Wellman Braud

One of the top string bassists of the 1920s, Wellman Braud was the first of the great Duke Ellington bass players, a tradition that would later include Jimmy Blanton, Oscar Pettiford, and even Charles Mingus. Braud grew up playing music in New Orleans, occasionally switching to guitar or drums. By the time he moved to Chicago in 1917, Braud was strictly a bassist. He was with Charlie Elgar ...more