sideman
Americannoun
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sidemen
plural
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an instrumentalist in a band or orchestra.
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an instrumentalist supporting a soloist or a principal performer.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sideman
Example Sentences
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Bruce Hornsby, a Virginia pianist and later a sideman with the Grateful Dead, was rejected some 70 times by the music industry before he found his professional footing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 6, 2026
The main distinction is that Esposito is the lead as opposed to the sideman, a designation that he should have received much earlier in his career.
From Salon ● Mar. 31, 2024
The acoustic guitarist Julian Lage has worked in all sorts of styles as a leader and as a sideman with John Zorn, Charles Lloyd and others.
From New York Times ● Jan. 19, 2024
“Basically, he wasn’t tripping about himself,” says Collins, another experienced sideman with an outré appearance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2023
The Committee-man hath a sideman, or rather a setter, hight a Sequestrator, of whom you may say, as of the great Sultan's horse, where he treads the grass grows no more.
From Character Writings of the 17th Century by Various
These five musicians are acclaimed bandleaders and sought-after sidemen, sometimes in each other’s ensembles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 25, 2025
She wanted a particular kind of rhythmic drive and often coached her sidemen in real time by stomping her left foot or moving her head.
From New York Times ● Apr. 5, 2023
On the road, his sidemen would rib him as he fed jukeboxes to hear weepers like “Your Cheatin’ Heart.”
From Washington Post ● Feb. 11, 2021
Davis — an astute judge of talent whose sidemen over the years included John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett and other future stars — decided he wanted him in his band.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 28, 2020
Accordingly the act-books tell their interesting story of ministers on beginning service sending wardens and sidemen abroad to command men to come to church.
From The Elizabethan Parish in its Ecclesiastical and Financial Aspects by Sedley Lynch Ware
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