Close friends for many years and also colleagues in the Basie band, trombonist Al Grey and tenor saxophonist Billy Mitchell formed the Al Grey-Billy Mitchell Sextet in New York in January 1961, which remained active until March 1963. Throughout most of that period, Grey and Mitchell led their own combo at Birdland and various other venues across the country. The idea of having a joint group had been a frequent topic of conversation during their time as roommates, and they finally brought it to fruition.

Grey’s pre-Basie reputation was already substantial. Born in 1925 in Aldie, Virginia, he came to prominence in the bands of Benny Carter and Jimmie Lunceford, later working with Lionel Hampton, Arnett Cobb, and Lucky Millinder. He spent about a year on tour with Dizzy Gillespie’s last big band before joining Basie in 1957. Though he is a trombonist of considerable flexibility, it is his work with the plunger that has earned Grey increasing popularity with the band.

Billy Mitchell was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1926. He and his family later moved to Detroit, where he received early music education at Cass Tech. He was known for his close association with trumpeter Thad Jones, who was also from Detroit, and worked in several big bands, including Woody Herman's, where he replaced Gene Ammons. In 1949, Mitchell recorded with the Milt Buckner band and made several recordings with Thad Jones. From 1951 to 1954, Mitchell led the house band at the Blue Bird Inn in Detroit.

From 1956, he played with the Dizzy Gillespie big band. From 1957 until 1961, he played with Basie's band. Mitchell's tenor playing was characterized by a coruscating, virile force, and he was becoming increasingly active as a soloist when he elected to leave the band.

The joint venture between both friends "began with a broken ankle," Grey explained with a mischievous smile that illuminated his wide face, as recounted by Pete Welding in an interview for Down Beat magazine. "This was back in December of 1960 when I was still with Count Basie. The band had just opened at Birdland for its big Christmas engagement. No sooner had we opened than I slipped on an icy sidewalk in front of my hotel and broke my ankle."

“I was laid up with it for several weeks, almost the whole time Basie was at Birdland. They tried several replacements for me, but I guess they didn’t work out too well because Basie kept sending his manager over to see how I was coming along [...]”

—Jordi Pujol (taken from the inside liner notes of FSRCD 1137)