Earl Swope

Earl Bowman Swope (August 4, 1922 – January 3, 1968) was an American jazz trombonist.

Early life

Swope was born in Hagerstown, Maryland, on August 4, 1922.^[1] His family was musical: his parents, a sister and two brothers were all musicians.^[1] One of his brothers was Rob Swope.^[1]

Later life and career

When he was 20, Swope played with Sonny Dunham; he was then with Boyd Raeburn (1943–44), Georgie Auld (1945), and Buddy Rich (1945–47).^[1] From 1947 to 1949 he worked with Woody Herman and also recorded in small groups with Stan Getz and Serge Chaloff.^[1] In 1950–51 he was with Elliot Lawrence, then worked freelance in New York and Washington, D.C.^[1] Later in the 1950s he returned to big band work, playing with Jimmy Dorsey (1957) and Louie Bellson (1959).^[1] In the 1960s he played locally in Washington, D.C.; he died there on January 3, 1968.^[1]

Playing style

"He was one of the few trombonists in the 1940s to develop a style that was not influenced by J. J. Johnson; he played in a modern barrelhouse style".^[1]

Discography

With Louie Bellson

• The Brilliant Bellson Sound (Verve, 1959)

With Charlie Byrd

• Bossa Nova Pelos Passaros (Riverside, 1962)

With Dizzy Gillespie

• One Night in Washington (Elektra/Musician, 1955 [1983])

With Lester Young

• Lester Young In Washington, D.C. 1956, Vol. 5 (Pablo, 1999)

References