Motown bassist and musical director, Jimmy Garrett

[bankhousedave]

Reading the thread on the forthcoming Supremes at The Copa release got me thinking again about their stage musical director and bassist, Jimmy Garrett. Little was ever put out about him in his time, and he never got any of the recognition from Motown watchers that the Funks and even Tony Newton and others received.

Although he was clearly one hell of a player, and a knockout on stage - I'm pretty sure that was him backing the Supremes on the Royal Variety show, where everyone is trussed up in tuxedos and supposed to sit quiet and respectfully on chairs, and he winds up on his knees on the floor - he is not even credited anywhere I've seen, including the original Copa album.

However, I just came across this, which confirms his stature and may add something to the unique SD stock of Motown knowledge:

James "Jimmy" Garrett
1927 ~ March 5th 1993
James Garrett was the music director and road bassist with the Supremes who helped them develop from a narrow rock style into the top female group in popular music history. Mr. Garrett, 66, died of complications of diabetes in Teaneck, N.J. He is survived by his wife, a son James of Ontario, Calif.; daughters, Shirley Jackson and Anita of Cleveland and Grace of Dover, Del.; two sisters; three brothers; nine grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
SORRY I CANNOT
FIND A PHOTO OF THIS
SADLY FORGOTTEN MOTOWN MUSICIAN
Jimmy was born in Cleveland and spent part of his childhood in Detroit and Chicago. He played in the band at old Central High School and studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music. He also attended military music school and played with a Navy band in Washington, D.C., during World War II. After the war Jimmy played with blues man Robert Lockwood Jr. and studied with many top jazz bass players, including the legendary Oscar Pettiford. During the 1950s, he played in leading Cleveland jazz clubs including the Tia Juana, Town Casino and Cedar Gardens. He accompanied and traveled with top musicians, including Charlie [[Yardbird) Parker, John Coltrane, Dizzy Gillespie and Billie Holiday. He played with Ray Charles at a bar near Mr. Garrett's home at E. 69th St. and Cedar Ave. While in New York City in 1961 his future wife, Ella, hired him to back her while she sang at the famed Small's Paradise in Harlem. "He also played with Count Basie every Sunday and whatever bass players were in town came just to watch him work," Ella Garrett said. Jimmy Garrett joined Motown records in Detroit in 1962 and played with such greats as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, the Temptations, George Benson, the Four Tops and Smokey Robinson. He was named music director of the Supremes while on tour with them in England. "Earlier directors had lacked his training and did not provide the versatile arrangements that Mr. Garrett did", his wife said. He also set trends in stage appearance when he arrived at Motown, she said. "He had a beard, but [[Motown founder) Berry Gordy told him he had to shave. He said he would quit first. Pretty soon, everybody had beards, even Mr. Gordy," Ella Garrett recalled. In 1972, when Motown sadly moved to LA, Jimmy played on the "Today and Tonight" television shows, in Broadway musicals and with the Cab Calloway band. He toured the world and worked in Japan for more than a year. He performed during the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. James 'Jimmy' Garrett received many awards for his musicianship as well as citations for the four times his groups played for the royal family in England. He had appeared in groups on the Ed Sullivan Show seven times. ~ with courtesy of cleveland.com

I found it on Phil Brodie's remembrances site.

[[Incidentally, although George Benson played jazz guitar before he became a big singer, I think this refers to the Detroit saxman of the same name who played on the Earl of Funk album.)

[motony]

thanks bankhouse, sorry to say I don't remember if I heard of him or not. Motown emplyed so many talented people and had to have a large group of musicians to go out on the road with the top acts. Any info on Joe Swift, Mary Wells bass player?

[theboyfromxtown]

Well spotted Dave

I know little on him myself but DRATS Live At London's Talk Of The Town is ringing bells.

[bankhousedave]

Don't know Joe, Tony. as you say there were so many. It's difficult to belive that there is little or no info on a man who other bass players would come to see when he played with Basie. When I first asked the question about Jimmy back ion the sixties, people used to say I was mixing hom up with Jimmy Garrison. It now seems clear that they played with much the same people in the jazz world. Real luminaries.

John:

You are right. Jimmy was at the Talk, although Gil Askey may have been MD.