Wynton Kelly: Biography

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• Kenny Drew
• Tommy Flanagan
• Bobby Timmons
• Hampton Hawes
• Walter Bishop, Jr.
• Carl Perkins
• Hugh Lawson

• Ahmad Jamal
• Bud Powell
• Oscar Peterson
• Red Garland
• Art Tatum
• Bill Evans

• Duke Pearson
• George Cables
• Brian Jackson
• Larry Willis
• Big John Patton
• Dick Wellstood
• Mike LeDonne

• Paul Chambers

• Harold Arlen
• Benny Golson
• Mel Tormé
• Roger Spotts

Born:

Dec 2, 1931 in Jamaica

Died:

Apr 12, 1971 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Genre:

Bop Jazz Music

Decades Active:

1950's|1960's|1970's

Artistic Quality

High

Cultural Impact

Medium

Popularity

Medium

Ratings Guide

A superb accompanist loved by Miles Davis and Cannonball Adderley, Wynton Kelly was also a distinctive soloist who decades later would be a strong influence on Benny Green. He grew up in Brooklyn and early on played in RB bands led by Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, Hal Singer, and Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis. Kelly, who recorded 14 titles for Blue Note in a trio (1951), worked with Dinah Washington, Dizzy Gillespie, and Lester Young during 1951-1952. After serving in the military, he made a strong impression with Washington (1955-1957), Charles Mingus (1956-1957), and the Dizzy Gillespie big band (1957), but he would be most famous for his stint with Miles Davis (1959-1963), recording such albums with Miles as Kind of Blue, At the Blackhawk, and Someday My Prince Will Come. When he left Davis, Kelly took the rest of the rhythm section (bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Jimmy Cobb) with him to form his trio. The group actually sounded at its best backing Wes Montgomery. Before his early death, Kelly recorded as a leader for Blue Note, Riverside, Vee-Jay, Verve, and Milestone.

- Scott Yanow, All Music Guide