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Bob Cranshaw

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Bob Cranshaw
Cranshaw in 1976
Cranshaw in 1976
Background information
Born
Melbourne Robert Cranshaw

(1932-12-03)December 3, 1932
Chicago, Illinois, US
DiedNovember 2, 2016(2016-11-02) (aged 83)
Manhattan, New York, US
GenresJazz
OccupationMusician
InstrumentsDouble bass, electric bass
Formerly ofSonny Rollins

Melbourne Robert Cranshaw[1] (December 10, 1932 – November 2, 2016)[2] was an American jazz bassist. His career spanned the heyday of Blue Note Records as a house bassist. He is known for his long association with Sonny Rollins,[3] starting with a live appearance at the 1959 Playboy jazz festival in Chicago and Rollins's 1962 album The Bridge.[4]

Cranshaw died at the age of 83 on November 2, 2016, in Manhattan, New York, of cancer.[5][6]

Early life

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Cranshaw was born Dec. 10, 1932 in Evanston, Illinois. His parents were of Madagascan and Native American descent. His father, Stanley Irvine Cranshaw, was a jazz drummer from Kansas City who moved to Evanston and worked as an electrician. Bob's brother Stanley Jr. became a jazz pianist. Their adopted brother Emanuel became a vibraphonist.[6]

Career

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In a 2016 interview with The New York Times, Rollins called Cranshaw "impeccable" and said that he "played with probably every musician in New York." In addition to five decades of collaboration with Rollins, Cranshaw contributed to Lee Morgan's "The Sidewinder" and Joe Henderson’s “Inner Urge.”[2]

Cranshaw performed with Wes Montgomery, Coleman Hawkins, Johnny Hodges, Horace Silver, McCoy Tyner, Thelonious Monk, Jimmy Heath, James Moody, Buddy Rich, George Shearing, Joe Williams, Ella Fitzgerald, and Oscar Peterson. [7] He also collaborated with musicians outside of jazz, including Paul Simon, Barry Manilow, Eddie Kendricks, Judy Collins, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, Dolly Parton, Marvin Gaye, James Brown, and Debbie Gibson.[8]

Cranshaw had an extensive career in television. He was a member of the first band for Saturday Night Live, and the bands backing the broadcasts of Dick Cavett and Merv Griffin. Cranshaw played for three decades with Joe Raposo composing music for Sesame Street.[9][2]

He was an active supporter of the Jazz Foundation of America and the American Federation of Musicians.[10][11]

Discography

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As sideman

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With Pepper Adams

With Nat Adderley

With Eric Alexander

With Mose Allison

With Gene Ammons

With Carole Bayer Sager

With Kenny Barron

With George Benson

With Walter Bishop Jr.

With Paul Bley

With Jonathan Butler

  • Introducing Jonathan Butler (Jive, 1985)

With Jaki Byard

With Donald Byrd

With Betty Carter

With Ray Charles

With Johnny Coles

With Judy Collins

With Hank Crawford

With Sonny Criss

With Frank Foster

With George Freeman

With Debbie Gibson

With Dexter Gordon

With Bunky Green

With Grant Green

With Grachan Moncour III

With Friedrich Gulda

With Slide Hampton

With Barry Harris

With Eddie Harris

With Hampton Hawes

With Coleman Hawkins

With Jimmy Heath

With Joe Henderson

With Maurice Hines

  • To Nat "King" Cole with Love (Arbors, 2005)

With Johnny Hodges

With Bobby Hutcherson

With Milt Jackson

With Willis Jackson

With Antônio Carlos Jobim

With Howard Johnson and Gravity

With J. J. Johnson

With Quincy Jones

With Clifford Jordan

With Eddie Kendricks

  • Vintage '78 (Arista, 1978)

With Morgana King

  • New Beginnings (Paramount Records, 1973)

With Eric Kloss

With Irene Kral

With Yusef Lateef

With Mike Longo

With Johnny Lytle

With Junior Mance

With Barry Manilow

With Jack McDuff

With Jimmy McGriff

With Jackie McLean

With Carmen McRae

With MJT + 3

With Hank Mobley

With Grachan Moncur III

With Wes Montgomery

With James Moody

With Lee Morgan

With Oliver Nelson

With Duke Pearson

With Houston Person

With Esther Phillips

  • Esther Phillips Sings (Atlantic, 1966)

With Dave Pike

With Sonny Red

With Leon Redbone

With Irene Reid

  • Room for One More (Verve, 1965)

With Max Roach

With Sonny Rollins

With Charlie Rouse

With Lalo Schifrin

With Shirley Scott

With Wayne Shorter

With Horace Silver

With Paul Simon

With Frank Sinatra

With Jimmy Smith

With Rod Stewart

With Billy Taylor

With Clark Terry and Bob Brookmeyer

With Bobby Timmons

With Stanley Turrentine

With McCoy Tyner

With Harold Vick

  • Watch What Happens (RCA Victor, 1968)

With Loudon Wainwright III

With Cedar Walton

With Cris Williamson

  • Cris Williamson (Ampex Records, 1971)

With Joe Williams

With Mary Lou Williams

With Victoria Williams

With Larry Willis

With Gerald Wilson

With Jack Wilson

With Reuben Wilson

With Kai Winding

With The Young Lions

With Joe Zawinul

References

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  1. ^ "Cranshaw, Bob - LC Linked Data Service: Authorities and Vocabularies | Library of Congress". Id.loc.gov. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Chinen, Nate (November 10, 2016). "Bob Cranshaw, Bassist From Jazz to Pop to Broadway, Dies at 83". The New York Times. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
  3. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 577. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  4. ^ "The Bridge - Sonny Rollins, Sonny Rollins Quartet | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
  5. ^ Gil Kaufman (November 3, 2016). "Jazz Bassist Bob Cranshaw Dies at 83". Billboard. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Bob Cranshaw, Jazz Superhero (1932-2016)". Local 802 AFM. December 5, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
  7. ^ "Bob Cranshaw". Blue Note Records. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
  8. ^ Lewis, Seth (May 1, 2020). "We, Not Me: The Musical Life of Bob Cranshaw". Dissertations.
  9. ^ "Interview with Bob Cranshaw". DO THE M@TH. April 8, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
  10. ^ "The Jazz Foundation Story - Jazz Foundation of America". Retrieved December 11, 2025.
  11. ^ Rollins, Sonny (June 2, 2024). "Sonny Rollins Remembers Bob Cranshaw". JazzTimes. Retrieved December 11, 2025.
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