title: Fred Guy
text: # Fred Guy
  
  Frederick L. Guy (May 23, 1897 – December 22, 1971) was an American jazz banjo player and guitarist.
  
  Born in Burkeville, Virginia, Guy was raised in New York City. He played guitar and banjo with Joseph C. Smith's Orchestra. In the early 1920s, Guy joined Duke Ellington's Washingtonians, switching from banjo to guitar in the early 1930s. He remained with Ellington's orchestra until 1949. He retired, moved to Chicago, and for twenty years ran a ballroom. In 1971, he committed suicide.
  
  