Jymie Merritt

Jymie Merritt
Merritt in 2008 at the annual Don Redman Heritage Awards, Harper's Ferry, West Virginia
Background information
Born	(1926-05-03)May 3, 1926 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Died	April 10, 2020(2020-04-10) (aged 93) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres	Jazz
Occupation(s)	Instrumentalist, bandleader, composer
Instrument(s)	Double bass, electric bass

Jymie Merritt (May 3, 1926 – April 10, 2020) was an American jazz double-bassist, electric-bass and bass guitar pioneer, band leader and composer. Merritt was a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers group from 1957 until 1962. The same year he left Blakey's band, Merritt formed his own group, The Forerunners, which he led sporadically until his death in 2020. Merritt also worked as a sideman for blues and jazz musicians such as Bull Moose Jackson, B.B. King, Chet Baker, Max Roach, Dizzy Gillespie, and Lee Morgan.