Red Norvo discusses his discovering Charles Mingus.

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Red Norvo discusses arranger Ed Sauter.

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Red Norvo discusses blending musicians of different eras.

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Q: “Really you discovered Mingus, in many senses of the word. You’re the first one to present him to a wide audience…”

A: “Oh, I’m sure of it, yeah. While he worked with us I was on a tour with Billie Holiday. Because for some reason, she would come to the coast only if I’d get her a band. I guess, maybe because I had worked with her so much on 52nd Street. So I got a band with Jimmy Ross and oh a lot of … Barney Kessel and some more and we did a couple of weeks in Los Angeles, San Francisco and then we did a one-nighter tour, so to speak, at 48th or 49th possibly. So we’re in San Francisco and the bass player had to leave. He was getting a divorce and he told me the night before, so I said, "Well, you better go if you're supposed to be in court, you better run for a plane." So a fellow was standing there and he sent in Mingus, so he made the rest of the tour with us. So when I started the trio with Tal, we had Red Kelly. I meant to get Red Mitchell originally for the trio, but it turned out that they both lived together and I got the wrong Red, which is a very funny story, and so Red was really a big band bass player. So we worked with them in Hawaii for three months and we came back and worked on The Hague in Los Angeles and Jimmy Ross came in and he said that, “You’re needing a bass player, I hear.” And I said, “Yeah.” And he said, “What about that fellow that worked with us with Billie Holiday?” I said, "He would be great, but I don’t even remember his name." So he said, “I think I have it.” So I started calling all over San Francisco, He didn’t belong, he didn't live there anymore. I eventually found him carrying mail in Los Angeles and he wasn’t playing. I got him back playing and he was perfect.”