Vernon Alley (May 26, 1915 – October 3, 2004) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low br ...

Early life

Alley was born in

Winnemucca, Nevada Winnemucca () is the only incorporated city in Humboldt County, Nevada, United States, of which it is also the county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a total population of 8,431, up 14.0 percent from the 2010 ...

, and played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

in high school and college. His brother, Eddie Alley, was a drummer; they played together often.

Career

Vernon played with Wes People in 1937 and with Saunders King until the end of the decade. He briefly led his own band in 1940. Around 1940, while in

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...

's band, Alley switched from

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

electric upright bass The electric upright bass (EUB) is an instrument that can perform the musical function of a double bass. It requires only a minimal or 'skeleton' body to produce sound because it uses a pickup and electronic amplifier and loudspeaker. Therefore, ...

, one of the first musicians to do so. In 1942, he joined

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

's ensemble, where he played only for a few months and appeared in the film ''

Reveille with Beverly ''Reveille with Beverly'' is a 1943 American musical film starring Ann Miller, Franklin Pangborn, and Larry Parks directed by Charles Barton, released by Columbia Pictures, based on the ''Reveille with Beverly'' radio show hosted by Jean Ruth. ...

''. Alley enlisted in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

as a musician in 1942 and after training at

Camp Robert Smalls Camp Robert Smalls was a United States Naval training facility, created pursuant to an order signed April 21, 1942, by Frank Knox, then Secretary of the Navy, for the purpose of training African-American seamen at a time when the USN was still ...

, he was assigned as part of a 45-piece regimental band to the Navy's PreFlight School located at

Saint Mary's College of California Saint Mary's College of California is a Private college, private Catholic college in Moraga, California, United States. Established in 1863, it is administered by the De La Salle Brothers. The college offers undergraduate and graduate programs w ...

. Others who served in this band included Ernie and

Marshal Royal Marshal Walton Royal Jr. (December 5, 1912 – May 8, 1995) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and clarinetist best known for his work with Count Basie, with whose band he played for nearly twenty years. Early life and education Marshal Royal ...

Jackie Kelso John Joseph Kelson Jr. (February 27, 1922 – April 28, 2012), known professionally as Jackie Kelso, was an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, and clarinetist. Biography Born in Los Angeles, California, Kelson was the eldest child of John Jose ...

Wilbert Baranco Wilbert Baranco (15 April 1909 – October 1983) was an American jazz pianist and bandleader. Baranco played with Curtis Mosby in the early 1930s and then put together his own bands in the 1930s and 1940s, including several military bands during ...

, Earl Watkins, and

Buddy Collette William Marcel "Buddy" Collette (August 6, 1921 – September 19, 2010) was an American jazz flutist, saxophonist, and clarinetist. He was a founding member of the Chico Hamilton Quintet. Early life William Marcel Collette was born in ...

. After returning to civilian life, Alley put together an ensemble in San Francisco. He continued to play there and was an active member on local radio and in civic arts into the 1990s.

Death

Alley died in San Francisco 2004. In his obituary, Peter Fimrite of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

'' described Alley as "the most distinguished jazz musician in San Francisco history."

References

External links

* Vernon Alleyat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

1915 births 2004 deaths American jazz double-bassists American male double-bassists American jazz bass guitarists American male bass guitarists Guitarists from Nevada 20th-century American bass guitarists People from Winnemucca, Nevada San Francisco State University alumni 20th-century American double-bassists 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians {{US-jazz-musician-stub