Chicago has played a major role in the history of the bass guitar, producing and attracting some of the most influential bassists in rock, blues, jazz, soul, and funk. One of the city’s best-known bass players is Jerry Scheff, a Chicago native who became famous for performing with Elvis Presley during his legendary Las Vegas years. Scheff also recorded and toured with artists such as The Doors, Bob Dylan, and Roy Orbison, earning a reputation as one of rock’s most respected session bassists.
Peter Cetera, who grew up in Chicago, gained worldwide fame as the original bassist and lead vocalist of the band Chicago. His melodic bass playing and distinctive tenor voice helped define the band’s signature sound throughout the late 1960s and 1970s. Cetera later enjoyed a highly successful solo career with numerous chart-topping hits, making him one of the city’s most recognizable musicians.
Dennis Keith Johnson, better known as D. J. Johnson, was an influential bassist on Chicago’s blues and soul scene, while blues legends such as Willie Dixon transformed the role of the bass in American music. Although Dixon primarily played upright bass, his songwriting, performances, and production work at Chess Records helped shape the sound of Chicago blues and influenced generations of bass players across multiple genres.
Chicago has also been a major center for jazz bassists. Rufus Reid, although born elsewhere, built much of his career in Chicago before becoming an internationally acclaimed educator and performer. Harrison Bankhead has been a cornerstone of Chicago’s avant-garde jazz community for decades, performing with leading artists in the city’s vibrant jazz scene while mentoring younger musicians.
The city’s funk and soul traditions have produced exceptional bass talent as well. Verdine White, a founding member of Earth, Wind & Fire, spent part of his early career in Chicago before the band achieved international success. His energetic fingerstyle technique, powerful stage presence, and memorable bass lines helped redefine funk and R&B bass playing and influenced countless musicians worldwide.
Chicago’s blues clubs, jazz venues, recording studios, and music schools continue to attract outstanding bass players from around the country. From the electric blues of Willie Dixon to the rock success of Peter Cetera, the session work of Jerry Scheff, the funk innovations of Verdine White, and the city’s thriving jazz community, Chicago remains one of America’s most important centers for bass guitar and bass performance
Bass Players Tour Information -> PDF files
Robert J. “Pygmy-head Bob” Anderson
Oliver Bibbs
Sylvester “Piggy Back” Boines
Cornelius “Boysaw-Mule” Boyson
Ernest “Big” Crawford
Israel C. Crosby
Willie Dixon
Robert “Big Mojo” Elem
Sylvia Lee “Queen” Embry
Larry Exum
Malachi Favors
Henry “Joe Harper” Holmes
Willie Kent
Ranson Joseph Knowling
David “Dave” Myers
Jack Howard Myers
Milton Trent Rector
Jimmie Lee “Lonesome” Robinson
Jerome Scott
Sherman Shelby, Jr. “Nick Charles”
Mac Amos Thompson
Hayes Ware
Lawrence “Little Sonny” Wimberly
Joseph “Mighty Joe” Young, Jr.
JAMES A. “JIMMY” BERTRAND (1900-1960)
Holy Sepulchre Catholic Cemetery
6001 W. 111th Street
Alsip, IL 60803
Sec. 9, Blk. 8, Lot 38, Grave 1 (unmarked per cemetery staff)
Jazz & Blues Drummer
Jimmy Bertrand was an influential jazz and blues percussionist whose career was closely tied to the development of the Chicago jazz scene during the 1920s and 1930s. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, he moved to Chicago in 1913, where he studied percussion and began performing in theater orchestras before joining Erskine Tate’s Vendome Orchestra in 1918. Over the following decade, he established himself as one of the city’s leading drummers and washboard players, performing and recording with many of the era’s most important musicians, including Louis Armstrong, Johnny Dodds, Blind Blake, Ma Rainey, Tiny Parham, and Eddie South.
In addition to his work as a sideman, Bertrand led his own ensemble, Jimmy Bertrand’s Washboard Wizards, which featured notable collaborators such as Louis Armstrong and Jimmy Dodds. His recordings showcased not only his drumming but also his skill on the washboard, xylophone, and other percussion instruments, reflecting the versatility that made him a sought-after performer in both jazz and blues sessions.
Bertrand was equally significant as a teacher. He trained several future jazz greats, including Lionel Hampton, Big Sid Catlett, and Wallace Bishop. Hampton later referred to Bertrand as his “original idol,” highlighting the lasting influence Bertrand had on the next generation of percussionists. Although he continued leading bands into the early 1940s, he left professional music around 1944 to work in a Chicago meat-packing plant, making only occasional musical appearances thereafter. While he never achieved the fame of many of his contemporaries, Bertrand’s recordings, performances, and teaching established him as a foundational figure in early Chicago jazz and blues.
