Sid Weiss

Weiss played bass for most of the very best white jazz music artists from the ’30s and ’40s, including trumpeters Louis Prima, Bunny Berigan, and Wingy Manone; clarinetist Artie Shaw; trombonist Tommy Dorsey; saxophonist Charlie Barnet; and — maybe especially — Benny Goodman. In his youngsters, Weiss performed violin, clarinet, and tuba; he produced the modification to bass as an adolescent. He started playing in NY around 1931, and on the following decade caused the aforementioned music artists, in addition to bass saxophonist Adrian Rollini, amongst others. He performed and recorded frequently with Goodman from 1941-1945; from 1945, he worked well freelance with such music artists as trumpeter Muggsy Spanier, clarinetist Pee Wee Russell, drummer Cozy Cole, and saxophonist Bud Freeman; in addition to Duke Ellington and Eddie Condon. Weiss ended executing full-time around 1954.