Benny Waters

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Benny Waters (born Benjamin Waters on January 23, 1902 near Baltimore, Maryland; died August 11, 1998 in Columbia, Maryland) was a jazz saxophonist and clarinetist known, in part, for the longevity of his career.

He began on organ, then switched to clarinet and later added saxophone. He joined his first band in 1918. He later attended the New England Conservatory of Music where he gave lessons to Harry Carney. He later went on to work with King Oliver, Fletcher Henderson, Claude Hopkins, and others. From 1952 to 1992 he lived in Paris and in 1996 received the Legion of Honor by the French Ministry of Culture. He continued to perform regularly up to his 95th birthday.^[1]