Ron Carter

Ron Carter has retained his versatility and imprimatur as a bassist over the course of one of the longest and most distinguished careers in jazz history. Born in 1937 in Ferndale, Michigan, Carter began his bass studies in school in Detroit, going on to attend Eastman and the Manhattan School of Music. He came to prominence in the New York City progressive jazz scene through work with Eric Dolphy, Jaki Byard, Thelonious Monk and others before joining Miles Davis’ legendary Second Great Quintet—the group that would cement the bassist’s legacy—in 1963. In that decade, Carter also appeared on historic Blue Note Records releases by his Davis bandmates (Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, Wayne Shorter) as well as other vanguard post-bop players. Carter recorded even more prolifically in the ’70s and ’80s, most notably on the smooth-jazz-oriented CTI Records and Milestone Records; on the latter he released the 1977 LP Piccolo, highlighting the compact and higher-tuned “piccolo bass” instrument he championed. In the next three decades, Carter appeared on countless jazz and pop albums, took on soundtrack work and had a rich career as an educator at Juilliard and a collection of other distinguished American music schools. In 2016, he was awarded the distinction of the most recorded jazz bassist in history by Guinness World Records, having played on over 2,200 albums.