Cal Collins Cal Collins (May 5, 1933-August 27, 2001) was an American jazz guitarist born in Medora, Indiana. Collins first played the mandolin professionally as a bluegrass musician in the early 1950s. After doing a stint in the Army, he moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, and while there he switched to jazz guitar. He played into the 1970s for various ensembles, and in 1976 joined up with Benny Goodman. Starting in the 1970s and continuing into the 1990s, Collins recorded copiously for Concord Jazz. In 1993 he toured with Doc Watson, Jerry Douglas, and Cephas & Wiggins on the Masters of the Steel String Guitar tour. He died of liver failure in 2001. Guitar master Cal Collins, one of the best known and most beloved musicians in the Greater Cincinnati jazz scene, died Sunday of liver failure at his home in Dillsboro, Ind. He was 68. “He was such a great joy to everyone who knew him, not only as a musician, but he lifted your spirits just to be near him,” says jazz authority Oscar Treadwell. “There was such love in this mans heart and it came through in his music. As soon as you heard Cal Collins, you knew it was him.” “He was a world-renowned jazz player, he was the best,” says Mary Ellen Tanner, who frequently sang with Mr. Collins over the past 30 years. “But in addition to being a brilliant player, he was a great guy too, and that doesnt always come in the same package.” Mr. Collins began his musical career playing bluegrass mandolin in Medora, Ind. He switched after hearing the recordings of jazz guitar greats Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian. From the 50s through the 70s, he was a fixture in the Tristates thriving jazz scene. In 1976, he began a five-year stint as guitarist with Benny Goodman, one of the most demanding jobs in jazz. Through it all, he never lost his unique fusion of down-home country and sophisticated jazz, a sound that set him apart from the jazz pack. A great picker His sense of adventure earned him fans throughout music. “He was a great picker,” says blues-rock guitar great Lonnie Mack, who occasionally jammed and double-dated with Mr. Collins while growing up in Indiana. He admired the older musicians ability to blend styles. “He really was able to mix it all up.” “Theres a lot of great pickers out there, some unbelievable pickers, but he was just a natural virtuoso. He just played natural stuff, mashed potatoes stuff, but it was virtuoso,” says drummer John Von Ohlen. “There was never a better guitar player than Cal Collins. . . . And Im not saying that just because he was my friend. Sometimes he played so good it was like I didnt know him.” Mr. Collins helped shape a younger generation of players, especially guitarists. He gave a pre-teen Sonny Moorman formal lessons. Greg Schaber remembers a Collins workshop at Morehead State University. Keyboardist Steve Schmidt often played with Mr. Collins at the Blue Wisp in its early years in OBryonville. Forefather of jazz “He was one of the few forefathers of jazz to my generation,” says Mr. Schmidt. “I learned so much from Cal, not even about music so much as just his attitude. ... Cal communicated the real reason you play music, to express joy and to give it to other people. He kept that in him and he made sure you felt it.” He is survived by his wife, Susie Collins; seven children: Debbie Ford, Bruce Collins, Steve Collins, Marshawn McClain, Christine Kramer, Laura Ferguson and Scott Schwan, 18 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Services will be at 7 p.m. today at Ulrich-Filter Funeral Home, 12887 Lenover St., Dillsboro. The family requests donations to the Jazz Studies Program at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
Posted on: Sat, 10 Jan 2015 22:09:22 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015