Gene Ramey
Gene Ramey (April 4, 1913 – December 8, 1984) was an American jazz double bassist. Ramey was born in Austin, Texas, United States, and played trumpet in college, but switched to contrabass when playing with George Corley's Royal Aces, The Moonlight Serenaders, and Terrence Holder. In 1932, he moved to Kansas City, Missouri and took up the bass, studying with Walter Page. He became a fixture on the Kansas City swing jazz scene in the 1930s, and played with Jay McShann's orchestra from 1938 to 1943. In 1944, he moved to New York City, where he played with Lester Young, Count Basie, Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, Hot Lips Page, Horace Silver, Thelonious Monk (as a member of Monk’s first trio in 1947, together with drummer Art Blakey), and Miles Davis. He transitioned into the bebop style ably, but also continued to play in more swing-oriented outfits. Later in his life he toured Europe with Buck Clayton, and played with Muggsy Spanier, Teddy Wilson, Dick Wellstood, Jimmy Rushing, and Eddie Vinson, in addition to doing several reunion gigs with McShann. In 1976, he moved back to Texas, playing occasionally up until his death from a heart attack in 1984. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Austin (seat of Travis County, and capital of the State of Texas), Died December 8, 1984 (Austin (seat of Travis County, and capital of the State of Texas) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1941 - 1960
Roles Represented in DAHR: string bass
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 1-25 of 47 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia | CO65017 | 10-in. | 7/7/1960 | Shipwrecked blues | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65018 | 10-in. | 7/7/1960 | Muddy water | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65019 | 10-in. | 7/7/1960 | Gulf Coast blues | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65020 | 10-in. | 7/7/1960 | Everybody loves my baby | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65021 | 10-in. | 7/7/1960 | Trouble in mind | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65059 | 10-in. | 7/13/1960 | Down hearted blues | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65060 | 10-in. | 7/13/1960 | Squeeze me | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65061 | 10-in. | 7/13/1960 | How come you do me like you do? | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65062 | 10-in. | 7/13/1960 | Crazy blues | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Columbia | CO65214 | 10-in. | 7/13/1960 | Arkansas blues | Jimmy Rushing | Male vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | instrumentalist, string bass | |
| Atlantic | 189 | 10-in. | 2/14/1949 | Drinkin' wine, spo-dee-o-dee | Granville "Sticks" McGhee | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Atlantic | 191 | 10-in. | 2/14/1949 | Lonesome road blues | Spo-Dee-O-Dee Buddies (Sticks McGhee's) | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Atlantic | 192 | 10-in. | 2/14/1949 | Blues mixture (I'd rather drink muddy water) | Wilbert "Big Chief" Ellis ; Brownie McGhee ; Granville "Sticks" McGhee ; Gene Ramey | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Atlantic | 193 | 10-in. | 2/14/1949 | I'll always remember | Gene Ramey ; Spo-Dee-O-Dee Buddies (Sticks McGhee's) | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 70993 | 10-in. | 7/2/1942 | Lonely boy blues | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 70994 | 10-in. | 7/2/1942 | Get me on your mind | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 70995 | 10-in. | 7/2/1942 | The jumpin' blues | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 70996 | 10-in. | 7/2/1942 | Sepian bounce-1 | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 71527 | 12/1/1943 | Say forward I'll march | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | |||
| Decca | 71528 | 10-in. | 12/1/1943 | Wrong neighborhood | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 71529 | 10-in. | 12/1/1943 | Hometown blues | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 71530 | 10-in. | 11/1/1943 | Save me some | Jay McShann Orchestra | instrumentalist, string bass | ||
| Decca | 81739 | 10/20/1951 | Buttermilk and beans | Hal Singer Orchestra ; The X-Rays | instrumentalist, string bass | |||
| Decca | 81740 | 10/20/1951 | Charmaine | Hal Singer Orchestra ; The X-Rays | instrumentalist, string bass | |||
| Decca | 81741 | 10/20/1951 | I've got a pocketful of dreams | Hal Singer Orchestra ; The X-Rays | instrumentalist, string bass |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Ramey, Gene," accessed December 24, 2025, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/339074.
Ramey, Gene. (2025). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 24, 2025, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/339074.
"Ramey, Gene." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2025. Web. 24 December 2025.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Ramey, Gene - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n91051127
Wikidata: Gene Ramey - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q727217
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/64192910
MusicBrainz: Gene Ramey - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/12df7365-2eef-41b6-a6ec-483de949bc5a
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1499865 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1499865
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