A fine swing bassist who was a valuable supporting player and had occasional basic solos, Al Lucas had a long career. Lucas took piano lessons from his mother (a concert pianist) but switched to bass and tuba when he was 12. He moved to New York in 1933, worked with Kaiser Marshall and then spent nine years (1933-42) with the Royal Sunset Orchestra. Lucas freelanced in the '40s and was at his most significant during this era, performing with Coleman Hawkins, Hot Lips Page, Eddie Heywood's Sextet from 1944-45), Duke Ellington's Orchestra in 1945, Mary Lou Williams (including recording her "Zodiac Suite" in 1946), James P. Johnson, J.J. Johnson, Ben Webster, Erroll Garner, Eddie South and others. Lucas toured with Illinois Jacquet from 1947-53, had a second stint with Eddie Heywood from 1954-56, recorded with Ruby Braff and Charlie Byrd, and often was a member of the Teddy Wilson Trio. Lucas, who appeared on many records but none as a leader, spent much of his last 20 years as a studio musician, and occasionally re-emerged in the jazz world, most notably with Jacquet from 1968-69. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi