Shorty Rogers


Milton "Shorty" Rogers was one of the principal creators of West Coast jazz. He played trumpet and flugelhorn and was in demand for his skills as an arranger.

Biography

Rogers worked first as a professional musician with Will Bradley and Red Norvo. From 1947 to 1949, he worked extensively with Woody Herman and in 1950 and 1951 he played with Stan Kenton.
Rogers had with his Orchestra including Johnny "Guitar" Watson, perform for the famed ninth Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles which was produced by Leon Hefflin, Sr. on June 7, 1953. Also featured that day were Roy Brown and his Orchestra, Don Tosti and His Mexican Jazzmen, Earl Bostic, Nat "King" Cole, and Louis Armstrong and his All Stars with Velma Middleton.
From 1953 through 1962, Rogers recorded a series of albums for RCA Victor, as well as a series of albums for Atlantic Records with his own group, Shorty Rogers and His Giants, including Shorty Courts the Count, The Swinging Mr. Rogers, and Martians Come Back, the album title alluding to the tune "Martians Go Home" which Rogers had composed and performed on The Swinging Mr. Rogers earlier the same year. These albums incorporated some of his more avant-garde music. To some extent they could be classified as "cool" jazz; but they also looked back to the "hot" style of Count Basie, whom Rogers always credited as a major inspiration.
Rogers died of melanoma in Van Nuys, California, at the age of 70.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

With Elmer Bernstein
With Teddy Charles
With Jimmy Giuffre
With Stan Kenton
With Perez Prado
With Pete Rugolo
With Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass
With Ernie Andrews
With Chet Baker
With Elmer Bernstein
With Peter Brady
With Les Brown and His Band of Renown
With Bobby Bryant
With Dennis Budimir
With Bobby Darin
With Frances Faye
With Bobbie Gentry and side to side with producer Kelly Gordon
With Terry Gibbs
with Jerry Goldsmith
With Lena Horne
With Helen Humes
With Dean Jones
with Frankie Laine
With Peggy Lee
With Harvey Mandel
With Shelly Manne
With Carmen McRae
With The Monkees
With Michael Nesmith
With Jack Nitzsche
With Buddy Rich
With Bud Shank
With Mel Tormé