The 3B's (also credited as The Three B's) was a jazz trio comprising pianist

Bross Townsend Bross Elvie Townsend, Jr. (October 18, 1933 – May 12, 2003) was an American jazz and blues pianist. Townsend was born in Princeton, Kentucky. His father was also a pianist, and started his son on the instrument at age seven. Townsend moved to C ...

, bassist Bob Cunningham and drummer

Bernard Purdie Bernard Lee "Pretty" Purdie (born June 11, 1939) is an American drummer, and an influential R&B, soul and funk musician. He is known for his precise musical time keeping and his signature use of triplets against a half-time backbeat: the "Purdie ...

.McDonald, Steven
Review at Allmusic.

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 databas ...

. Retrieved 6 August 2013. They recorded two albums of

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 major ...

and

blues standard Blues standards are blues songs that have attained a high level of recognition due to having been widely performed and recorded. They represent the best known and most interpreted blues songs that are seen as standing the test of time. Blues s ...

s in the mid-1990s, both of which featured, among other sidemen,

Houston Person Houston Person (born November 10, 1934) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and record producer. Although he has performed in the hard bop and swing genres, he is most experienced in and best known for his work in soul jazz. He received the ...

on tenor saxophone and Fred Smith on trumpet. The three B's (Bross, Bob and Bernard) had previously recorded together in 1985 on Bob Cunningham's only album as leader, ''Walking Bass''. Purdie,

Carrie Smith Carrie Louise Smith (August 25, 1925 – May 20, 2012) was an American blues and jazz singer. She was not well known in the United States but had a small following in Europe. Career Smith was born in Fort Gaines, Georgia, United States. Sh ...

, and Bross Townsend had previously performed together at the

Brooklyn Academy of Music The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is a performing arts venue in Brooklyn, New York City, known as a center for progressive and avant-garde performance. It presented its first performance in 1861 and began operations in its present location in ...

's 100 Years of Jazz and Blues festival in 1992. Watrous, Peter (1992
"Pop/Jazz: Jazz Series With Something for Everyone"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. Retrieved 6 August 2013.

Critical reception

reviewer Steven MacDonald gave ''After Hours with The 3B's'' 4 out of 5 stars, saying "It's a delight from start to finish, with all the participants basically out for a good time. As always, it's a delight to hear Purdie play -- and he satisfies drumaholics with plenty of tight, smart solos."

Discography

*1993: ''After Hours with The 3B's'' – additional personnel:

(vocals);

(tenor saxophone); Fred Smith (trumpet). *1994: ''Soothin' n Groovin' with The 3B's'' – additional personnel: Eunice Newkirk (vocals); Donny Albano,

Bucky Pizzarelli John Paul "Bucky" Pizzarelli (January 9, 1926 – April 1, 2020) was an American jazz guitarist. He was the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli and double bassist Martin Pizzarelli. He worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett (1971) ...

(guitar);

Rob Paparozzi Robert Steven "Rob" Paparozzi (born October 14, 1952) is an American Grammy-nominated harmonica player and vocalist from New Jersey. In the early 1970s, Paparozzi fronted the Psychotic Blues Band, a blues rock group which played extensively in t ...

(harmonica); Houston Person (saxophone); Fred Smith (trumpet);

References

American jazz ensembles {{US-jazz-band-stub