Paul Desmond first met Dave Brubeck in 1944 while still in the military. Paul was part of the Dave Brubeck Octet throughout 1946-1948. He rejoined Dave in 1951, and continued with him until he disbanded the “Classic Quartet” in 1967.

During the 1970's, Paul rejoined with Dave for several tours including "The Dave Brubeck Trio with Gerry Mulligan and Paul Desmond" and also "Two Generations of Brubeck".

In 1975, Dave and Paul performed for the only time as a Duet on the "Horizon" album "The Duets - Brubeck & Desmond".
In 1976 the Classic Quartet reformed to play 25 shows throughout several cities in the US.

“The strength of Paul, that I want everyone to remember, is this inventive, logical, lyrical, wonderful compositional technique that was in his solos. Absolutely fresh, night after night.” – Dave Brubeck.