Don Thompson (musician)

For other people of the same name, see Don Thompson (disambiguation).
Donald Thompson

Photo courtesy of the Fraser MacPherson estate
Background information
Birth name Donald Winston Thompson
Born (1940-01-18) 18 January 1940
Powell River, British Columbia, Canada
Origin Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres Jazz
Occupation(s) Musician

Donald Winston Thompson, OC[1] (born 18 January 1940) is a Canadian jazz musician who plays double bass, piano, and vibes.[2] Thompson formed part of the Toronto Quartet of Paul Desmond during the mid seventies, and that effort produced two albums. Other personnel on those dates, mostly at Bourbon Street in Toronto, were Toronto guitarist Ed Bickert and drummer Jerry Fuller. Thompson has been a fixture on the Toronto jazz scene since the late 1960s when he moved there from British Columbia. Thompson played for a long time in Rob McConnell's Boss Brass.

Biography

Thompson was born 18 January 1940 Powell River, British Columbia, Canada.

He lived in Vancouver from 1960 to 1965, working as a freelance musician primarily on bass. He has appeared with jazz troupes led by Vancouver musicians such as Dave Robbins, Chris Gage and Fraser MacPherson, as well as leading his own musical groups. In addition to appearing regularly on CBC radio, he was also on television as a featured artist.

In 1965 he joined the John Handy Quintet and moved to San Francisco for a two-year stay. During that time the Handy Quintet performed extensively throughout the United States and recorded two albums for the Columbia label. One of these, Recorded Live at the Monterey Jazz Festival, became one of the most popular jazz albums of the 1960s. While in San Francisco Thompson also worked with Frank Rosolino, Maynard Ferguson, Denny Zeitlin and George Duke.

He returned to Canada in 1967 and has been a resident of Toronto since 1969. In that year he joined Rob McConnell's BOSS BRASS as a percussionist, switching to bass in 1971 and later to piano (1987–1993). He was also a member of Moe Koffman's group from 1970 to 1979 as pianist or bassist, contributing arrangements and compositions and working as co-producer with Koffman on two albums, Museum Pieces and Looking Up. He also worked extensively with guitarists Ed Bickert, Lenny Breau and Sonny Greenwich while keeping busy with his own various projects.

As a member of the "house rhythm section" at Toronto's Bourbon Street Jazz Club he worked with Paul Desmond, Jim Hall, Milt Jackson, Art Farmer, James Moody, Zoot Sims, Clark Terry, Harry Edison, Frank Rosolino, Slide Hampton, Lee Konitz and Abbey Lincoln, and appeared at other venues with Sarah Vaughan, Red Rodney, Joe Henderson, Dewey Redman, Red Mitchell, Sheila Jordan and Kenny Wheeler.

He became a member of guitarist Jim Hall's trio in 1974, travelling to Europe and Japan as well as touring the United States and Canada. In 1982 he joined pianist George Shearing and stayed for a five-year period during which he appeared at virtually every major jazz club and festival in the United States. Their travels also included tours of Great Britain and two trips to Brazil.

In 1996 he was artist in residence at the Royal Academy of Music, London, England, and performed in a concert of all-Canadian music with fellow Canadians Kenny Wheeler and Hugh Fraser. He teaches regularly at the Banff Centre for the Performing Arts along with other major international musicians.

Thompson is currently working as a freelance musician, teacher, member of the band JMOG and as leader of his own quartet.

He is equally at home on vibes, piano, bass and drums, and is a sound engineer with his own home-studio.

Awards

Discography

As leader

As co-leader

As sideman

with Jim Hall:

With John Handy

with Paul Desmond:

with Jay McShann:

with Buddy Tate:

with Frank Rosolino:

with George Shearing:

with Mel Tormé:

with Rob McConnell & the Boss Brass:

with Sonny Greenwich:

with Pat LaBarbera:

with Emily Remler:

with Dave Liebman:

with Bill King:

with Moe Koffman:

with Rob McConnell Trio:

with Diana Panton

References

  1. 1 2 "Donald Winston Thompson, O.C.". Governor General of Canada. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  2. ↑ Cross, Dan. "Biography: Don Thompson". AMG. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
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