Verve Music Group

Credited almost equally as Al Beldini, Al Baldini, and Al Beldiny, this is a drummer who sometimes doubled as a vocalist with bands. He may have picked up some of this musical versatility from his father, a professional picker on stringed instruments such as banjo, mandolin, and violin. Young Beldini began working professionally with the big band leader Frankie Carle, but soon branched out into an open-minded array of musical affiliations. He drummed in combos with players such as Ray Eberle, Larry Sonn, and the young Paul Bley.

Beldini also established an important collaboration with the multi-instrumentalist Don Elliot, with whom he cut several albums. Up-and-coming pianist Bill Evans was a member of this group in the late '50s, both men appearing on an excellent set recorded live at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival. The drummer also got great notices for his performance with the German pianist Rolf Kuhn at the same festival. No matter how the name is spelled, Beldini's appearances on jazz records come to a halt in the mid-'70s.
 
- By Eugene Chadbourne
All Music Group