If you were to add up the number of recognizable bass saxophone players from the 20th century, you likely wouldn’t need more than the fingers on your two hands to count them all. While Adrian Rollini would top most people’s lists, right up there with him is Joe Rushton (April 19, 1907 – March 2, 1964).
Rushton started playing bass saxophone in the later half of the 1920s. Unlike Rollini though, who was not a sax player before picking up the bass, Rushton played all the standard (SATB) voices of saxophone—as well as clarinet and drums—before picking up the behemoth. Once he picked up bass, it seemed he was destined to not put it down.
Adrian Rollini & Joe Rushton: they were quite different
One of the major differences between Adrian Rollini and Joe Rushton was that while Rollini often fronted his own groups, Rushton rarely did. He really was more of a sideman, and as a leader recorded only six sides for Jump Records between 1945-47.
As a sideman, Rushton did play and record with a great many musicians and groups, including: the California Ramblers (occasionally), Ted Weems, Jimmy McPartland, Bud Freeman, Benny Goodman, Horace Heidt, Floyd O’Brien, the Rampart Street Paraders, and Red Nichols’ Five Pennies. This last job with Red Nichols began in 1947, and went until spring of 1963.
In the following video, the Red Nichols and his Five Pennies band were guests on the Lawrence Welk Show. The Year: it was 1956. Specifically, it was Welk’s New Year’s Eve Show on December 29, 1956 (presumably the taping date). Besides Joe Rushton, the other members of the Five Pennies band were: Al Stevenson (piano), Bill Wood (clarinet), Rollie Culver (drums), King Jackson (trombone), and Red Nichols (coronet). (The bass sax solo starts at 1:30.)
Keeping Joe Rushton’s memory alive
Apparently Rushton filmed home movies—featuring the musicians he worked with—using the day’s portable film camera technology. Over the years Josh Rushton, Joe’s son, has been carefully archiving Joe’s films, as well as the many photographs that were taken of Joe over his career.
Josh Rushton has uploaded some of his father’s home movies to his YouTube channel. Included as well are lots of other things like clips from shows he appeared in (such as the Lawrence Welk show above). To me this seems an interesting and fitting tribute to a bass saxophone player who played a key role in keeping the bass saxophone in the public’s consciousness up to until the mid-century.
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Sources used in the writing of this article:
Joe Rushton page on basssax.com
Joe Rushton biography by Scott Yanow, on allmusic.com
Joe Rushton page on wikipedia.org
I have what I believe to be photos from 1930s of Joe Rushton and my father, Eddie Benjamin, who is from Chicago and played trumpet professionally from age 18 (born 1910). He played for a long time with Barney Richards. Scanned and available if this site is still active.
🙂 Yes, this site is very active the last article I wrote was just 2 days ago.
If you would like to send me the photo, you can do so at: bassic.sax.info@gmail.com
I will handle the uploading…. helen
Thanks for my father’s mentions. As for the home movies, yes, he did carry his trusty 16mm camera around just about everywhere, but unfortunately, not one actual shot of a gig in progress or rehearsal, sadly. Dad might have been a good bass sax player, but there’s no way he could’ve played and shot film at the same time. Darn! But there were a few parties and sight seeings with fellow band members while on the road though. One exception was Peggy Lee’s wedding to Dave Barbour, her first husband. He got their quickie courthouse nuptials on film. But to see that, we’ll have to wait for the Reese Witherspoon biopic now, since they own it. Anyway, it’s all about the bass! Keep up the good work.
Hello Josh. Welcome to my site.
Thank you so much for stopping by and uploading the historical photo from Rollini to your dad. It puts your father’s contributions in even a better context.
As modern bass saxophone players, we owe your father a debt of gratitude. The original pioneers of the instrument like Rollini, your dad, Bill Page, Spencer Clark, et al, all have given us something to strive towards when it comes to what a bass saxophone is capable of.
As a player who specializes in playing vintage instruments, I’m often asked if I wouldn’t prefer to play modern ones. To that I reply: Why? I simply prefer the complex and individual tones that the vintage horns offer. And when it comes to ergonomics, the players of the day had no problems working with the (sometimes) awkward key layouts, and less than 100% perfect intonation.
Thanks again for the visit Josh.
Warm regards,
Helen
Worth noting… there is a second bass saxophone from the Welk sax section visible for a bit starting at 3:13.
You are very observant Tristan.
The other bass sax belonged to the Lawrence Welk Orchestra’s own Bill Page. I wrote an article about him back in Feb. 2010, that features him playing his bass saxophone. I also have a copy of a 1956 Conn ad, that features Page and some of his horns. He played basically every woodwind going.
Why Rushton is so important:
Adrian Rollini amazed many musicians but inspired few. This is because what he did was, in the context of the 1920s, magic. For most trained musicians, and almost all saxophonists, there was no way to get there. The bass saxophone had a very limited role. What Rollini did stood so far outside of that role that it was hard to comprehend.
A few tried, and were not inspired to try harder, but humbled for trying at all. Coleman Hawkins came close, but he was not content to be anything but number one on any instrument, and knew he could not be on the bass sax.
It took mavericks – as Rollini had been – and time. Joe Rushton managed it better than anybody. It may have helped that he did not even try until Adrian had given up the horn – his example no longer had to be overcome, instead, his shoes needed to be filled. Joe did that. No one else came so close, in some ways, even surpassing the original.
Thank you Paul, for explaining the importance of Rushton’s contribution to the bass saxophone. It sheds an interesting light onto how and why the work that these 2 men did, so strongly influenced the way our instrument is perceived.