Ugonna Okegwo – Bass

Born in London, Okegwo is the son of Christel Katharina Lulf and Madueke Benedict Okegwo. In 1963 the family moved to Munster, Germany, where Okegwo grew up. As a youngster he enjoyed working with his hands and played the electric bass. At age 21, he took a class in violin-making and started playing the double bass.

In 1986 Okegwo moved to Berlin and studied with bassist Jay Oliver and pianist Walter Norris. He then joined trombonist Lou Blackburn’s group for a tour in Europe and played with Joe Newman, Oliver Jackson and Major Holley.

In 1989 Okegwo moved to New York City and worked with saxophonists Bick Nick Nicholas, Junior Cook and James Spaulding. He worked with vocalist Jon Hendricks on a regular basis. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Long Island University, graduating summa cum laude in 1994. In the early 1990s Okegwo formed a trio with pianist Jacky Terrasson and drummer Leon parker. In 1997 he started to perform regularly in Tom Harrell ensembles. He is a member of the Tom Harrell Quintet and the Mingus Big Band, and he is an associate instructor of music at Columbia University.

In 2002, Okegwo released his first album as a leader titled Uoniverse. About creating music Okegwo said, producing a note is human and personal and “in a rhythm section, the bass is the center, creating something constantly.”

Okegwo has worked with a wide range of artists, including Kenny Barron, Michael Breacker, Benny Careter, Johnny Griffin, Wynton Marsalis, James Moody, Clark Terry, Pharoah Sanders, Steve Wilson, Michael Wolff, Bruce Barth, Steve Davis, Dario Chiazzolino, Lionel Hampton, Sam Newsome, Kurt Rosenwinkel and others.

This transcription doe snot evidence Okegwo’s playing but is rather a minimalistic arrangement of the Jazz standard, ‘You Don’t Know What Love Is’ from the 1994 Leon Parker album, ‘Above And Below’. It is essentially once through the head and a tag ending. The bass part is almost the same rhythm for every bar so the whole thing, chart-wise, ends up as a note recognition exercise for new readers.