Alvin Banks

Canadian jazz bassist. Born : January 15, 1927 in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada. Died : August 07, 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Banks grew up in the United States, and traveled to Europe with the U.S. military in 1948. His first appearance on record was in Vienna with Thurmond Young; this group also played live at the Colored Club. He played in Paris with Gerry Wiggins in 1950, and then with Bill Coleman in Berne, Switzerland, Belgium, and Le Havre, France. After problems with his passport in Switzerland, he left for Paris in 1953, where he recorded often with expatriate American jazz musicians as well as local performers. These include Hazel Scott, Buck Clayton, Lionel Hampton, Mezz Mezzrow, Don Byas, Albert Nicholas, Mary Lou Williams, James Moody, Roy Haynes, Bob Dorough, Jimmy Gourley, Guy Lafitte and André Persiany. He toured with Michel Attenoux and with Sidney Bechet through Western and Central Europe in 1954.