Eddie Bert obit

Trombonist Eddie Bert Dead at 90

Played with Mingus, Goodman, Monk, Ellington and others

 

He was not on the list.

Trombonist Eddie Bert, 90, who played with Thelonious Monk, Illinois Jacquet, Lionel Hampton, Benny Goodman, Charles Mingus and many others in a six-plus-decade career, died Sept. 28 in Danbury, Conn. A cause of death was not divulged.

Bert was born in Yonkers, N.Y., in 1922. He joined the bands of Sam Donahue and Red Norvo in the 1940s before going on to play with the above-named as well as Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Barnet, Tito Puente, Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Mel Lewis and Thad Jones and others.

Bert cut his first recording as a leader in 1942 and later released recordings for the Discovery, Savoy, Jazztone and Trans-World labels. He also toured with T.S. Monk, the son of Thelonious. Bert remained active into the early 2000s.

Bert received a degree and a teaching license from the Manhattan School of Music (1957). He taught at Essex College, University of Bridgeport, and Western Connecticut State University.

Bert performed and recorded with many bands and orchestras. He spent the most time with Benny Goodman's Orchestra (1958–86), Charles Mingus (1955–74), The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra (1968–72), New York Jazz Repertory Company (1973–78), The American Jazz Orchestra (1986–92), Loren Schoenberg Orchestra (1986–2001), and Walt Levinsky's Great American Swing Orchestra (1987–95).

Bert is featured on hundreds of recordings and recorded extensively as a leader on various labels including Savoy, Blue Note, Trans-World, Jazztone, and Discovery Records. Bert continued to play sold-out shows until his death, at the age of 90, on September 27, 2012, in Danbury, Connecticut.