Biography of Zoot Sims

John Haley “Zoot” Sims was an American jazz musician.

Born on October 29, 1925 in Inglewood, California, Zoot?s family was involved in vaudeville, for his part, Zoot learned to play both drums and clarinet at an early age.

Sims developed into an innovative tenor saxophone player and played with a number of renowned acts throughout his career, including Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Woody Herman, and Buddy Rich. Sims frequently led his own combos and frequently toured with friends Al Cohn and Gerry Mulligan.

Zoot Sims died in New York on March 23, 1985.