Henry Grimes

Mr. Grimes played bass with Thelonious Monk, Sonny Rollins and Benny Goodman. Mr. Grimes was part of the free-jazz movement of the 1960s.Read moreNick Ruechel Henry Grimes was a bass player who led a life worthy of the big screen. He was 22 when he burst onto the scene at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival, where he played with six band leaders: Thelonious Monk, Benny Goodman, Sonny Rollins, Lee Konitz, Gerry Mulligan, and Tony Scott. Word had spread about the young Philadelphian, with his Juilliard education, quiet and serious demeanor, and strong, bold sound, a biography on Mr. Grimes’ website said. Earlier that year, in Cleveland, Mr. Grimes performed with Miles Davis and his group, including John Coltrane, Julian “Cannonball” Adderley, Bill Evans, and Philly Joe Jones. After Newport, he toured with Rollins for 10 years. His life took a drastic turn after a trip to California in 1968. In Los Angeles, he found little work and disappeared from public life for 35 years. Many people thought he had died. However, in 2002, a social worker and jazz enthusiast from Georgia found him living in a cheap hotel in Los Angeles, getting by with odd jobs. Five months later, Mr. Grimes returned to New York and performed with Parker at the avant-garde jazz Vision Festival in May 2003. “He was very deep. He was gentle and patient and kind to everyone,” his wife, Margaret Davis Grimes, said . “And everyone who met him loved him."