Joe Cabot

Who is Joe Cabot?

Joe Cabot is an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and musical director. He is best known for his responsive phrasing and mute-on/mute-off virtuosity. His original composition, "Slow Down, Sugar, Take Your Time," was praised by music critic John Wilson and likened to the stylings of the Nat Cole Trio in an Oct. 31, 1982 piece in the New York Times' Arts and Leisure section. In addition to trumpet, Cabot also plays the Flugelhorn.

Cabot was born in Cleveland, Ohio into a musical family led by his father Joseph and uncle August. His first performances took place locally while he was still a small boy, and by 1939 Cabot was a sideman with Gene Krupa. Describing what it was like to play with Krupa at the height of his popularity, Cabot has been quoted as saying, “Coming out of the pit at the Paramount was one of the biggest thrills I ever had…to be part of something.” Stints with the Dorsey’s, Claude Thornhill, and Artie Shaw followed. Regarding his time with Tommy Dorsey, Cabot stated, “When you were with big bands in those days you lived in an iron lung in that bus. But you were part of a family.”