Joe Pass

Born Joseph Anthony Jacobi Passalaqua in New Brunswick, New Jersey on January 13, 1929, Joe Pass was a jazz guitarist and composer. He began playing as a young man after his family had relocated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a professional musician, he played in groups led by saxophonist Charlie Barnet and novelty singer/saxophonist Tony Pastor. Moving to New York, he released a long list of jazz albums including Sounds of Synanon (1962), For Django (1964), The Stones Jazz (1967), Intercontinental (1970), Portraits of Duke Ellington (1975) and several entries in the Virtuoso series: Virtuoso (1973), Virtuoso No. 2 (1976), Virtuoso No. 3 (1977), Virtuoso Live! (1991) and Virtuoso in New York (2004). His 1989 album After Hours was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance By a Group, and the track “Kaw-Liga”(with guitarist Roy Clark) was nominated for Best Country Instrumental Performance in 1994. Throughout his career, he also appeared as a sideman for artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Les McCann, Carmen McRae, Benny Carter, Chet Baker, The Crusaders, and many others. His album The Trio - with Oscar Peterson and double bass player Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen - won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance By a Group in 1975. Joe Pass died on May 23, 1994, at the age of 65.