Mundell Lowe, born April 1922, started playing the guitar as a young boy and before he was a teenager he was playing with local hillbilly bands in his native Mississippi. He later settled in New Orleans for a brief period playing with dance bands and small groups before entering the service in 1941. While in the army he met John Hammond who later helped Lowe get a job with the Ray McKinley band in 1945.

Lowe played with McKinley for more than a year and then settled in New York to pursue a very active studio and recording career. He started showing up on recordings of other artists early in 1950's and by 1954 he was leading his own recording sessions.

Mundell Lowe has produced a succession of successful recordings while simultaneously maintaining a busy composing, teaching and performing schedule. He has a long list of film and TV (Wild Wild Wild West) score credits and several studies for multiple guitars. He is an excellent musician who has stayed busy in the studios for most of his career, but he has also developed a distinctive jazz guitar style. His style is defined by clearly articulated melodic lines and subtle chords voicings. Two recordings from 1953 that Lowe made with Georgie Auld already exhibited the unique Mundell Lowe sound that is so recognizable. His single string improvisation technique, heard on Hefti's Lucky Duck (1953), and his introduction and backing of Auld's saxophone on Gershwin's I've Got a Crush On You bear the unique Mundell Lowe sound so familiar today.

In the 1990's, Mundell Lowe continued to record and has a long list of credits with Andre Previn, Tete Montolu, The Great Guitars, and some new duets with Sal Salvador. In 2000 he recorded a tribute to Charlie Byrd with guitarist Lloyd Wells.

©Copyright 2005 Classic Jazz Guitar