Trumpeter Cat Anderson was a mainstay in the Duke Ellington Orchestra during three stints with the group between 1944 and 1971. Before Maynard Ferguson, Anderson explored the upper registers of the instrument in a big band setting. With a range exceeding five octaves his playing became an important part of Ellington’s compositional palette.

Born on September 12, 1916, William Alonzo “Cat” Anderson learned trumpet at the Jenkins Orphanage in South Carolina after losing both of his parents when he was four years old. While a resident he played with the Carolina Cotton Pickers, a group based at the orphanage. After leaving the home he played professionally with Lucky Millinder, Erskine Hawkins and Lionel Hampton before being persuaded to join Ellington’s ensemble.

Noted widely for his high note playing, Anderson was also a fine soloist with a big sound in the lower register and great skill as a plunger mute soloist. When not playing with Ellington he fronted his own big band for short periods in the late 1940s and 1950s. Anderson was also a fine composer and arranger.

After leaving Ellington in 1971, Anderson lived in Los Angeles and did studio work. He occasionally played with Louis Bellson’s big band, too. Cat Anderson passed away from brain cancer in 1981 at the age of 64.

Here is a link to Cat Anderson playing El Gato with the Duke Ellington Orchestra in 1969:

"EL GATO"