[Dixielandjazz] Denis Irwin, Jazz Bassist, Obit

[Stephen G Barbone]

NY TIMES - March 12, 2008 - By Ben Ratliff
Dennis Irwin, 56, Bassist Popular in New York Jazz, Is Dead

Dennis Irwin, who for more than 30 years was a much-in-demand New York  
jazz bassist and whose recent illness became a rallying point for jazz  
musicians without medical insurance, died on Monday in Manhattan. He  
was 56.

The cause was liver failure as a result of cancer, said his son,  
Michael Irwin.

He died the same day as a benefit concert was presented in his honor,  
staged by Jazz at Lincoln Center and including performances by Wynton  
Marsalis, Tony Bennett, Jon Hendricks, Mose Allison,Joe Lovano, Bill  
Frisell, John Scofield, and many others. Part of the concert’s  
proceeds will go toward Mr. Irwin’s medical expenses. The rest, in  
line with his stated wishes, will go to other musicians in need,  
through the Jazz Foundation of America, which has helped many  
uninsured musicians — including Mr. Irwin — pay for healthcare.

Two New York City jazz-club benefits in February, one at Smalls and  
one at the Village Vanguard, also raised money for Mr. Irwin’s living  
expenses and for alternative cancer treatment.

Mr. Irwin’s swing was deep and dependable, and he played on more than  
500 albums. Since the early 1980s, he had performed almost every  
Monday night with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra at the Village Vanguard.

Born in Birmingham, Ala., Mr. Irwin attended North Texas State  
University (now University of North Texas) as a classical musician  
studying the clarinet, switching to jazz and the bass during college.  
In 1973, while still in school, he got a job as a bassist playing with  
the pianist Red Garland; he moved to New York in 1974 without  
graduating and quickly found work with Ted Curson, Betty Carter and  
Mr. Allison, among others. In 1977 he began a three-year stint in Art  
Blakey’s Jazz Messengers.

In more recent years, he played in bands led by Johnny Griffin, Mr.  
Lovano, Mr. Scofield and Matt Wilson.

His case has already brought help to uninsured musicians. Michael  
Pietrowicz, vice president for planning and program development at  
Englewood Hospital and Medical Center in Englewood, N.J., said in an  
interview on Tuesday that the hospital, in conjunction with the Jazz  
Foundation of America, would create the Dennis Irwin Memorial Fund,  
making free cancer screenings available to veteran jazz and blues  
musicians who are uninsured. (Mr. Irwin was initially evaluated and  
treated for cancer at the hospital late last year.) And Adrian Ellis,  
executive director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, said Tuesday that the  
organization would produce an annual concert to benefit jazz musicians  
in need.

Besides his son, Michael, of Manhattan, Mr. Irwin is survived by his  
companion, Aria Hendricks; his brother, David Irwin, and his mother,  
Daisy Godbold, both of St. Petersburg, Fla.; and his father, David E.  
Irwin of Monticello, Ga.