Doug Watkins


Douglas Watkins was an American jazz double bassist. He was best known for being an accompanist to various hard bop artists in the Detroit area, including Donald Byrd and Jackie McLean.

Biography

Watkins was born in Detroit, Michigan, United States. An original member of the Jazz Messengers, he later played in Horace Silver's quintet and freelanced with Gene Ammons, Kenny Burrell, Donald Byrd, Art Farmer, Jackie McLean, Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan, Sonny Rollins, and Phil Woods among others.
Some of Watkins' best-known work can be heard, when as a 22-year-old, he appeared on the 1956 album Saxophone Colossus by tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins, with Max Roach and Tommy Flanagan.
According to Horace Silver's autobiography, Let's Get to the Nitty Gritty, Watkins, along with Silver, later left Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers because the other members of the band at the time had serious drug problems, whereas Watkins and Silver were tired of being harassed and searched by the police every time they went to a gig in a new city and club.
When Charles Mingus briefly ventured over to the piano stool in 1961, he hired Watkins to take over the bass part; Oh Yeah and Tonight at Noon were the results.
Watkins recorded only two albums as leader: Watkins at Large for Transition; and Soulnik for New Jazz. The latter, recorded in 1960, with Yusef Lateef, features Watkins on cello with Herman Wright backing him on bass. The cello was an instrument he had started to play only a few days before the recording session.
Watkins died in an automobile accident near Holbrook, Arizona, on February 5, 1962, while traveling from Arizona to San Francisco to meet drummer Philly Joe Jones for a gig.

Discography

As leader

  • 1956: Watkins at Large
  • 1960: ''Soulnik''

As sideman

With Pepper Adams
With Gene Ammons
With Art Blakey
With Tina Brooks
With Kenny Burrell
With Donald Byrd
With John Coltrane
With Tommy Flanagan
With Curtis Fuller
With Red Garland
With Benny Golson
With Bill Hardman
With Wilbur Harden
With Thad Jones
With Yusef Lateef
With Jackie McLean
With Charles Mingus
With Hank Mobley
With Lee Morgan
With The Prestige All Stars
With Paul Quinichette
With Dizzy Reece
With Rita Reys
With Sonny Rollins
With Horace Silver
With Louis Smith
With Idrees Sulieman
With Billy Taylor
With Phil Woods