So far as I know, everybody in and around jazz liked Herb Ellis, both as a guitarist and as a man. His no-nonsense style was a big part of what made the Oscar Peterson Trio so solid and satisfying in its piano-guitar-bass version, and his longtime partnership with Peterson and Ray Brown continues to be admired to this day, not least by those who, like me, have had the exhilarating pleasure of playing in a hard-swinging rhythm section.
Alas, there isn’t much film of the Peterson Trio on YouTube, but this 1958 version of “A Gal in Calico” has been making the rounds ever since the announcement of Ellis’ death on Sunday (he suffered from Alzheimer’s disease). It’s a fine way to remember a superior artist:
Terry Teachout on the arts in New York City
