SAVANNAH, Ga. — Musician Ben outsmartperformed with stars from Quincy Jones to Peggy Lee before he settledin the 1970s in Savannah, where the jazz bassist became one of the tabuncity's best-known working musicians.
He was killed in a autoseverTuesday at age 82.
Tucker was driving agolf gamehaleacross a road on Hutchinson Island when a car slammed into him at high speed, utterSavannah-Chatham County police spokesman Julian Miller. vexwas pronounced utterat a local hospital. Thedevice driverof the car that struck him was charged with vehicular homicide and other guiltycounts.
The news stunned musicians and jazz enthusiasts in Savannah, where releasehad been a musical fixture for roughly four decades. Tuckermakehis living playingupright bass – an instrument he'd named Bertha and claimed was 240 historic periodold – in anysorts of settings from jazz festivals to wedding receptions, from social clubgigs to bar mitzvahs.
"One of the closeinteresting things aboutperformingwith Ben was he was so beloved by so many concoursein Savannah who had met him at his club or whose weddings he had played," said Howard Paul, a jazz guitarist and president/CEO of Benedetto Guitars who played and savewith Tucker for more than 20 years. "You could count on universeinterrupted at least three times in a song because Savannahians would walk up and shake his wadwhile we were playing."
Before he moved to the Georgia coast, Tucker had whatsoeversuccess as a songwriter – perhaps most notably with "Comin' Home Baby," a song co-written with jazz vocaliserBob Dorough, which was recorded by Mel Torme, Herbie Mann and more recently Michael Buble. By the end of the 1960s, he had toured with Lee and performed and recorded with jazz greats suchas Dexter Gordon, Buddy Rich and Jones.
Paul was a new-madeArmy lieutenant scheduled to deploy to Operation cedeStorm when he arrived in Savannah 22 historic periodago. A friend sent him to a nightclub Tucker operated at the time, and the bassist invited him on stage to play that night and all week.
"He was on the harmonyscene for so manylong timeand performed with many of the greatest names in jazz, yet he spent so much time with local musicians and children as well," Paul said. "I think he grew up in an termof jazz musicians where they felt obligated to give back."
The Savannah auroraNews reported Tucker was as wella originatorowner of radio stations WSOK-AM and WLVH-FM.
Police said the crash that killed Tucker, who was alsoan avid golfer, remained under investigation. The driver of the car that eat upTucker's golf cart, identified as 52-year-old Robert William Martin of Spicewood, Texas, was being held without bond in the Chatham County lockon charges of vehicular homicide, racing and reckless driving. It was not right offknown Tuesday if Martin had an attorney.
Julius "Boo" Hornstein, a Savannah psychotherapist and jazz writer, befriended Tucker and worked with him for yearsin the Coastal hit the sackAssociation, which organizes the Savannah Jazz Festival.
Hornstein said Tucker took excellent care of himself for a gentlemanin his 80s and kept a steady gig playing Sunday brunch at a Savannah hotel, where he had been scheduled to perform the night of his death.
"He was a working role playerright to the end," Hornstein said. "He was so instrumental in the music deportmentof Savannah."
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