Harold Jones (drummer)

Harold Jones
Performing at the White House in 1962
Background information
Born	(1940-02-27) February 27, 1940 (age 77) Richmond, Indiana, United States
Genres	Jazz, Traditional pop, Swing
Occupation(s)	musician
Years active	1950s - Present
Associated acts	Tony Bennett, Count Basie, Paul Winter, Sarah Vaughan
Notable instruments
Drums

Harold Jones (born February 27, 1940, Richmond, Indiana, United States) is one of the most prolific, prominent, and enduring drummers in the history of American traditional pop music and jazz. He is best known as the long-time drummer for Tony Bennett and for his five years with the Count Basie Orchestra.

In a career spanning six decades, Jones has toured and recorded with many eminent artists, including Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington, Oscar Peterson, Herbie Hancock, B. B. King, and Ray Charles. He has also played with major symphony orchestras, including those in Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Vienna.

Jones's parents, Jay and Juanita Jones, encouraged his childhood musical development. Already a skilled drummer in high school, his mother drove Jones to Indianapolis, Indiana to sit in with Wes Montgomery, who left the stage with his band while Jones performed a 20-minute drum solo. He was invited back many times to play with Montgomery. He attended the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago on a scholarship, and then took work where he could find it, including theaters and night clubs. In 1967, while house drummer at the Chicago Playboy Club, he was invited to New York for what was intended to be a two-week engagement with Count Basie's orchestra, but which lasted for five years. Jones played on 15 albums with Basie. He also appears in a scene featuring the Basie band in the movie Young Frankenstein. Jones says he was a avid student of other drummers, but that he was especially influenced by one of Basie's drummers. "I am proud to say that I took everything that I could from Sonny Payne," he told an interviewer.