A very valuable bassist who on the West Coast was part of a countless number of recordings sessions, Monty Budwig could always be relied upon to swing a band, take melodic solos and play the perfect note for the right situation while being content to remain in the background. Budwig played bass while in high school, gigged with Vido Musso in 1951 and then spent three years in the Air Force during which he had the opportunity to play in a military band. In 1954 he moved to Los Angeles where he eventually became a fixture in the studios and was greatly in demand for West Coast-style jazz groups. Among Budwig’s many musical experiences were playing with Barney Kessel, the Red Norvo Trio (1954-55), Zoot Sims, Woody Herman’s Orchestra (1955-56), Shelly Manne, Shorty Rogers, Terry Gibbs, Benny Goodman, Carmen McRae, Bud Shank, Bob Cooper, the Lighthouse All Stars in the 1980’s and Ellyn Rucker. Although he appeared on many records (including a few dozen for the Concord label in the 1970’s and 80’s), Monty Budwig only led one record date of his own, 1978’s Dig (for Concord) which included his wife Arlette McCoy on electric piano. ~ Scott Yanow