James E. Pugh

In 2008, NPR named his album X Over Trombone in their list of best classical CDs of 2008.

In 2003, Pugh "re-premiered" the Nathaniel Shilkret Trombone Concerto at Carnegie Hall with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops Orchestra. This mid-twentieth century work was written for Tommy Dorsey.

His composition, "Lunch with Schrödinger's Cat", received a Lincoln Center premier in 1989 by Marin Alsop and the Concordia Chamber Orchestra. Pugh premiered his "Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra" in May 1992 with the Williamsport Symphony. It received its New York premier in March 2000 with Joseph Alessi as soloist and Leonard Slatkin conducting the New York Philharmonic.

Since the 1980s, Pugh became New York's top-call freelance trombonist for film scores, records, and music for television and radio advertising. He can be heard on more than four thousand recording sessions.

James Edward Pugh (born November 12, 1950) is an American trombonist, composer, and educator. He is noted as the lead trombonist with Woody Herman's Thundering Herd (1972–1976) and Chick Corea's Return to Forever Band (1977–1978). For 25 years, he worked as a freelance trombonist in New York City. In recent years, he toured and recorded with the rock group Steely Dan, is a founding member of the Graham Ashton Brass Ensemble, and is on faculty as Distinguished Professor of Jazz Trombone at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.