John M Shifflett (March 22, 1953 – April 27, 2017) was an American jazz musician, player of the double bass and also an arranger, composer, and educator, with his last teaching job at San Jose State University.
Shifflett was born in Dubuque, Iowa, attended High-School at Dubuque where he played trombone and began playing bass (see at Sing Out Dubuque, John Shifflett playing his own composition on bass, January 8th 1971), and graduated in 1976 with a BS degree from Iowa State University. While at the University of Iowa, where he was working on a master's degree, Shifflett was its big band and its jazz combo bass player, appearing at festivals such as the Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festivals in April 1979 and in March 1980.
Shifflett moved to San Jose in 1987, as his wife Bethany was offered a tenure-track position at San Jose State University.
Shifflett played in several notable acts, including Frankie Avalon, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, the American Musical Theatre of San Jose, Dinah Shore, Mel Torme, Jerry Lewis, Dionne Warwick and the Smothers Brothers.