Keter Betts
| Keter Betts | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | William Thomas Betts |
| Born | July 22, 1928 |
| Origin | Port Chester, New York, USA |
| Died | August 6, 2005 (aged 77) |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupations | Double bassist |
| Instruments | Double bass |
Keter Betts (July 22, 1928 – August 6, 2005) was an American jazz double bassist. Born William Thomas Betts in Port Chester, New York, he was nicknamed "Keter", a short form of the word mosquito.[1]
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[edit] Career
Many better-known musicians (Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Nat Adderley, Stan Getz, Charlie Byrd and others), recognizing Keter's talent, invited him to perform with them professionally. Early in Keter's career he had played with Earl Bostic's R&B band. In 1962, together with Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd, he was instrumental in introducing the bossa nova style to American audiences via their Jazz Samba recording.[2] In the mid-1960s, Keter began a nearly quarter-century relationship as a bassist with Ella Fitzgerald.[1]
[edit] Personal life
A widowed father of five children,[2] Betts resided in the Washington, DC, area for more than a half century. He died at his home in Silver Spring, Maryland in August 2005.[1]
[edit] Selected discography
- The Floating Jazz Festival Trio (1995)
- Charlie Byrd: Blues for Night People (1957)
- Bobby Timmons: Chun-King (Prestige, 1964)
- Bobby Timmons: Workin' Out! (Prestige, 1964)
- Tommy Flanagan: The Tommy Flanagan Tokyo Recital (Pablo, 1975)
- Ella Fitzgerald: Montreux ’77 (Pablo, 1977)
- Tommy Flanagan: Something Borrowed, Something Blue (1978)
- Junior Mance: Blue Mance (1994)
[edit] References
- ^ a b c "Jazz Bassist Keter Betts Dies at 77". Washington Post. August 8, 2005. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/07/AR2005080700935.html. Retrieved January 18, 2011.
- ^ a b "Keter Betts, 77, Jazz Bassist Who Spread the Bossa Nova, Is Dead". The New York Times. August 22, 2005. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/22/arts/music/22betts.html. Retrieved January 18, 2011.
[edit] External links
- Keter Betts's oral history video excerpts at The National Visionary Leadership Project
