Bass Player: Robert Hurst III

Robert Hurst was born on October 4, 1964. Hurst played guitar early in his career before concentrating on bass. He worked with Out Of The Blue in 1985 and also did work with drummer Tony Williams, pianist Mulgrew Miller and Geri Allen, guitarist Russell Malone, singer Harry Connick Junior and saxophonist Steve Coleman. From 1986 to 1991 Hurst played in Wynton Marsalis’s ensembles, and played with brother Branford Marsalis in the early 1990s. He was also a member of The Tonight Show Band. His debut as a leader, 1993’s Robert Hurst Presents, reached No. 13 on the Billboard Top Jazz albums chart. He currently teaches jazz bass at the University of Michigan.

This is one of the ‘link’ pieces from the 1988 Wynton Marsalis album, ‘Live At Blues Alley’. It is a Bb blues with a tag ending. Some interesting double stops that create an interesting backdrop for the tune but, in the main, it is a quarter note walking bass line.