Drummer Frank Butler's career began on USO shows during the Second World War and went out with what is probably considered even more of a bang to jazz fans, a pair of superb albums for the Xanadu label released in the late '70s. He died a bit more than five years after finally getting his chance to take charge of a recording session. Butler hailed from Kansas City, where he played drums in high-school bands, then local jazz combos. In terms of the big-name scene he made an auspicious debut, taking charge of the drum chair in the Dave Brubeck combo during a 1950 engagement in swinging San Francisco.
Butler would eventually win praise from some difficult taskmasters, including Miles Davis.
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