Johnny Pate

John William Pate (born December 5, 1923) is an American former musician, a jazz bassist who became a producer, arranger, and leading figure in Chicago soul, pop, funk and rhythm and blues. He learned piano and tuba as a child and later picked up the bass guitar. He learned arranging while serving in the United States Army.

Career

The jazz era: Early works Pate served stints with Coleridge Davis and Stuff Smith in the 1940s, before recording on Chess Records in 1951 with Eddie South and his Orchestra, credited on bass and arrangements. This was also the first of a series of Chess recordings on which Pate collaborated with saxophonist Eddie Johnson. In the 1950s, he was also a resident arranger for Red Saunders' house band at the Club DeLisa. Pate`s arranging skills were greatly influenced by Quincy Jones, whom he was an "avowed disciple" of.

Recording Johnny Pate's trio recorded for a number of Chicago labels, including Gig and Talisman. For the Cincinnati-based Federal Records, the Johnny Pate Quintet had a hit with "Swinging Shepherd Blues", which reached No. 17 on the Billboard R&B chart in spring 1958. One of the last albums on which Pate played bass was James...