Ray Wetzel, Trumpet, 1924, Parkersburg, WV
During the mid '40s, Ray, a first trumpeter, performed and recorded with the bands of Woody Herman and Stan Kenton. At that time he alsoworked with musicians such as Vido Musso, Neal Hefti, and The Metronome All stars. He married Bonnie Addelman, an accomplished bass player, in 1949. The husband and wife team worked together in clubs at various times. After touring and recording with Charlie Barnet, Ray moved to Los Angeles where he played with Tommy Dorsey, and in 1950 rejoined Kenton for a short period. Then, for several months he and Bonnie toured and recorded with Dorsey. Ray Wetzel was killed in an auto accident in 1951.
Charles Moffett, Drums, 1929, Fort Worth, IN
Charles played trumpet, not the drums, in Jimmy Witherspoon's group and other rhythm-and-blues ensembles as a teenager. He started to play drums while at college. After his discharge from the army he attended college in the early '50s, gaining a BA in music education. While working as a high school music teacher in Texas, (1953-61) he played with local jazz bands, and especially with the rhythm-and-blues singer Little Richard. In 1961 he joined Ornette Colemn in New York when he toured and recorded with Coleman and David Izenzon, and also worked with Sonny Rollins in 1963. In the late '60s he formed his own band which included Pharoah Sanders, the trumpeter Alan Shorter, and Carla Bley. A few years later Charles moved to Oakland, California, where he was in charge of a music school and directed two bands, one of them featuring his children and the other, The Moffetts, made up of his students. He also performed with Steve Turre and his group. In the late '70s he returned to New York where he again taught and performed. His playing has an individual, swinging style that reflects Coleman's free-jazz ideas.
Marlena Shaw, Singer, 1944, Rochelle, NY
Although Marlena considers herself a jazz artist, she is also very well known in R & B and disco circles. At an early age she caught the jazz bug after being exposed to the records of Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis by one of her uncles. Al Hibbler was the vocalist who most influenced her when she first decided on a career as a singer. She performed at the Apollo Theater in Harlem when she was 10 years old to an enthuiastic crowd. Marlena attended the State Teachers' College in Potsdam, N.Y. but dropped out to pursue her dream career, singing. For a time she worked around New England with a trio led by Howard McGhee, and by the mid '60s she was performing in the Catskill Mountains, the Playboy and other clubs in the New York area. Through her accountant she was brought to the attention of Count Basie where she remained for four years. After leaving Basie in 1972 she signed a contract with Blue Note Records, and toured for a while with Sammy Davis Jr. Shaw recorded five albums for Blue Note and the critics likened her style to Dinah Washington and Sarah Vaughan. In 1977 Marlena switched from Blue Note to Columbia and also began singing in the more profitable pop and R & B arena. Her first offering was "Sweet Beginnings" that became a huge hit followed by "Yu-Ma/Go Away Little Boy" which has since become her trademark song. She also recorded "Pictures and Memories" that was very well received as a club hit. In 1978 Shaw recorded the song from the movie "Looking For Mr. Goodbar", "Acting Up", which also became a big seller. By 1970 Marllena "sold out" by jumping on the disco band wagon. Ironically her recording of "Take A Bite" became the most successful tune she recorded for Columbia. She next produced two more huge hits, "Touch Me In The Morning" and "Love Dancin' ". In the mid '80s Marlena came back to her real love, jazz, and signed with the Verve label. She recorded several good-selling albums for Verve and then in the early '90s moved to the Concord label where she remained for several years, and finally to CBS/Sony. Looking and sounding better than ever, Shaw continues to dazzle audiences with her intoxicating blend of straight ahead jazz, soul, pop, and classic R & B.
