Louis Aldebert

He was born in Egypt, was part of the Parisian jazz scene of the '50s, and sang on West Coast jazz records in the late '70s, so Louis Aldebert can certainly be considered an international artist, as well as a vocalist with great longevity. He studied both singing and piano after his family moved to Paris, getting efficient enough on the latter instrument to gig with tenor saxophone genius Don Byas in the mid-'50s. That would have also made him good enough to play with violinist Stephane Grappelli of Hot Club fame, which he did several years later. Meanwhile, he also had a career going as a singer, working with the Blue Stars in the mid-'50s. From 1959-1965 he was a member of the Double Six, a kind of experiment in overcrowding via scat singing. Needless to say, this attracted the attention of Jon Hendricks of Lambert, Hendricks & Ross fame, who made use of Aldebert on a 1965 session. Monica Dozo, also a well-known singer, became Aldebert's bride; they first felt a bias as Byas bandmates, and she would later change her name to Monique Aldebert-Guerrin. She was also part of the rotating Double Six recording cast at various sessions, some members seizing hiatus time to recover from nagging earaches. The couple fled the group and the French jazz scene in 1967 for what turned out to be an interesting series of artistic moves in America, beginning with a stab at making Las Vegas a base. After performing in various revues before the gambling crowd, they headed west to Los Angeles. They had their own group and did freelance studio vocal work in various capacities, one highlight being a feature on a 1979 side by the Crusaders. The Aldeberts have also collaborated as composers, their activities including original songs as well as vocal arrangements of various jazz standards. ~...