to a Kiss"
- "Rocks in My Bed"
- "(In My) Solitude"
- "Sophisticated Lady"
- Queenie Pie (unfinished opera)
by Billy Strayhorn |
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by Juan Tizol |
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members
- Hayes Alvis
- Cat Anderson
- Ivie Anderson
- Harold Ashby
- Alice Babs
- Shorty Baker
- Butch Ballard
- Art Baron
- Aaron Bell
- Louie Bellson
- Joe Benjamin
- Barney Bigard
- Lou Blackburn
- Jimmy Blanton
- Wellman Braud
- Lawrence Brown
- Harry Carney
- Johnny Coles
- Willie Cook
- Buster Cooper
- Kay Davis
- Wild Bill Davis
- Wilbur de Paris
- Bobby Durham
- Mercer Ellington
- Rolf Ericson
- Jimmy Forrest
- Victor Gaskin
- Peter Giger
- Tyree Glenn
- Paul Gonsalves
- Sonny Greer
- Fred Guy
- Jimmy Hamilton
- Otto Hardwick
- Shelton Hemphill
- Rick Henderson
- Al Hibbler
- Johnny Hodges
- Major Holley
- Charlie Irvis
- Quentin Jackson
- Hilton Jefferson
- Herb Jeffries
- Freddie Jenkins
- Money Johnson
- Herbie Jones
- Wallace Jones
- Taft Jordan
- Al Killian
- Queen Esther Marrow
- Wendell Marshall
- Murray McEachern
- Louis Metcalf
- James "Bubber" Miley
- Harold "Geezil" Minerve
- Ray Nance
- Tricky Sam Nanton
- Oscar Pettiford
- Eddie Preston
- Russell Procope
- Junior Raglin
- Betty Roché
- Ernie Royal
- Al Sears
- Joya Sherrill
- Willie Smith
- Elmer Snowden
- Rex Stewart
- Billy Strayhorn
- Billy Taylor
- Clark Terry
- Juan Tizol
- Norris Turney
- Ben Webster
- Arthur Whetsel
- Cootie Williams
- Nelson Williams
- Skippy Williams
- Booty Wood
- Jimmy Woode
- Britt Woodman
- Sam Woodyard