Chris Woods (December 25, 1925,

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

– July 4, 1985,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

) 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, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

alto saxophonist. Woods played locally in Memphis early in his career before moving to

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

to play with the

Jeter-Pillars Orchestra Jeter-Pillars Orchestra was an American jazz troupe, led by altoist James Jeter and tenor-saxophonist Hayes Pillars. Career Jeter and Pillars were previously members of Alphonso Trent's big band. After that outfit split in 1933 they formed the g ...

and trumpeter

George Hudson George Hudson (probably 10 March 1800 – 14 December 1871) was an English railway financier and politician who, because he controlled a significant part of the railway network in the 1840s, became known as "The Railway King"—a title conferr ...

. He then joined Tommy Dean's combo, recording with them for Town and Country,

Miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

, and States. Striking out on his own, he first recorded as a leader in 1953 for

United Records United Records was a record company and label founded in Chicago by Leonard Allen and Lew Simpkins in 1951. United issued records by such artists as Tab Smith, Jimmy Forrest, Gene Ammons, Memphis Slim, Roosevelt Sykes, the Four Blazes, the ...

. In 1962 he moved to New York, where he played with Dizzy Gillespie, Clark Terry,

Sy Oliver Melvin James "Sy" Oliver (December 17, 1910 – May 28, 1988) was an American jazz arranger, trumpeter, composer, singer and bandleader. Life Sy Oliver was born in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. His mother was a piano teacher, and his ...

, and

Ted Curson Theodore Curson (June 3, 1935 – November 4, 2012) was an American jazz trumpeter. Life and career Curson was born in Philadelphia. He became interested in playing trumpet after watching a newspaper salesman play a silver trumpet. Curson's fath ...

. He continued working with Terry into the 1970s, playing flute at times in his Big Bad Band.

Jim McNeely Jim McNeely (born May 18, 1949) is a jazz pianist, composer, arranger and faculty. Biography Jim McNeely was born in Chicago, Illinois. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Illinois, and moved to New York City in 1975. ...

played as a sideman on his 1978 release for

Delmark Records Delmark Records is an American jazz and blues independent record label. It was founded in 1958 and is based in Chicago, Illinois. The label originated in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1953 when then owner, and founder, Bob Koester released a record ...

. In 1983 he began playing in the

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 ...

Orchestra, where he worked until his death in 1985.

Discography

* ''Somebody Done Stole My Blues'' ( Delmark, 1976) * ''Modus Operandi'' (Delmark, 1978)

As sideman

With

* '' Me and You'' (Pablo, 1983) * ''

88 Basie Street ''88 Basie Street'' is a 1983 studio album by Count Basie. At the 27th Grammy Awards, Count Basie won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band for ''88 Basie Street''. Track listing Personnel * Count Basie – piano ...

'' (Pablo, 1984) * '' Fancy Pants'' (Pablo, 1986) With

Ernie Wilkins Ernest Brooks Wilkins Jr. (July 20, 1922 – June 5, 1999) was an American jazz saxophonist, conductor and arranger who spent several years with Count Basie. He also wrote for Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, and Dizzy Gillespie. He was musical direc ...

* ''Blood, Sweat & Brass'' (Mainstream, 1970) * ''Hard Mother Blues'' (Mainstream, 1970) * ''Screaming Mothers'' (Mainstream, 1974) With others * Carla Bley, '' Escalator over the Hill'' (JCOA, 1971) *

, '' Cattin' Curson'' (Marge, 1975) * Ted Curson, ''

Jubilant Power ''Jubilant Power'' is an album by American trumpeter Ted Curson which has one side recorded live in Philadelphia and the other recorded in a New York studio the following day which was first released on the Inner City label in 1976.Les DeMerle Lester William DeMerle (born November 4, 1946, Brooklyn) is an American jazz drummer, vocalist, and bandleader. Career DeMerle first picked up drums at age ten. He studied drums and percussion with Bob Livingstone in New York from 1960 to 1965, j ...

, ''Spectrum'' (United Artists, 1969) * Dizzy Gillespie, '' The Dizzy Gillespie Reunion Big Band'' (MPS, 1969) *

George Masso George Masso (November 17, 1926 – October 22, 2019) was an American jazz trombonist, bandleader, vibraphonist, and composer specializing in swing and Dixieland. Masso is notable for his work from 1948–1950 as a member of the Jimmy Dorsey band ...

, ''No Frills Just Music'' (Famous Door, 1984) * Charles McPherson, '' Today's Man'' (Mainstream, 1973) * Butch Miles, ''Butch Miles Swings Some Standards'' (Famous Door, 1981) *

Blue Mitchell Richard Allen "Blue" Mitchell (March 13, 1930 – May 21, 1979) was an American trumpeter and composer who worked in jazz, rhythm and blues, soul, rock and funk. He recorded albums as leader and sideman for Riverside, Mainstream Records, and ...

, ''Booty'' (Mainstream, 1974) *

, ''Yes Indeed'' (Black and Blue, 1973) * Clark Terry, ''Live! at Buddy's Place'' (Vanguard, 1976) * Clark Terry, '' Ain't Misbehavin''' (Pablo, 1979) * Charles Williams, ''

Stickball Stickball is a street game similar to baseball, usually formed as a pick-up game played in large cities in the Northeastern United States, especially New York City and Philadelphia. The equipment consists of a broom handle and a rubber ball, ...

'' (Mainstream, 1972)

References

*Chris Kelsey,

Chris Woods Christopher Charles Eric Woods (born 14 November 1959) is an English football coach and former professional footballer, who is goalkeeping coach for the Scotland national team. As a player, he was a goalkeeper who played in the Football Leag ...

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woods, Chris 1925 births 1985 deaths Jazz musicians from Tennessee 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American saxophonists American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists Jeter-Pillars Orchestra members American male jazz musicians Delmark Records artists United Records artists