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George "Buster" Cooper (April 4, 1929 – May 13, 2016)[1][2] was an American jazz trombonist.
A native of St. Petersburg, Florida, United States,[3] Cooper played in a territory band with Nat Towles in Texas in the late 1940s and with Lionel Hampton in 1953.[3] He played in the house band at the Apollo Theater in New York City in the mid-1950s, and following this he was in Benny Goodman's band.[3] Late in the 1950s he and his brother Steve formed the Cooper Brothers Band.[3] From 1962 to 1969, he was a trombonist in Duke Ellington's Orchestra.[3] In 1973, he moved to Los Angeles, and played in jazz orchestras over the next several decades, including Bill Berry's band and The Capp-Pierce Juggernaut.[3] He led a trio at a restaurant in St. Petersburg, Florida.
In 1993, Cooper appeared as a jazz trombonist in the film Murder Between Friends, set in New Orleans.[4]
George "Buster" Cooper died on May 13, 2016, of prostate cancer in St. Petersburg, Florida, at the age of 87.[1][2]
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As leader
- E-Bone-Ix with Thurman Green (Blue Lady, 1998)
As sideman
With The Capp-Pierce Juggernaut
- Juggernaut (Concord Jazz, 1977)
- Live at the Century Plaza (Concord Jazz, 1978)
- Juggernaut Strikes Again! (Concord Jazz, 1982)
- Live at the Alley Cat (Concord Jazz, 1987)
With Duke Ellington
- The Symphonic Ellington (Reprise, 1963)
- Afro-Bossa (Reprise, 1963)
- Ellington '65 (Reprise, 1964)
- Plays with the Original Motion Picture Score Mary Poppins (Reprise, 1964)
- Harlem 1964 (Pablo, 1985)
- Duke Ellington's Concert of Sacred Music (RCA Victor, 1966)
- The Popular Duke Ellington (RCA Victor, 1966)
- Antibes Concert (Verve, 1967)
- The Far East Suite (RCA Victor, 1967)
- Liederhalle Stuttgart 1967 (SWR, Jazzhaus, 2020)
- And His Mother Called Him Bill (RCA, 1968)
- Second Sacred Concert (Fantasy, 1968)
- Yale Concert (Fantasy, 1973)
- The Great Paris Concert (Atlantic, 1973)
- Duke Ellington's Jazz Violin Session (Atlantic, 1976)
- Up in Duke's Workshop (Pablo, 1979)
- Concert in the Virgin Islands (Discovery, 1981)
- Serenade to Sweden (Black Lion, 1982)
- Harlem (Pablo, 1985)
- All Star Road Band Volume 2 (Doctor Jazz, 1985)
With Ella Fitzgerald & Duke Ellington
- Ella at Duke's Place (Verve, 1966)
- The Stockholm Concert 1966 (Pablo, 1984)
- Ella & Duke at the Cote D'Azur (Verve, 1997)
With Lionel Hampton
- Wailin' at the Trianon (Columbia, 1955)
- Lionel Hampton (Amiga, 1976)
- Aurex Jazz Festival '81 (EastWorld, 1981)
- Ambassador at Large (Glad-Hamp, 1984)
With Johnny Hodges
- Everybody Knows (Impulse!, 1964)
- Triple Play (RCA Victor, 1967)
- Swing's Our Thing (Verve, 1968)
With A. K. Salim
- Stable Mates (Savoy, 1957)
- Pretty for the People (Savoy, 1957)
- Blues Suite (Savoy, 1958)
With others
- Cat Anderson, A Chat with Cat Anderson (Columbia, 1963)
- Billy Brooks, Windows of the Mind (Crossover, 1974)
- Ruth Brown, Fine and Mellow (Fantasy, 1992)
- Milt Buckner, The Definitive Black & Blue Sessions (Black and Blue, 1998)
- Lawrence Brown, Inspired Abandon (Impulse!, 1965)
- Arnett Cobb, Smooth Sailing (Prestige, 1959)
- Arnett Cobb, The Wild Man from Texas (Black and Blue, 1977)
- Harry "Sweets" Edison, For My Pals (Pablo, 1988)
- Jimmy Forrest, Soul Street (Original Jazz Classics, 1998)
- Benny Goodman, Happy Session (Columbia, 1959)
- Earl Hines, Once Upon a Time (Impulse! 1966)
- Abdullah Ibrahim, Bra Joe from Kilimanjaro (The Sun, 1979)
- Abdullah Ibrahim, Tintinyana (Kaz, 1988)
- Mundell Lowe, Satan in High Heels (Charlie Parker, 1961)
- Mundell Lowe, Blues for a Stripper (Charlie Parker, 1962)
- Oscar Peterson, Plays Duke Ellington (Pablo, 1999)
- Bobby Short, Guess Who's in Town (Atlantic, 1987)
- Frank Sinatra, Francis A. & Edward K. (Reprise, 1988)
- O. C. Smith, Love Changes (Motown 1982)
- Billy Strayhorn, Lush Life (Red Baron, 1992)
- Dinah Washington, Wise Woman Blues (Rosetta, 1984)
- Gerald Wilson, Calafia (Trend, 1985)
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