Carl Saunders

A superior bop trumpeter inspired by Don Fagerquist, Carl Saunders was one of the top jazz soloists based in Los Angeles, but he recorded far too infrequently to gain the fame he deserved. As a teenager, he played with Stan Kenton (1960) and his uncle Bobby Sherwood (Dave Pell was also an uncle). Saunders picked up experience touring with Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, Harry James, Buddy Rich, and Maynard Ferguson (1967), and played regularly in show bands in Las Vegas until moving to Los Angeles in 1984. After that, he worked in the studios, performed with the new Dave Pell Octet, popped up in many local big bands, and finally, in 1995, recorded a CD of his own for the small S&L label. Carl Saunders died on February 25, 2023, in Burbank, California, at the age of 80. ~ Scott Yanow