Don Bagley
Donald Neff Bagley (July 18, 1927 – July 26, 2012) was an American jazz bassist.
Don Bagley
- Name
- Don Bagley
- Birth Name
- Donald Neff Bagley
- Born
- 18 July 1927
- Birthplace
- Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.
- Died
- 26 July 2012
- Occupation
- Musician
- Full name
- Donald Neff Bagley.
- Nationality
- United States.
- Fields
- jazz.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
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Documentary summary
Donald Neff Bagley (July 18, 1927 – July 26, 2012) was an American jazz bassist.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Don Bagley (1927–2012) was an American conductor, film score composer and jazz bassist, among other activities. Born Donald Neff Bagley in Salt Lake City, the conductor died in Northridge. Genres include jazz.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q356775 · wikipedia · Don Bagley
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Don Bagley • Birth Name — Donald Neff Bagley • Born — 18 July 1927 • Birthplace — Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. • Died — 26 July 2012 • Genre — Jazz • Occupation — Musician • Instrument — Double bass • Years Active — 1945–1984
Career
Career
Bagley was born on July 18, 1927, in Salt Lake City, Utah. He received formal training on the double bass. He studied in Los Angeles and played in 1945 with Shorty Sherock and Wingy Manone, and in 1948 with Dick Pierce. From 1950 to 1953, and sporadically thereafter, Bagley played with Stan Kenton; during Bagley's time with Kenton, "A Study for Bass" by Bill Russo and "Bags" by Bill Holman were written to feature Bagley's playing. Beginning in 1954, he fronted his own ensembles. Between 1950 and 1952, he worked extensively as a session musician with Nat King Cole, Maynard Ferguson, and Dexter Gordon. In the middle of the 1950s, he played in Europe with Zoot Sims, Lars Gullin, Frank Rosolino, and Åke Persson. Between 1956 and 1967, he again worked with Kenton and with Les Brown; toward the end of the 1950s, he also played with Jimmie Rowles, Shelly Manne, and Phil Woods. In 1957 and 1958, he recorded three albums under his own name. In 1959 he played with Pete Fountain; in 1961, he did a session with Ben Webster. In 1964, he performed in Japan with Julie London. In the 1970s and 1980s, Bagley composed and arranged for film and television, including the scores to Mama's Dirty Girls (1974), The Manhandlers (1974), The Swinging Barmaids (1975), The Student Body (1976), Young Lady Chatterley (1977) and Sacred Ground (1983). Between 1976 and 1984, he worked with Burt Bacharach. Bagley died on July 26, 2012, at the age of 85.
As sideman
As sideman
With The Everly Brothers • In Our Image (Warner Bros., 1966) • The Everly Brothers Sing (Warner Bros., 1967) With Stan Kenton • Innovations in Modern Music (Capitol, 1950) • Stan Kenton Presents (Capitol, 1950) • Popular Favorites by Stan Kenton (Capitol, 1953) • Sketches on Standards (Capitol, 1953) • This Modern World (Capitol, 1953) • Portraits on Standards (Capitol, 1953) • Kenton Showcase (Capitol, 1954) • The Kenton Era (Capitol, 1955) • Kenton with Voices (Capitol, 1957) • Lush Interlude (Capitol, 1958) • Two Much! (Capitol, 1960) with Ann Richards • Stan Kenton! Tex Ritter! (Capitol, 1962) with Tex Ritter • Artistry in Bossa Nova (Capitol, 1963) • Artistry in Voices and Brass (Capitol, 1963) • Kenton / Wagner (Capitol, 1964) • The World We Know (Capitol, 1967) • The Jazz Compositions of Dee Barton (Capitol, 1967) • The Innovations Orchestra (Capitol, 1997) With Lee Konitz • Lee Konitz Plays (Disques Vogue, 1953) With Randy Newman • Randy Newman (Reprise, 1968) With Shorty Rogers • Modern Sounds (Capitol, 1951) With Pete Rugolo • Rugolo Plays Kenton (EmArcy, 1958) With Frank Sinatra • That's Life (Reprise, 1966) With Nancy Sinatra • Boots (Reprise Records, 1966) With The Sugar Shoppe • The Sugar Shoppe (Now Sounds, 1968) With Ben Webster • The Warm Moods (Reprise, 1961)
Identity
Identity
Don Bagley is recorded as jazz bassist, conductor, film score composer and musician. Recorded at birth as Donald Neff Bagley.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
2012
Don Bagley died in 2012 at Northridge.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Salt Lake City.
Birth place
Northridge.
Death place
Discography
• Basically Bagley (Dot, 1957) with Jimmy Rowles, Shelly Manne • Jazz On The Rocks (Regent, 1958; CD reissue on Blue Moon, 1999) with Phil Woods, Eddie Costa, Sal Salvador, Charlie Persip • The Soft Sell (Dot, 1958; CD reissue on Blue Moon, 1999) with Paul Horn, Jimmy Rowles, Shelly Manne
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Don Bagley”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q356775: Don Bagley
General reference · Wikidata
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.[ Don Bagley] at Allmusic
- 2.Donald Bagley, Obituary. Los Angeles Times. July 29, 2012.
References
Citations
References
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reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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