Jazz Musician. A saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader, he was a leading light in the West Coast jazz scene for many years. Born William Marcel Collette to a jazz family, he was raised in Watts where he became a skilled woodwind player from an early age. Leading his first ensemble (which included Charlie Mingus and Britt Woodman) at 12, he was well known locally by his mid-teens. During World War II he served as a US Navy bandleader, then returned home to join the Kings of Swing, again partnering with Mingus and Woodman, and to begin a long career as a premiere sideman. Over the years, he was to collaborate with Frank Sinatra, Nat "King" Cole, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, and numerous others; in the late 1940s and early 1950s Collette was the only black in the orchestra for the "Groucho Marx Show", then went on to lead a successful fight to merge the black and white locals of the musicians union. In 1955 he was a founding member of drummer Chicho Hamilton's quintet that was to produce a number of well-received recordings. Continuing his performing career until sidelined by a 1998 stroke, Collette also served as a professor at Loyola Marymount University, Cal State Long Beach, Cal Poly Pomona, and other institutions. In 1998 he was named "A Living Los Angeles Cultural Treasure", and in 2000 received a Grammy Award nomination for "The Buddy Collette Big Band in Concert". A participant in the UCLA oral history project "Central Avenue Sounds", he co-founded "JazzAmerica", an educational opportunity effort directed at high school students, and in 2000 published his autobiography "Jazz Generations: A Life in American Music and Society". At his death from an acute respiratory problem much of his large recorded legacy remained in print.
Jazz Musician. A saxophonist, clarinetist, and bandleader, he was a leading light in the West Coast jazz scene for many years. Born William Marcel Collette to a jazz family, he was raised in Watts where he became a skilled woodwind player from an early age. Leading his first ensemble (which included Charlie Mingus and Britt Woodman) at 12, he was well known locally by his mid-teens. During World War II he served as a US Navy bandleader, then returned home to join the Kings of Swing, again partnering with Mingus and Woodman, and to begin a long career as a premiere sideman. Over the years, he was to collaborate with Frank Sinatra, Nat "King" Cole, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, and numerous others; in the late 1940s and early 1950s Collette was the only black in the orchestra for the "Groucho Marx Show", then went on to lead a successful fight to merge the black and white locals of the musicians union. In 1955 he was a founding member of drummer Chicho Hamilton's quintet that was to produce a number of well-received recordings. Continuing his performing career until sidelined by a 1998 stroke, Collette also served as a professor at Loyola Marymount University, Cal State Long Beach, Cal Poly Pomona, and other institutions. In 1998 he was named "A Living Los Angeles Cultural Treasure", and in 2000 received a Grammy Award nomination for "The Buddy Collette Big Band in Concert". A participant in the UCLA oral history project "Central Avenue Sounds", he co-founded "JazzAmerica", an educational opportunity effort directed at high school students, and in 2000 published his autobiography "Jazz Generations: A Life in American Music and Society". At his death from an acute respiratory problem much of his large recorded legacy remained in print.
Bio by: Bob Hufford
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