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Al Grey
Al Grey
Al Grey
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Key Information

Al Grey (June 6, 1925[1] – March 24, 2000)[2] was an American jazz trombonist who was a member of the Count Basie orchestra. He was known for his plunger mute technique and wrote an instructional book in 1987 called Plunger Techniques.[2]

Career

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Al Grey, the last great big time plunger by Gwendolyn Lanier-Gardner, 2015

Al Grey was born in Aldie, Virginia, United States,[1] and grew up in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. He was introduced to the trombone at the age of four, playing in a band called the Goodwill Boys, which was led by his father.[2] During World War II he served in the U.S. Navy, where he continued to play the trombone.[1] Soon after his discharge, he joined Benny Carter's band,[1] then the bands of Jimmie Lunceford, Lucky Millinder, and Lionel Hampton.[3] In the 1950s, he was a member of the big bands of Dizzy Gillespie and Count Basie.[3] He led bands in the 1960s with Billy Mitchell and Jimmy Forrest.[3] Later in life he recorded with Clark Terry and J. J. Johnson.[3] He made thirty recordings under his own name and another seventy with bands.[2]

Grey's early trombone style was inspired by Trummy Young. He developed a wild, strong, and full sound. Solos often consisted of short, pronounced phrases with precisely timed syncopation. However, when playing with the plunger, he would produce the most mellow fill-ins and shape melodic answers to the lead voice. This aspect of his playing can be heard to great effect in response to Bing Crosby's vocals on the 1972 album, Bing 'n' Basie.[citation needed]

He died in Scottsdale, Arizona at the age of 74 after suffering from several ailments, including diabetes.[2]

Discography

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As leader/co-leader

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As sideman

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With Count Basie

  • The Atomic Mr. Basie (Roulette, 1957)
  • Basie Plays Hefti (Roulette, 1958)
  • Basie (Roulette, 1958)
  • Breakfast Dance and Barbecue (Roulette, 1959)
  • Basie One More Time (Roulette, 1959)
  • Chairman of the Board (Roulette, 1959)
  • Strike Up the Band (Roulette, 1959)
  • Dance Along with Basie (Roulette, 1959)
  • Kansas City Suite (Roulette, 1961)
  • Count Basie/Sarah Vaughan (Roulette, 1961)
  • Easin' It (Roulette, 1963)
  • Basie Picks the Winners (Verve, 1965)
  • Pop Goes the Basie (Reprise, 1965)
  • Big Band Scene '65 (Roulette, 1965)
  • Basie Swingin' Voices Singin' (ABC-Paramount, 1966)
  • Basie Meets Bond (United Artists, 1966)
  • Arthur Prysock/Count Basie (Verve, 1966)
  • Broadway Basie's...Way (Command, 1966)
  • Have a Nice Day (Daybreak, 1971)
  • Bing 'n' Basie (20th Century Fox, 1972)
  • Count Basie Plays Quincy Jones & Neal Hefti (Roulette, 1975)
  • Basie Big Band (Pablo, 1975)
  • I Told You So (Pablo, 1976)
  • Montreux '77 (Pablo, 1977)
  • Prime Time (Pablo, 1977)
  • Basie Jam #2 (Pablo, 1977)
  • Basie/Eckstine Incorporated (Roulette, 1979)
  • Basie Jam #3 (Pablo, 1979)
  • Count On the Coast (Phontastic, 1983)
  • Count On the Coast Vol. II (Phontastic, 1984)
  • Autumn in Paris (Magic, 1984)
  • Count On the Coast '58 (Polydor, 1985)
  • Live in Stockholm (Magic, 1985)
  • Loose Walk (Pablo, 1988)
  • Basie in Europe (LRC, 1985)

With Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown

  • San Antonio Ballbuster (Red Lightnin', 1974)
  • Atomic Energy (Blues Boy, 1983)
  • More Stuff (Black and Blue, 1985)
  • Pressure Cooker (Alligator, 1985)

With Ray Charles

  • The Genius of Ray Charles (Atlantic, 1959)
  • Genius + Soul = Jazz (Impulse!, 1961)
  • At the Club (Philips, 1966)

With Dizzy Gillespie

With Lionel Hampton

  • Newport Uproar! (RCA Victor, 1968)
  • Hamp's Big Band Live! (Glad-Hamp, 1979)
  • Live at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1991)

With Jon Hendricks

  • Fast Livin' Blues (Columbia, 1962)
  • Freddie Freeloader (Denon, 1990)
  • Boppin' at the Blue Note (Telarc, 1995)

With Quincy Jones

  • Golden Boy (Mercury, 1964)
  • Gula Matari (A&M, 1970)
  • I Heard That!! (A&M, 1976)
  • Quincy Jones Talkin' Verve (Verve, 2001)

With Oscar Pettiford

With Clark Terry

  • Squeeze Me! (Chiaroscuro, 1989)
  • What a Wonderful World (Red Baron, 1993)
  • Shades of Blues (Challenge, 1994)

With others

References

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Al Grey

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Al Grey was an American jazz trombonist renowned for his virtuosic command of the plunger mute, which enabled him to produce expressive, vocal-like effects on the instrument, and for his long-standing association with the Count Basie Orchestra. Born on June 6, 1925, in Aldie, Virginia, Grey developed his distinctive style through early experiences in big bands during the 1940s and 1950s. He played with ensembles led by Benny Carter, Jimmie Lunceford, Lionel Hampton, and others before joining Basie's band in 1957, where he was a key soloist during several periods until 1977. His innovative plunger techniques, often described as making the trombone "talk," became a signature element of his playing and influenced generations of brass players in jazz. Grey's career extended beyond big bands, encompassing recordings as a leader, collaborations with artists such as Dizzy Gillespie and Quincy Jones, and performances that highlighted his versatility across swing, bebop, and mainstream jazz contexts. He continued to perform and record actively until his later years, leaving a legacy as one of the most creative and identifiable trombonists in jazz history. He died on March 24, 2000, in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Early life

Childhood and musical beginnings

Al Grey was born Albert Thornton Grey on June 6, 1925, in Aldie, Virginia. He grew up in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in a working-class family where music played an important role in daily life. His father, who had experience as a musician and led the local Goodwill Boys Band, actively encouraged his children's musical development and provided early instruction. Due to the family's limited financial resources, Grey could not have a personal instrument, so he began playing the baritone horn around age four or five using school or band-provided equipment. He participated in the Goodwill Boys Band in Pottstown, which his father directed, marking his first experiences performing music locally. In his early teens, Grey switched to the trombone, an instrument that would define his future career. Grey received formal music education through his high school in Pottstown, where he continued to develop his skills in band settings. His early influences included local bands and radio broadcasts featuring prominent jazz and swing musicians, which sparked his interest in brass instruments and ensemble playing. These formative years laid the foundation for his transition to professional music after his youth.

Military service

Al Grey enlisted in the United States Navy in 1943 at the age of 18. He served for three years until his discharge in 1946, during which time he played trombone in a U.S. Navy band. This military assignment marked his first extended professional engagement with the instrument, providing structured experience in ensemble performance, discipline, and working with arranged charts in a formal band setting. The skills and routines developed during this period prepared him directly for his entry into civilian jazz bands following his discharge.

Professional career

Early bands and big band era

Al Grey began his professional career after his discharge from the Navy in 1946. He first joined Benny Carter's orchestra from 1945 to 1946. He then played with Jimmie Lunceford's orchestra from 1946 to 1947 and Lucky Millinder's band in the late 1940s. Grey worked on and off with Lionel Hampton's orchestra from 1948 to 1953. In 1956–1957, he performed with Dizzy Gillespie's big band. These early engagements in major swing and bebop ensembles provided him with experience in section playing and soloing.

Count Basie Orchestra period

Al Grey joined the Count Basie Orchestra in 1957 after his time with Dizzy Gillespie, marking a pivotal point in his career. He served three separate stints with the band: 1957–1961, 1964–1966, and 1971–1977. During his initial period (1957–1961), he developed and regularly used his innovative plunger mute technique, creating expressive, vocal-like effects that became his signature. He was known as a strong, humorous improviser and one of the last masters of the plunger mute. After leaving in 1961 to co-lead a quintet with saxophonist Billy Mitchell, Grey returned from 1964 to 1966 as a key soloist. Following another departure, he rejoined for his final stint from 1971 to 1977, contributing to the band's recordings and performances during this later era. His work across these periods solidified his reputation within the Count Basie Orchestra.

Later independent career

After his final departure from the Count Basie Orchestra in 1977, Al Grey pursued a successful freelance career as a trombonist, bandleader, and educator, emphasizing small-group mainstream jazz. He co-led a blues-oriented band with Basie alumnus Jimmy Forrest until Forrest's death in 1980. He worked in studios, toured with George Wein's Jazz at the Philharmonic, and made occasional appearances with Lionel Hampton. From the 1980s onward, Grey toured extensively with saxophonist Buddy Tate, evoking the Basie sound in small-group settings. In 1988, he formed the New Al Grey Quintet, featuring guitarist/trumpeter Joe Cohn and his son Mike Grey on trombone, performing into his later years. He collaborated with organist Jack McDuff on the 1996 release Me 'n' Jack and featured on Centerpiece: Live at the Blue Note. Grey contributed to jazz education by co-authoring Plunger Techniques with his son Mike Grey and running summer jazz camps in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, with instructors including Max Roach and Jimmy Heath, and students such as Delfeayo Marsalis. He mentored select students in plunger techniques despite limiting private teaching. Despite chronic diabetes leading to toe amputation in 1997, Grey recovered and continued performing, including a month-long European tour in 1999 with Benny Carter, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Marian McPartland, Milt Hinton, and Louis Bellson. He remained active until his death in 2000 from diabetes-related complications.

Musical style and technique

Discography

Personal life and death

Legacy

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