Moving to the Beat of a Silent Drummer : Jazz: Guitarist Herb Ellis, who broke ground in several musical areas, teams with bassist Andy Simpkins at Maxwell’s.

In his new book, “Jazz Lives: 100 Portraits in Jazz,” critic Gene Lees paints guitarist Herb Ellis as a dedicated practical joker. He tells the story of how Ellis and his then-partner in pianist Oscar Peterson’s trio, bassist Ray Brown, once traded hair colors--Ellis dying his black, Brown dying his red--to irritate their boss.

“Oscar would play jokes on us, and we would play jokes on him,” Ellis related in a recent phone conversation from his home in Fairfield, Ark. “And when we came into the room with our hair done, he showed no sign of even recognizing us. He was very composed, which makes him the best of practical jokers.”

Ellis’ five-year stint with the Peterson trio in the ‘50s forever cemented his reputation as a top guitarist able to provide detailed accompaniment and to improvise in a direct, singing manner. He teams with bassist Andy Simpkins tonight through Sunday at Maxwell’s By the Sea in Huntington Beach.

But Ellis had already created a stir before he joined Peterson’s trio in 1953. Born in Farmersville, Tex., in 1921, he taught himself to play the banjo and guitar before enrolling in one of the first jazz classes at North Texas State University. His roommate there was saxophonist Jimmy Giuffre.

Once out of school, he jumped into the big-band scene, eventually joining the Jimmy Dorsey orchestra in 1945. But he left Dorsey after a couple of years, taking with him pianist Lou Carter and bassist John Frigo. They formed Soft Winds, a drummerless trio that blended instruments and voices in a style that later influenced such jazz and vocal harmony ensembles as the Four Freshmen. The trio stayed together five years.

Not only was Soft Winds a groundbreaker in the voice-instrumental field, its lack of reliance on a percussionist was also trend-setting. “There was no reason for it,” Ellis said of the drummerless concept. “We all left Dorsey at the same time; John Frigo got us a job in Buffalo, and we didn’t have a drummer. We didn’t hear things in terms of having a drummer. But it worked well.”

It was at another Soft Winds performance in 1952 in Buffalo that Ellis met Peterson. “Oscar lived in Montreal, but he was in Toronto and he heard about us and came over to hear us. He liked it. So he and I went out later that night and jammed at some place in Buffalo. And then I didn’t see him again until 1953, when (guitarist) Barney Kessel left his group. That’s when he called me for the job.”

The Peterson trio also succeeded without a drummer, due in large part to Ellis’ rhythmic underpinnings and the almost clairvoyant interaction between bassist Brown, Ellis and the big, wide-ranging sound of its pianist leader.

The past four years have seen Ellis reteaming with Peterson and Brown (plus drummer Jeff Hamilton) for tours of Japan and Europe. In 1990 they made a reunion recording titled “The Legendary Oscar Peterson Trio: Live at the Blue Note.”

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Early in the ‘60s, Ellis moved his family to Los Angeles and submerged himself in studio work. He played in television bands for Steve Allen, Della Reese, Red Skelton, Joey Bishop, Danny Kaye and Merv Griffin and was heard on numerous soundtracks.

“But I never liked it,” he said. “It was very nerve-racking. Your job was on the line every time you went in, especially when you’re first getting established. And it was difficult if you were not a great (music) reader, and I’m not. But I managed to get by.”

So, in the mid ‘70s, he cut back on studio work. “My children were through school and had left home. So I started to get back out and play.”

He began to work with fellow-guitarist Joe Pass, and they recorded a pair of albums for Concord Records with old friend Brown on bass and drummer Jake Hanna. Ellis, always one to match his skills with other guitarists, also joined with Charlie Byrd and Kessel to form the humbly named combo The Great Guitars. Their long association is documented on a series of Concord recordings that stretches into the ‘80s. Ellis has also recorded several duo albums with Brown, guitarist Freddie Green and the late bassist Red Mitchell.

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After some 30 albums for Concord, Ellis’ most recent recording, “Roll Call” (which includes Soft Winds member Frigo), is on a new label--Justice--and makes a decided turn toward his blues roots. The guitarist reported that he has two more discs in the can for the label: one a duo with Brown, the other (scheduled for release later this year) a collection of standards done with fellow-Texan Willie Nelson.

What’s it like working with Nelson in the studio? “I don’t really know,” Ellis said. “He came in and put down his part after we’d finished.”

Luckily Ellis has more first-hand knowledge of bassist Simpkins, his partner in the Maxwell’s engagement. “He’s one of my favorite players,” Ellis said. “He always does the right thing at the right time. We went to Japan together once several years back.”

Although the two haven’t recorded together, insight into what’s in store might be gained by listening to Ellis’ duet with bassist Brown on Irving Berlin’s “Easter Parade” from their 1974 recording, “Soft Shoe.”

The guitarist uses Brown’s anchored beat to develop assured single-note improvisations that are spun with all the intriguing cadence a good storyteller uses around a campfire. Then, when the roles reverse, he provides rich harmonic support for the guy he once swapped hair color with. The results, needless to say, are no joke.

Herb Ellis and Andy Simpkins perform tonight and Saturday, at 8:30 and 10:30 p.m., and on Sunday at 4 and 6 p.m., at Maxwell’s by the Sea, 317 Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington Beach. Cover charge is $10, plus $7 food/beverage minimum. (714) 536-2555.