To have achieved everything that Benny Carter did in 70-odd years as a bandleader, arranger, composer and instrumentalist would be impressive enough for someone trained from birth at an elite academy. A true ambassador for jazz and a natural teacher, his influence on the development of swing—as a big-band arranger and expressive alto sax and trumpet player—helped shape the ideas of a century of musicians: from Miles Davis to Quincy Jones, Dizzy Gillespie to Ella Fitzgerald. The fact that he was largely self-taught makes these achievements appear almost superhuman.