News & Updates — reeds

Happy birthday to the world's greatest soprano saxophone artist, Steven Lackritz aka Steve Lacy. Polish-American and born in NYC, Lacy played in dixieland bands before helping launch the out-jazz revolution. He played early on with Pee Wee Russell, Jimmy Rushing, Gil Evans and others before joining Cecil Taylor's group, with their first album appearing in 1956. Lacy's 1958 album Reflections was the first all-Thelonious Monk program on an album. One of the planet's deepest diggers into the catalogue of Monk, the great composer of whom Lacy used to work with in the early '60s, he went on to produce several...

Here's a birthday shout-out to the underrated free-jazz saxophonist Charles Tyler. Best known for his work with Albert Ayler and his own ESP-Disk albums, he also recorded several highly-regarded records for Nessa, Silkheart, Bleu Regard, Adelphi, Storyville and a few on his own Ak-Ba label. His fiery style on the baritone is quite recognizable, and he also played alto, clarinet and piano. From Indianapolis, he worked often with Ayler's groups in both Cleveland and NYC in the early to mid '60s, and an encounter with Ornette Coleman was also a highlight for the young artist. He cut a couple of...

Happy birthday to one of my very favorites, the soulful saxophonist Dudu Pukwana, an exile from apartheid South Africa and a major contributor to the '70s creative jazz landscape. He started playing professionally in the '50s with Kippie Moeketsi and Nik Moyake. Pukwana and Moyake became members (along with Johnny Dyani, Mongezi Feza and Louis Moholo) of the Blue Notes, a group led nominally by white pianist Chris McGregor, but were essentially a collective. They became a sensation for both the quality of their music as well as the fact that they were a mixed-race band, something that was illegal...

There are so many interesting artists born on July 15 that it is impossible in my schedule to write pieces about them. So here are some shorties, along with a video or two for each. --Francis Bebey / July 15, 1929 - May 28, 2001 This unique Cameroonian composer and his interesting DIY synth-pop crossed with traditional music has been justly making new fans in recent years. --James Jacson / July 15, 1932 - Aug 10, 1997 Happy cosmic birthday to James Jacson, one of my favorite characters from Sun Ra's Arkestra. Jacson is the one who was instructed to...

Happy birthday to one of my all time favorites, the radical tenor saxophonist Albert Ayler, a man who brought his biting R&B/gospel tone to the intergalactic free jazz world and pushed the music to it's freaky limits. Born in that storied freak-music town of Cleveland OH, he was inspired by the church before joining Little Walter's band in '52. A stint in the military found Stanley Turrentine and Beaver Harris as jam partners. He moved to Sweden in '62 and started making albums, as well as a brief stint with Cecil Taylor. In '64 he found himself in NYC and...