BIRTHDAY: Jazz Musician of the Day: Wilbur Ware

All About Jazz is celebrating Wilbur Ware’s birthday today! One of bop’s most advanced and influential bassists, Wilbur Ware was a superb rhythmic anchor with an unerring sense of swing. Where many post- Jimmy Blanton bassists concentrated on legato melodic phrasing, Ware wasn’t afraid to shift the rhythmic emphasis by varying his note lengths and leaving empty space between his phrases; he also stuck mostly to the lowest register …