Earl Carruthers

Earl " Jock " Malcolm Carruthers ( born May 27, 1910 in West Point, Mississippi, † April 5, 1971 in Kansas City ) was an American jazz baritone saxophonist of the swing. He played in the band of Jimmie Lunceford.

Earl Carruthers studied at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee; but left early from his studies to become a professional musician. He began his career in the bands of the Kansas City jazz, played Bennie Moten's band in 1928, 1929/30, with Dewey Jackson in St. Louis and 1931 with Fate Marable. He became famous for his membership in the orchestra of Jimmie Lunceford, where he served from 1932 until Lunceford 's death in 1947. Outstanding are his solo contributions to recordings such as " Organ Grinder 's Swing " and " Harlem Shout" from 1936 or "Blue Afterglow " of 1940. Finally, he returned to Kansas City, where he still occurred until the late 1960s, at the local level.