Red Mitchell

Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell (September 20, 1927 – November 8, 1992) was an American jazz double-bassist, composer, lyricist, and poet.

Biography
Mitchell was born in New York City. His younger brother, Whitey Mitchell, also became a jazz bassist.

Mitchell was raised in New Jersey by a father who was an engineer and loved music, and a mother who loved poetry. His first instruments were piano, alto saxophone, and clarinet. Although Cornell University awarded him an engineering scholarship, by 1947 he was in the U.S. Army playing bass. The next year, he was in a jazz trio in New York City.

Mitchell performed and/or recorded with Mundell Lowe, Chubby Jackson, Charlie Ventura, Woody Herman, Red Norvo, Gerry Mulligan, and, after joining the West Coast jazz scene in the early 1950s, with André Previn, Shelly Manne, Hampton Hawes, Billie Holiday, Stan Seltzer, Ornette Coleman, and others such as Mahalia Jackson. He also worked as a bassist in television and film studios around Los Angeles, occasionally appearing on screen. Mitchell also appeared in documentaries about Tal Farlow and Zoot Sims.

Saxophonist Harold Land and Mitchell founded and co-led a quintet in the early 1960s.

Mitchell moved to Stockholm in 1968. He won Sweden's Grammis Award in 1986 and again in 1991, for his recorded performances as a pianist, bassist, and vocalist, and for his compositions and poetic song lyrics.

During this period, Mitchell performed and/or recorded with Clark Terry, Lee Konitz, Herb Ellis, Jim Hall, Joe Pass, Kenny Barron, Hank Jones, Ben Webster, Bill Mays, Warne Marsh, Jimmy Rowles, Phil Woods, Roger Kellaway, Putte Wickman and others. He frequently collaborated in duos, most notably with pianist Kellaway after the mid-1980s.

The Swedish government awarded Mitchell the Illis quorum in 1992.

Returning to the United States in early 1992, Mitchell settled in Oregon, where he died of a stroke at age 65 on November 8, 1992.

A collection of his poetry was published posthumously. His widow is preparing a biography.

Technique and playing style
Mitchell used standard tuning during the 1950s and for the first half of the 1960s, and produced sound similar to his professional jazz bass peers. However, "in 1966 he switched to cello tuning on his bass (C-G-D-A, an octave below the cello, instead of the standard E-A-D-G). At the same time, he began adjusting the tone controls of his amplifier to create a soft, unfocused sound in the lowest notes and to emphasize the upper harmonics in higher notes. The result was an airy tone quality that sounded gentle, not muscular. This airy tone and his frequent habit of strumming the strings with his right thumb contributed greatly to his unusual style."

As leader/co-leader

 * Happy Minors (Bethlehem, 1955) 10" LP with Bob Brookmeyer and Zoot Sims
 * Red Mitchell (Bethlehem, 1956)
 * Presenting Red Mitchell (Contemporary, 1957)
 * Get Those Elephants Out'a Here (MetroJazz, 1958) with Whitey Mitchell, Blue Mitchell and André Previn
 *  Rejoice! (Disques Vogue, 1961)
 * Hear Ye! (Atlantic, 1962) by the Red Mitchell-Harold Land Quintet
 * One Long String (Mercury, 1969)
 * Bästisar! (Artist, 1973) with Evabritt Strandberg
 * Two Way Conversation (Sonet, 1974) with Barney Kessel
 * I Concentrate on You: A Tribute to Cole Porter (SteepleChase, 1974) with Lee Konitz
 * Chocolate Cadillac with Horace Parlan, Nisse Sandstrom, Rune Carlsson, Idrees Sulieman, 1976
 * But Three's a Crowd (Bluebell, 1977) with Karin Krog
 * Blues for a Crushed Soul (Sonet, 1978)
 * Jim Hall/Red Mitchell (Artists House, 1978) with Jim Hall
 * Valse Hot: Sweet Basil 1978 (ArtistShare released 2016) with Jim Hall
 * Scairport Blues (Yupiteru, 1978)
 * Red'n Me (All Life, 1979) with Jimmy Rowles
 * What I Am (Caprice, 1979)
 * Bass Club (Paddle Wheel, 1980) with Isao Suzuki and Tsuyoshi Yamamoto
 * You're Me (Phontastic, 1980) with Tommy Flanagan
 * Empathy (Gryphon, 1980) with Joe Beck
 * Three for All (Enja, 1981) with Phil Woods and Tommy Flanagan
 * When I'm Singing, (1982, Enja)
 * Simple Isn't Easy, 1983
 * Home Suite, 1985
 * To Duke and Basie (Enja, 1986) with Clark Terry
 * The Red Barron Duo (Storyville, 1986 [1988]) with Kenny Barron
 * Duo with Hank Jones (Timeless, 1987)
 * Fifty/Fifty (Stash Records, 1987) with Roger Kellaway
 * Jive at Five (Enja, 1988) with Clark Terry
 * Alone Together (Dragon, 1988) with Roger Kellaway
 * Mitchell's Talking with Ben Riley, Kenny Barron, 1989
 * Blaus with Jan Johannsson, 1992
 * Life's a Take (Concord Jazz, 1993 [Concord Duo Series, Vol. 1; recorded 1992]) with Roger Kellaway
 * Evolution with Lars Jansson, Joakim Milder, 1995
 * Live in Stockholm with Roger Kellaway, Joakim Milder, 1995
 * Red Mitchell-Warne Marsh Big Two, Vol. 2 with Warne Marsh, 1998
 * Live at Port Townsend with George Cables, (1992), 2005

As sideman
With Billie Holiday With Mose Allison With Gene Ammons With Chet Baker With Louis Bellson With Paul Bley With Bob Brookmeyer With Red Callender With Buddy Collette With Tony Crombie With Maynard Ferguson With Tommy Flanagan With Jimmy Giuffre With Jim Hall With Herbie Harper With Hampton Hawes With Paul Horn With Stan Kenton With Barney Kessel With Karin Krog With Johnny Mandel With Shelly Manne With Warne Marsh With Gil Mellé With Jack Montrose With Gerry Mulligan With Bill Perkins and Richie Kamuca With André Previn With Shorty Rogers With Dick Rosmini With Pete Rugolo With George Russell With Bud Shank With Zoot Sims With Pierre Strom With Clark Terry With Cal Tjader With Ben Webster With Magni Wentzel
 * Live in Europe 1954 (Blue Note, 1990s)
 * I've Been Doin' Some Thinkin' (Atlantic, 1968)
 * Gene Ammons in Sweden (Enja, 1973 [1981])
 * Chet Baker Sings and Plays (Pacific Jazz, 1955)
 * Music, Romance and Especially Love (Verve, 1957)
 * Live at Sweet Basil (Soul Note, 1988)
 * Bob Brookmeyer Quartet (Pacific Jazz, 1954)
 * The Lowest (MetroJazz, 1958)
 * Jazz Loves Paris (Specialty, 1958)
 * At the Cinema! (Mercury, 1959)
 * Rockin' with the Rockets – 1958 (Columbia (UK:33S1108) (10") - (Red Morris, Jimmy Currie, Ashley Kozak, Clyde Ray (vocals)
 * Dimensions (EmArcy, 1955)
 * Super-Session (Enja, 1980) with Elvin Jones
 * 7 Pieces (Verve, 1959)
 * Ad Lib (Verve, 1959)
 * Jazz Guitar (Pacific Jazz, 1957)
 * Good Friday Blues (Pacific Jazz, 1960) as The Modest Jazz Trio
 * Five Brothers (Tampa, 1955)
 * Hampton Hawes Trio (Contemporary, 1955)
 * This Is Hampton Hawes (Contemporary, 1956)
 * Everybody Likes Hampton Hawes (Contemporary, 1956)
 * All Night Session! Vol. 1 (Contemporary, 1956 [1958])
 * All Night Session! Vol. 2 (Contemporary, 1956 [1958])
 * All Night Session! Vol. 3 (Contemporary, 1956 [1958])
 * Four! (Contemporary, 1958)
 * The Seance (Contemporary, 1966 [1969])
 * I'm All Smiles (Contemporary, 1966 [1973])
 * House of Horn (Dot, 1957)
 * Plenty of Horn (Dot, 1958)
 * Kenton with Voices (Capitol, 1957)
 * Lush Interlude (Capitol, 1958)
 * Sophisticated Approach (Capitol, 1961)
 * Kessel Plays Standards (Contemporary, 1955)
 * To Swing or Not to Swing (Contemporary, 1955)
 * Easy Like (Contemporary, 1956)
 * I Remember You... (Spotlite, 1981) with Warne Marsh
 * I Want to Live (United Artists, 1958)
 * Bells Are Ringing (Contemporary, 1958)
 * Music for Prancing (Mode, 1957)
 * Gil Mellé Quintet/Sextet (Blue Note, 1953)
 * Arranged/Played/Composed by Jack Montrose (Atlantic, 1955)
 * Paris Concert (Pacific Jazz, 1955)
 * California Concerts (Pacific Jazz, 1955)
 * I Want to Live (United Artists, 1958)
 * Tenors Head-On (Liberty, 1957)
 * Pal Joey (Contemporary, 1957)
 * Gigi (Contemporary, 1958)
 * King Size! (Contemporary, 1959)
 * West Side Story (Contemporary, 1959)
 * The Subterraneans (Soundtrack) (MGM, 1960)
 * André Previn and J. J. Johnson (Columbia, 1961) with J.J. Johnson
 * Sessions, Live (Calliope, 1978) recorded 1956–57
 * A Different Kind of Blues (Angel, 1980) with Itzhak Perlman
 * It's a Breeze (Angel, 1981) with Itzhak Perlman
 * Shorty Rogers Plays Richard Rodgers (RCA Victor, 1957)
 * An Invisible Orchard (RCA Victor, 1961 [1997])
 * The Fourth Dimension in Sound (Warner Bros., 1961)
 * Adventures for 12-String, 6-String and Banjo (Elektra, 1964)
 * The Music from Richard Diamond (EmArcy, 1959)
 * 10 Trombones Like 2 Pianos (Mercury, 1960)
 * The Original Music of Thriller (Time, 1961)
 * 10 Saxophones and 2 Basses (Mercury, 1961)
 * Electronic Sonata for Souls Loved by Nature (Flying Dutchman, 1969)
 * Bud Shank - Shorty Rogers - Bill Perkins (Pacific Jazz, 1955)
 * In a Sentimental Mood (Sonet, 1985)
 * Rallarvisor (YTF Records, 1973)
 * Out of Nowhere (Bingow, 1978)
 * Brahms Lullabye (Bingow, 1978)
 * Funk Dumplin's (Matrix, 1978)
 * West Side Story (Fantasy, 1960)
 * The Prophet (Verve, 1968)
 * Ben Webster at the Renaissance (Contemporary, 1960)
 * New York Nights (Gemini, 1992)
 * ’’’With Joe Sample’’’
 * ’’Fancy Dance’’ (Sonet, 1969)