RIP, Joe Pass (1929-1994)

Jazz guitarist Joe Pass died on May 23, 1994, in Los Angeles from liver cancer. He was 65 years old. He is buried in the Resurrection Cemetery in Piscataway, New Jersey.

Pass had, as Len Lyons puts it, "a prodigious dexterity, an encyclopedic harmonic knowledge, and a driving sense of swing." Jazz critic Scott Yanow said that "Joe Pass did the near-impossible. He was able to play up-tempo versions of bop tunes such as 'Cherokee' and 'How High the Moon' unaccompanied on the guitar."

Pass plays "How High the Moon" here:

In his book, The 101 Best Jazz Albums, Len Lyons recommends the Joe Pass album, Virtuoso (Pablo), which is available on CD from Amazon.com.

Robert
Facebook page