Joe Morris

Alabama's Joe Morris began his career as a jazz trumpet player, working with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie and Earl Bostic, but his legacy rests with his 1950s work as leader of the more R&B-oriented Joe Morris Orchestra. Fresh from a gig working with Lionel Hampton as a writer, arranger, and trumpeter, Morris signed with the then fledgling Atlantic Records, and his "Anytime, Any Place, Anywhere" (with a fine vocal by Laurie Tate) put the new record company on the map when it soared to number one on the R&B charts in 1950. The Joe Morris Orchestra functioned as the unofficial house band for Atlantic in the early to mid-'50s, and several future Atlantic stars passed through its ranks, including Ray Charles and Lowell Fulson. In addition to working for Atlantic, Morris also recorded sides for Decca and Herald. He died in 1958. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide