Israel Crosby

Israel Crosby (January 19, 1919 – August 11, 1962) was a jazz double-bassist born in Chicago, Illinois. One of the finest to emerge during the 1930s, he is best known as a member of the Ahmad Jamal trio from 1957 to 1962. A close contemporary of fellow bassist Jimmy Blanton, Crosby is less considered as a pioneer, but his interactive playing in Jamal's trio and that of George Shearing shows how easily and fluently he displayed a modern approach to jazz double bass. He is credited with taking the first recorded bass solo on his 1935 recording of "Blues of Israel" with drummer Gene Krupa (Prestige PR 7644) when he was only 16. One of Teddy Wilson's most celebrated instrumentals, "Blues In C Sharp Minor" from May 14, 1936 featured Crosby's prominent slap bass. Crosby died of a heart attack at age forty-three, two months after joining the Shearing Quintet.