Fred Wesley

US trombonist

Fred Wesley was born in 1943, the son of a high school teacher and big band leader. Like Alfred [a49223], his first love was jazz, until he joined the [a=Ike and Tina Turner] Revue in 1962. A brief period with [a=Hank Ballard and the Midnighters] and Army service preceded his first term with [a=James Brown] and his original band (1968-70); a brief Los Angeles period led to a second stint (1971-75) with the Godfather of Soul eventually leading [a=The J.B.'s], after its original line-up including [a=Bootsy Collins] left in 1971; the versatile trombonist then went on to featured roles with [a=George Clinton] as both a member of [a=Funkadelic] and leader of [a=Horny Horns]); he joined the [a=Count Basie Orchestra] as [a=Al Grey]'s replacement in the late 1980s.