Bob Cooper (musician)

Bob Cooper (musician)
Bob Cooper (December 6, 1925 – August 5, 1993) was a West Coast jazz musician known primarily for playing tenor saxophone, but also for being one of the first to play jazz solos on oboe.
Career
Cooper worked in Stan Kenton's band starting in 1945 and married the band's singer, June Christy, two years later. The union produced a daughter, Shay Christy Cooper (September 1, 1954 – February 21, 2014), with the marriage lasting 44 years, until Christy's death in 1990. His last studio recording was on Karrin Allyson's album Sweet Home Cookin' (1994) on which he played tenor saxophone.
Cooper died of a heart attack in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 67. He was found in his car, which had pulled over to the side of the road.
Selected discography
As leader
The Bob Cooper Sextet (Capitol, 1954)
Shifting Winds (Capitol, 1955)
Flute 'n Oboe (Pacific Jazz, 1957) with Bud Shank
Milano Blues (Music, 1957)
Coop! The Music of Bob Cooper (Contemporary, 1958)
The Swing's to TV (World Pacific, 1958) with Bud Shank
Blowin' Country (World Pacific, 1959) with Bud Shank
Tenor Sax Jazz Impressions (Trend, 1979)
The Music of Michel Legrand (Discovery, 1980)
In a Mellotone (Contemporary, 1985) with the Snooky Young Sextet featuring Ernie Andrews
At The Royal Palms Inn (Woofy Productions, 1993) with Carl Fontana
As sideman
With Chet Baker
Witch Doctor (Contemporary, 1953 [1985])
With Elmer Bernstein
The Man with the Golden Arm (Decca, 1956)
With Buddy Bregman
Swinging Kicks (Verve, 1957)
With June Christy
Do-Re-Mi (Capitol, 1961)
With Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson's Hollywood Party (EmArcy, 1954)
Jam Session featuring Maynard Ferguson (EmArcy, 1954)
Dimensions (EmArcy, 1955)
With Jimmy Giuffre
The Jimmy Giuffre Clarinet (Atlantic, 1956)
With Stan Kenton
Stan Kenton's Milestones (Capitol, 1943-47 [1950])
Stan Kenton Classics (Capitol, 1944-47 [1952])
Artistry in Rhythm (Capitol, 1946)
Encores (Capitol, 1947)
A Presentation of Progressive Jazz (Capitol, 1947)
Innovations in Modern Music (Capitol, 1950)
Stan Kenton Presents (Capitol, 1950)
City of Glass (Capitol, 1951)
Popular Favorites by Stan Kenton (Capitol, 1953)
This Modern World (Capitol, 1953)
The Kenton Era (Capitol, 1940–54, [1955])
The Innovations Orchestra (Capitol, 1950-51 [1997])
Stan Kenton Conducts the Los Angeles Neophonic Orchestra (Capitol, 1965)
Hair (Capitol, 1969)
With Barney Kessel
Kessel Plays Standards (Contemporary, 1954–55)
With Shelly Manne
The West Coast Sound (Contemporary, 1955)
With Jack Nitzsche
Heart Beat (Soundtrack) (Capitol, 1980)
With Art Pepper
Showcase for Modern Jazz (Brunswick, 1958)
With Shorty Rogers
Cool and Crazy (RCA Victor, 1953)
Shorty Rogers Courts the Count (RCA Victor, 1954)
Collaboration (RCA Victor, 1954) with André Previn
Afro-Cuban Influence (RCA Victor, 1958)
Shorty Rogers Meets Tarzan (MGM, 1960)
With Pete Rugolo
Introducing Pete Rugolo (Columbia, 1954)
Adventures in Rhythm (Columbia, 1954)
Rugolomania (Columbia, 1955)
New Sounds by Pete Rugolo (Harmony, 1954–55, [1957])
Out on a Limb (EmArcy, 1956)
An Adventure in Sound: Reeds in Hi-Fi (Mercury, 1956 [1958])
Rugolo Plays Kenton (EmArcy, 1958)
The Music from Richard Diamond (EmArcy, 1959)
The Original Music of Thriller (Time, 1961)
10 Saxophones and 2 Basses (Mercury, 1961)
With Bud Shank
Jazz at Cal-Tech (Pacific Jazz, 1956)
Barefoot Adventure (Pacific Jazz, 1961)
Bud Shank & the Sax Section (Pacific Jazz, 1966)
References
External links
American jazz oboists
American male jazz musicians
Male oboists
American jazz tenor saxophonists
American male saxophonists
Cool jazz oboists
Cool jazz saxophonists
Hard bop oboists
Hard bop saxophonists
West Coast jazz oboists
West Coast jazz saxophonists
Jazz musicians from California
Jazz musicians from Pittsburgh
1925 births
1993 deaths
20th-century American saxophonists
American music arrangers
20th-century American male musicians
The Capp-Pierce Juggernaut members