Steve Swallow (born October 4, 1940 Fairlawn, NJ) is an American jazz bassist and composer, known for his collaborations with Jimmy Giuffre, Gary Burton, and Carla Bley. He was one of the first jazz double bassists to switch entirely to electric bass guitar.

In the early 1970s, Swallow switched exclusively to electric bass guitar, of which he prefers the five-string variety. He was first introduced to the electric bass while doing a music trade show with Gary Burton and trying a Gibson EB-2. Along with Monk Montgomery and Bob Cranshaw, Swallow was among the first jazz bassists to do so (with much encouragement from Roy Haynes, one of Swallow’s favorite drummers). He plays with a pick (made of copper by Hotlicks), and his style involves intricate solos in the upper register. He was one of the early adopters of the high C string on a bass guitar.

From 1974 to 1976, Swallow taught at the Berklee College of Music. He contributed several of his compositions to the Berklee students who assembled the first edition of The Real Book. He later recorded an album, Real Book, with the picture of a well-worn, coffee-stained book on the cover.

In 1978, Swallow became a member of Carla Bley‘s band. He was Bley’s romantic partner from the 1980s until her death in 2023. He toured extensively with John Scofield in the early 1980s, and has returned to this collaboration several times over the years.

Swallow has consistently won the electric bass category in DownBeat yearly polls, both Critics’ and Readers’, since the mid-1980s. His compositions have been covered by, among others, Jim Hall (who recorded his very first tune, “Eiderdown”), Bill Evans, Chick Corea, Stan Getz and Gary Burton. Swallow’s instruments are built by Harvey Citron.