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Younger brother of Percy and Jimmy Heath, Albert “Tootie” Heath is definitely a high hard bop-based drummer with an open brain toward more commercial varieties of jazz. After shifting to NY (1957), he debuted on record with John Coltrane. Heath was with J.J. Johnson’s group (1958-1960) as well as the …
Read More »Akira Tana
b. 14 March 1952, San Jose, California, USA. A self-taught drummer, Tana performed semi-professionally while still at university. He went to Harvard College or university where he obtained a qualification in East Asian Research/Sociology. Then studied at the brand new Britain Conservatory of Music, also acquiring personal tuition from percussionists …
Read More »The Montgomery Brothers
Friend and Monk Montgomery, with their even more celebrated sibling Wes, rivaled the Heath family members as jazz’s most prolific family members act. Pianist/vibraphonist Friend (1930-2009), bassist Monk (1921-1982), and guitarist Wes (1923-1968) performed collectively in two well-known along with other lesser-known organizations. Monk was the 1st jazz musician to …
Read More »Percy Heath
A product of 1 of jazz’s most illustrious families, Percy Heath and his sublime, swinging bass served because the cornerstone of the present day Jazz Quartet for over 4 decades. Heath was created in Wilmington, NC, on Apr 23, 1930. The next of four kids, he grew up in Philadelphia, …
Read More »Jimmy Heath
The center of the three Heath Brothers, Jimmy Heath includes a distinct sound on tenor, is really a fluid player on soprano and flute, and an extremely talented arranger/composer whose originals include “C.T.A.” and “Gingerbread Boy.” He was originally an altoist, using Howard McGhee during 1947-1948 as well as the …
Read More »Heath Brothers
Jimmy, Percy, and Tootie Heath teamed up in 1975 to create the Heath Brothers. Until after that, bassist Percy have been active with the present day Jazz Quartet, but with the group in “pension” (briefly as it proved), all three brothers had been free to get together. Originally a quartet …
Read More »Tana/Reid
A collaborative work between drummer Akira Tana and bassist Rufus Reid, recorded on Concord in 1991.
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