• Alternative Name: David Pell
• Genre: Jazz
• Active: '50s - 2000s
• Instrument: Sax (Tenor)

Biography

Dave Pell started out touring with the Tony Pastor, Bob Astor, and Bobby Sherwood bands as a teenager, before moving to California in the mid-'40s. He found work with Bob Crosby on the latter's Ford radio show in 1946, then played with the Les Brown band from 1947 to 1955. Drawing from the ranks of the Brown band, he began leading his own groups in 1953, usually in an octet format, augmented by guests like Pepper Adams, Benny Carter, Mel Lewis, Red Mitchell, Marty Paich, and Art Pepper. He also played as a sideman on records by Shorty Rogers, Pete Rugolo, Benny Goodman, and Gene Krupa in the 1950s, while recording under his own name for Atlantic, Kapp, Coral, Capitol, and RCA Victor. His primary focus of activity in the 1950s and '60s was in the record business, working as a producer for the budget Tops label in the '50s, and Liberty (where he supervised a few hit pop/rock records for Gary Lewis & the Playboys) and briefly Uni in the '60s. He formed a group in the late '70s called Prez Conference, a variation on the theme of Supersax, as a tribute to Lester Young, recording two albums for GNP/Crescendo. In the '80s and '90s, Pell revived his octet for recordings on the Fresh Sound (1984) and Headfirst (1988) labels, and sporadic live dates in the Los Angeles area, including an appearance at the Jazz West Coast festival in 1994. ~ Richard S. Ginell, All Music Guide

Representative Albums:

I Had the Craziest Dream, Prez Conference, Rodgers & Hart

Similar Artists:

The Lighthouse All-Stars, Jack Sheldon, Shorty Baker, Buddy Tate, Bud Shank, Rob McConnell, Shelly Manne, Woody Herman, Stan Getz, Count Basie

Influences:

Lester Young

Worked With:

Alvin Stoller, Marty Paich, Al Hendrickson, Don Fagerquist, Harry Betts, Milt Bernhart, Frank Beach, Bill Holman, Bob Florence, Bob Cooper, Frank Capp

Cameo Buy this CD	Live in Paradise Buy this CD	Love Story/Piano & Pen Buy this CD	Live at Alfonse's Buy this CD	Prez and Joe Buy this CD
Mah-Na-Mah-Na Buy this CD	I Had the Craziest Dream Buy this CD	Rodgers & Hart Buy this CD	Burke and Van Heusen Buy this CD	The Dave Pell Octet Plays Irving Berlin Buy this CD

• Blog: davenetics.com
• Blog URL: http://www.davenetics.com

Dave Pell is the creator and manager of three weblogs: "Electablog," "Davenetics," and "NextDraft." His first weblog, "Davenetics," was created to keep the technology world up-to-date on the various "dot.coms." With the 2000 election in the U.S., Dave shifted his focus to include politics and general news, creating "Electablog." Next came "NextDraft" and "Popcultablog." His most recent blog is called "the blog blog," and it's about blogs, blogging and bloggers.

Dave is from the San Francisco Bay Area and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley. After teaching high school and at Harvard for a few years, Dave became an investor and advisor for more than thirty high-tech start-ups. He has also worked for a family-owned realty firm.

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