Mitchell Herbert Ellis (August 4, 1921 – March 28, 2010) was an American jazz guitarist. During the 1950s, he was in a trio with pianist Oscar Peterson.

Biography

Born in Farmersville, Texas, Ellis was raised on a farm. He was first exposed to guitar music when he heard the Light Crust Doughboys on the radio.

With fellow jazz guitarists Barney Kessel, Charlie Byrd and later, Tal Farlow, he created another ensemble, the Great Guitars. In 1994, he joined the Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame. On November 15, 1997, he received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of North Texas College of Music.

Ellis died of Alzheimer's disease at his Los Angeles home on the morning of March 28, 2010, at the age of 88.

Discography

As leader

  • Ellis in Wonderland (Norgran, 1956)
  • Nothing but the Blues (Verve, 1957)
  • Herb Ellis Meets Jimmy Giuffre (Verve, 1959)
  • Softly...but with That Feeling (Verve, 1961)
  • Three Guitars in Bossa Nova Time (Epic, 1963)
  • Together! with Stuff Smith (Epic, 1963)
  • 4 to Go! with Andre Previn (Columbia, 1963)
  • Guitar/Guitar with Charlie Byrd (Columbia, 1965)
  • Man with the Guitar (Dot, 1965)
  • Herb Ellis and the All Stars (Epic, 1974)
  • Soft Shoe (Concord Jazz, 1974)
  • Seven, Come Eleven with Joe Pass (Concord Jazz, 1974)
  • Jazz/Concord with Joe Pass (Concord Jazz, 1974)
  • Two for the Road with Joe Pass (Pablo, 1974)
  • Rhythm Willie with Freddie Green (Concord Jazz, 1975)
  • In Session with Herb Ellis (Guitar Player, 1975)
  • After You've Gone with Ray Brown, Harry "Sweets" Edison (Concord Jazz, 1975)
  • Great Guitars with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1976)
  • A Pair to Draw To with Ross Tompkins (Concord Jazz, 1976)
  • Poor Butterfly with Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1977)
  • Herb (Sony, 1978)
  • Great Guitars: Straight Tracks with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1978)
  • Windflower with Remo Palmier (Concord Jazz, 1978)
  • Soft & Mellow (Concord Jazz, 1979)
  • Great Guitars at the Winery with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1980)
  • At Montreux Summer 1979 (Concord Jazz, 1980)
  • Interplay with Cal Collins Concord Jazz, 1981)
  • Great Guitars at Charlie's Georgetown with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord Jazz, 1983)
  • Anniversary in Paris with Marc Hemmeler (Phoenix, 1986)
  • Doggin' Around with Red Mitchell (Concord Jazz, 1989)
  • Roll Call (Justice, 1991)
  • Memories of You: A Tribute to Benny Goodman with Terry Gibbs, Buddy DeFranco (Contemporary, 1991)
  • Texas Swings (Justice, 1992)
  • The Jazz Masters with Ray Brown, Serge Ermoll (AIM, 1994)
  • The Return of the Great Guitars with Charlie Byrd, Mundell Lowe, Larry Coryell (Concord Jazz, 1996)
  • Down-Home (Justice, 1996)
  • Herb Ellis Meets T. C. Pfeiler (Tonewheel, 1997)
  • Burnin' (Acoustic Music, 1998)
  • An Evening with Herb Ellis (Jazz Focus, 1998)
  • Blues Variations (Live at EJ's, 1998)
  • Conversations in Swing Guitar with Duke Robillard (Stony Plain, 1999)
  • Great Guitars Live with Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessel (Concord 2001)
  • More Conversations in Swing Guitar with Duke Robillard (Stony Plain, 2003)

With Monty Alexander and Ray Brown

  • Trio (Concord Jazz, 1981)
  • Triple Treat (Concord Jazz, 1982)
  • Overseas Special (Concord Jazz, 1984)
  • Triple Treat II (Concord Jazz, 1988)
  • Triple Treat III (Concord Jazz, 1989)

As a member of the Oscar Peterson Trio

  • Oscar Peterson Plays Count Basie (Verve, 1956)
  • Oscar Peterson at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival (Verve, 1956)
  • Pastel Moods (Verve, 1956)
  • Oscar Peterson at the Concertgebouw (Verve, 1957)
  • Oscar Peterson at the Stratford Shakespearean Festival (Verve, 1957)
  • Soft Sands (Verve, 1957)
  • The Modern Jazz Quartet and the Oscar Peterson Trio at the Opera House (Verve, 1957)
  • The Oscar Peterson Trio with Sonny Stitt, Roy Eldridge and Jo Jones at Newport (ARS/Verve, 1957)
  • On the Town with the Oscar Peterson Trio (Verve, 1958)
  • Jazz at the Philharmonic Blues in Chicago 1955 (Verve, 1983) – rec. 1955
  • Tenderly (Just a Memory, 2002) – rec. 1958
  • Vancouver 1958 (Just a Memory, 2003) – rec. 1958

Reunion with Oscar Peterson

  • Hello Herbie (MPS, 1970)
  • The Legendary Oscar Peterson Trio Live at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1990)
  • A Tribute to Oscar Peterson Live at The Town Hall (Telarc, 1997)

As sideman

With Benny Carter

  • Benny Carter Plays Pretty (Norgran, 1954)
  • New Jazz Sounds (Norgran, 1954)

With Roy Eldridge

  • Rockin' Chair (Clef, 1953)
  • Dale's Wail (Clef, 1953)
  • Little Jazz (Clef, 1954)

With Stan Getz

  • Stan Getz and the Oscar Peterson Trio (Verve, 1958)
  • Jazz Giants '58 (Verve, 1958)

With Dizzy Gillespie

  • Diz and Getz (Norgran, 1953)
  • Roy and Diz with Roy Eldridge (Clef, 1954)
  • For Musicians Only (Verve, 1956)

With Vince Guaraldi

  • Alma-Ville (Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, 1969)
  • It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown (Lee Mendelson Film Productions, 1969)
  • A Boy Named Charlie Brown: Selections from the Film Soundtrack (Columbia Masterworks, 1970)
  • A Boy Named Charlie Brown: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (Kritzerland, 2017)

With Johnny Hartman

  • Unforgettable Songs by Johnny Hartman (ABC, 1966)
  • I Love Everybody (ABC, 1967)

With Peggy Lee

  • Sugar 'n' Spice (Capitol Records, 1962)
  • Mink Jazz (Capitol Records, 1963)
  • Guitars a là Lee (Capitol Records, 1966)

With Johnny Mathis

  • Johnny Mathis (Columbia, 1956)

With Bud Shank

  • Bud Shank Plays Music from Today's Movies (World Pacific, 1967)
  • Magical Mystery (World Pacific, 1967)

With Lester Young

  • Pres and Sweets with Harry Edison (Norgran, 1955)
  • Laughin' to Keep from Cryin (Verve, 1958)

With others

  • Mel Brown, Chicken Fat (Impulse!, 1967)
  • Priscilla Coolidge, Gypsy Queen (Sussex, 1970)
  • Harry Edison, Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You (Verve, 1957)
  • Victor Feldman, Soviet Jazz Themes (Äva, 1962)
  • Johnny Frigo, I Love John Frigo...He Swings (Mercury, 1957)
  • The Four Freshmen, The Four Freshmen and Five Guitars (Capitol, 1959)
  • Coleman Hawkins, Coleman Hawkins and Confrères (Verve, 1958)
  • Illinois Jacquet, Swing's the Thing (Clef, 1956)
  • Randy Newman, Randy Newman (Reprise, 1968)
  • Esther Phillips, Confessin' the Blues (Atlantic, 1976)
  • Lou Rawls, Lou Rawls Live! (Capitol, 1966)
  • Gábor Szabó, Wind, Sky and Diamonds (Impulse!, 1967)
  • Sonny Stitt, Only the Blues (Verve, 1958)
  • Mel Tormé, A Day in the Life of Bonnie and Clyde (Liberty, 1968)
  • Ben Webster, Soulville (Verve, 1957)

References

  • Biography at Classic Jazz Guitar.
  • "Herb Ellis" (obituary), Daily Telegraph, April 5, 2010.