Barry Harris
Encyclopedia
Barry Doyle Harris is an American bebop
jazz pianist and educator.
in 1960. Influenced also by Art Tatum
, Coleman Hawkins
, Charlie Parker
, and Thelonious Monk
, Harris's playing is noted for its uncanny similarity to Bud Powell
.
Harris has played with Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Stitt, Illinois Jacquet
, Coleman Hawkins
, Dexter Gordon
, and Max Roach
. As a lead artist, he has recorded over 14 albums.
During the 1970s, Harris lived with Monk
and his family at the Weehawken, New Jersey
home of the jazz patroness Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter
, and so was in an excellent position to comment on the last years of his fellow pianist.
Harris appears in the 1989 documentary film Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser
(produced by Clint Eastwood
), performing duets with Tommy Flanagan
.
Since 1991, Barry Harris has collaborated with Toronto-based pianist and teacher Howard Rees in creating a series of videos and workbooks documenting his unique harmonic and improvisational systems and teaching process.
In 2000, he was profiled in the film Barry Harris - Spirit of Bebop.
Barry Harris continues to perform and teach worldwide. When he is not traveling, he holds weekly music workshop sessions in New York City for vocalists, students of piano and other instruments.
near 23rd Street
in Manhattan. There he taught group music and piano lessons, as well as hosted his own performances and those of other like-minded artists. His album For the Moment was recorded there.
His approach to the teaching of jazz uses methods and techniques that pre-date the Berklee school
and the Lydian Chromatic
approach of George Russell. He relies upon the 6th chord and the 8-note, rather than the 7-note jazz scale, as a basis for melody and harmony. This is the material used by Bud Powell
, Joseph Schillinger
, George Gershwin
, Glenn Miller
, and even Frédéric Chopin
. He emphasizes the concept of building a repertoire of one's own musical movements over common harmonic formulae.
The Jazz Cultural Theater was designed to last as long as the students and audiences kept the doors open. Unfortunately, Mr. Harris had an illness which required all his attention, and the theater closed at that time.
, he has formulated scales which allow pianists and guitar players greater freedom in accompaniment, to play, in his own words “movement, not chords.”
His fundamental scale is the major “sixth-diminished” scale, but equally important are the minor sixth to diminished and the dominant seven flat five to diminished scale. The major sixth-diminished scale is a major scale with an extra note between the 5th and 6th scale degrees. A typical exercise using this scale involves playing a C Major 6th chord, up the scale to a D diminished 7th chord, back to C Major 6th in first inversion, to F diminished 7th ( i.e. D diminished 7th first inversion ), to C Major 6th in second inversion, and so on, up the scale until it reaches the octave. Moving chords up and down the scale in this way gives more possibilities for “movement”, as opposed to playing a static chord when playing jazz standard songs. Extending this concept, Barry relates all chord alterations (flat and sharp 9’s, sharp 11’s, flat 13’s, etc.) to the tritones minor sixth-diminished scale (A Flat Minor Sixth-Diminished for G7), which provides options for “moving” the alterations through the scales.
Bebop
Bebop differed drastically from the straightforward compositions of the swing era, and was instead characterized by fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that expanded on their role as tempo-keepers...
jazz pianist and educator.
Biography
Harris left Detroit for New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1960. Influenced also by Art Tatum
Art Tatum
Arthur "Art" Tatum, Jr. was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso who played with phenomenal facility despite being nearly blind.Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time...
, Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Randolph Hawkins was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Hawkins was one of the first prominent jazz musicians on his instrument. As Joachim E. Berendt explained, "there were some tenor players before him, but the instrument was not an acknowledged jazz horn"...
, Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
, and Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Sphere Monk was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight, No Chaser"...
, Harris's playing is noted for its uncanny similarity to Bud Powell
Bud Powell
Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell was an American Jazz pianist. Powell has been described as one of "the two most significant pianists of the style of modern jazz that came to be known as bop", the other being his friend and contemporary Thelonious Monk...
.
Harris has played with Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Stitt, Illinois Jacquet
Illinois Jacquet
Jean-Baptiste Illinois Jacquet was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, best remembered for his solo on "Flying Home", critically recognized as the first R&B saxophone solo....
, Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Hawkins
Coleman Randolph Hawkins was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Hawkins was one of the first prominent jazz musicians on his instrument. As Joachim E. Berendt explained, "there were some tenor players before him, but the instrument was not an acknowledged jazz horn"...
, Dexter Gordon
Dexter Gordon
Dexter Gordon was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and an Academy Award-nominated actor . He is regarded as one of the first and most important musicians to adapt the bebop musical language of people like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell to the tenor saxophone...
, and Max Roach
Max Roach
Maxwell Lemuel "Max" Roach was an American jazz percussionist, drummer, and composer.A pioneer of bebop, Roach went on to work in many other styles of music, and is generally considered alongside the most important drummers in history...
. As a lead artist, he has recorded over 14 albums.
During the 1970s, Harris lived with Monk
Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Sphere Monk was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight, No Chaser"...
and his family at the Weehawken, New Jersey
Weehawken, New Jersey
Weehawken is a township in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 12,554.-Geography:Weehawken is part of the New York metropolitan area...
home of the jazz patroness Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter
Nica de Koenigswarter
Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter was a British-born jazz patroness and writer. She was a scion of the prominent Rothschild international financial dynasty.-Personal:...
, and so was in an excellent position to comment on the last years of his fellow pianist.
Harris appears in the 1989 documentary film Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser
Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser
Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser is a documentary about the life of Thelonious Monk. Produced by Clint Eastwood, Bruce Ricker, and directed/co-produced by Charlotte Zwerin, it features live performances by Monk and his group, and posthumous interviews with friends and family...
(produced by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
), performing duets with Tommy Flanagan
Tommy Flanagan
Thomas Lee Flanagan was an American jazz pianist born in Detroit, Michigan, particularly remembered for his work with Ella Fitzgerald...
.
Since 1991, Barry Harris has collaborated with Toronto-based pianist and teacher Howard Rees in creating a series of videos and workbooks documenting his unique harmonic and improvisational systems and teaching process.
In 2000, he was profiled in the film Barry Harris - Spirit of Bebop.
Barry Harris continues to perform and teach worldwide. When he is not traveling, he holds weekly music workshop sessions in New York City for vocalists, students of piano and other instruments.
Jazz Cultural Theater
In the 1980s, Harris maintained a unique institution, the Jazz Cultural Theater, in a former restaurant storefront on Eighth AvenueEighth Avenue (Manhattan)
Eighth Avenue is a north-south avenue on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City, carrying northbound traffic. Eighth Avenue begins in the West Village neighborhood at Abingdon Square and runs north for 44 blocks through Chelsea, the Garment District, Hell's Kitchen's east end, Midtown and the...
near 23rd Street
23rd Street (Manhattan)
23rd Street is a broad thoroughfare in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is one of few two-way streets in the gridiron of the borough. As with Manhattan's other "crosstown" streets, it is divided at Fifth Avenue, in this case at Madison Square Park, into its east and west sections. Since...
in Manhattan. There he taught group music and piano lessons, as well as hosted his own performances and those of other like-minded artists. His album For the Moment was recorded there.
His approach to the teaching of jazz uses methods and techniques that pre-date the Berklee school
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
and the Lydian Chromatic
Lydian chromatic concept of tonal organization
The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization was written by George Russell and is the founding text of the Lydian Chromatic Concept , or Lydian Chromatic Theory . The work postulates that all music is based on the tonal gravity of the Lydian mode.-Deriving Lydian:Russell believed that...
approach of George Russell. He relies upon the 6th chord and the 8-note, rather than the 7-note jazz scale, as a basis for melody and harmony. This is the material used by Bud Powell
Bud Powell
Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell was an American Jazz pianist. Powell has been described as one of "the two most significant pianists of the style of modern jazz that came to be known as bop", the other being his friend and contemporary Thelonious Monk...
, Joseph Schillinger
Joseph Schillinger
Joseph Schillinger was a composer, music theorist, and composition teacher. He was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine and died in New York City.-Life and career:...
, George Gershwin
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
, Glenn Miller
Glenn Miller
Alton Glenn Miller was an American jazz musician , arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known "Big Bands"...
, and even Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
. He emphasizes the concept of building a repertoire of one's own musical movements over common harmonic formulae.
The Jazz Cultural Theater was designed to last as long as the students and audiences kept the doors open. Unfortunately, Mr. Harris had an illness which required all his attention, and the theater closed at that time.
Theoretical Concepts
Barry Harris’ approach to jazz harmony relies heavily on the diminished chord and its relationship to the twelve keys. Utilizing the diminished chordDiminished chord
A diminished triad chord or diminished chord is a triad consisting of two minor thirds above the root — if built on C, a diminished chord would have a C, an E and a G. It resembles a minor triad with a lowered fifth....
, he has formulated scales which allow pianists and guitar players greater freedom in accompaniment, to play, in his own words “movement, not chords.”
His fundamental scale is the major “sixth-diminished” scale, but equally important are the minor sixth to diminished and the dominant seven flat five to diminished scale. The major sixth-diminished scale is a major scale with an extra note between the 5th and 6th scale degrees. A typical exercise using this scale involves playing a C Major 6th chord, up the scale to a D diminished 7th chord, back to C Major 6th in first inversion, to F diminished 7th ( i.e. D diminished 7th first inversion ), to C Major 6th in second inversion, and so on, up the scale until it reaches the octave. Moving chords up and down the scale in this way gives more possibilities for “movement”, as opposed to playing a static chord when playing jazz standard songs. Extending this concept, Barry relates all chord alterations (flat and sharp 9’s, sharp 11’s, flat 13’s, etc.) to the tritones minor sixth-diminished scale (A Flat Minor Sixth-Diminished for G7), which provides options for “moving” the alterations through the scales.
As leader
- Breakin' It Up (Argo 1958)
- Barry Harris at the Jazz Workshop (Riverside 1960)
- Listen to Barris Harris . . . Solo Piano (Riverside 1960)
- Preminado (Riverside 1961)
- Newer Than New (Riverside 1961)
- Chasin' The Bird (Riverside 1962)
- Luminescence (Prestige 1967)
- Bull's Eye (Prestige 1968)
- Barry Harris Trio: Magnificent (Prestige 1969)
- Barry Harris plays Tadd Dameron (Xanadu 1975)
- Tokyo (1976)
- Barry Harris Plays Barry Harris (Xanadu 1978)
- Stay Right with It (Xanadu 1978)
- For the Moment (Uptown 1984)
- The Bird of Red and GoldThe Bird of Red and GoldThe Bird of Red and Gold is a solo jazz piano album by pianist and composer Barry Harris, recorded in 1979 and released in 1982. Five of the twelve compositions were written by Harris...
(XanaduXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
1989) - Live at Maybeck Recital Hall - Volume Twelve (Concord 1991)
- First Time Ever (Ecidence 1997)
- Live in New York (Reservoir 2002)
- Live in Rennes (Plus Loin Music 2009)
As sideman
- The Magnificent Thad Jones by Thad JonesThad JonesThaddeus Joseph Jones was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader.-Biography:Thad Jones was born in Pontiac, Michigan to a musical family of ten . Thad Jones was a self taught musician, performing professionally by the age of sixteen...
(1956; Blue Note RecordsBlue Note RecordsBlue Note Records is a jazz record label, established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis. Francis Wolff became involved shortly afterwards. It derives its name from the characteristic "blue notes" of jazz and the blues. At the end of the 1950s, and in the early 1960s, Blue Note headquarters...
) - West Coast Blues!West Coast Blues!-Track listing:# Ursula – 7:07# Klactoveedsedstene – 9:59# Don't Explain – 4:54# West Coast Blues – 6:02# Terrain – 7:46# Compulsion – 6:48-Personnel:...
by Harold LandHarold LandHarold de Vance Land was an American hard bop and post-bop tenor saxophonist. Land developed his hard bop playing with the Max Roach/Clifford Brown band into a personal, modern style. His tone was strong and emotional, yet displayed a certain fragility that made him easy to...
(1960; Jazzland Records) - Them Dirty BluesThem Dirty BluesThem Dirty Blues is an album by The Cannonball Adderley Quintet, recorded in 1960.- Track listing :# “Work Song” – 5:07#“Dat Dere” – 5:29#“Easy Living” – 4:19...
by The Cannonball Adderley Quintet (1960; Capitol RecordsCapitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
) - The Texas TwisterThe Texas TwisterThe Texas Twister is the debut album by American saxophonist Don Wilkerson recorded in 1960 and released on the Riverside label.-Reception:...
by Don WilkersonDon WilkersonDon Wilkerson was an American soul jazz / R&B tenor saxophonist born in Moreauville, Louisiana, probably better known for his Blue Note Records recordings in the 1960s as bandleader with guitarist Grant Green. Prior to signing with the label, he worked frequently with Cannonball Adderley...
(1960; RiversideRiverside RecordsRiverside Records was a United States record label specializing in jazz. Founded by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer under his firm Bill Grauer Productions, Inc. in 1953, the label was a major presence in the jazz record industry for a decade...
) - Eastern SoundsEastern SoundsEastern Sounds is an album by jazz saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist Yusef Lateef, recorded in 1961. The album features Lateef's continued exploration of Indian music, which were incorporated into his distinct brand of soulful hard bop with a quartet featuring Barry Harris on piano...
by Yusef LateefYusef LateefDr. Yusef Lateef is an American Grammy Award-winning jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, educator and a spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community after his conversion to the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam in 1950.Although Lateef's main instruments are the tenor saxophone and flute, he is known for...
(1961; Prestige RecordsPrestige RecordsPrestige Records was a jazz record label founded in 1949 by Bob Weinstock. The company was located at 203 South Washington Avenue in Bergenfield, New Jersey, and recorded hundreds of albums by many of the leading jazz musicians of the day, sometimes issuing them under the names of several...
) - The SidewinderThe SidewinderThe Sidewinder is a 1964 album by jazz trumpeter Lee Morgan, recorded at the Van Gelder Studio, Englewood, New Jersey. It was released on Blue Note label as BLP 4157 and BST 84157. The title track was one of the defining recordings of the soul jazz genre, becoming a jazz standard. An edited version...
by Lee MorganLee MorganEdward Lee Morgan was an American hard bop trumpeter.-Biography:...
(1963; Blue Note RecordsBlue Note RecordsBlue Note Records is a jazz record label, established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis. Francis Wolff became involved shortly afterwards. It derives its name from the characteristic "blue notes" of jazz and the blues. At the end of the 1950s, and in the early 1960s, Blue Note headquarters...
) - ClubhouseClubhouse (album)Clubhouse is an album by American jazz saxophonist Dexter Gordon recorded in 1965 but not released on the Blue Note label until 1979.-Reception:...
by Dexter GordonDexter GordonDexter Gordon was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and an Academy Award-nominated actor . He is regarded as one of the first and most important musicians to adapt the bebop musical language of people like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell to the tenor saxophone...
(1965 - released 1979; Blue Note) - Gettin' AroundGettin' AroundGettin' Around is an album by American jazz saxophonist Dexter Gordon recorded in 1965 and released on the Blue Note label. The CD reissue added two additional recordings from the sessions as bonus tracks.-Reception:...
by Dexter Gordon (1965; Blue Note) - The TurnaroundThe Turnaround- Track listing :# "The Turnaround" - 8:15# "East of the Village" - 6:44# "The Good Life" - 5:08# "Straight Ahead" - 7:02# "My Sin" - 6:53...
by Hank MobleyHank MobleyHenry Mobley was an American hard bop and soul jazz tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone that was neither as aggressive as John Coltrane nor as mellow as Stan Getz...
(1965; Blue Note RecordsBlue Note RecordsBlue Note Records is a jazz record label, established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis. Francis Wolff became involved shortly afterwards. It derives its name from the characteristic "blue notes" of jazz and the blues. At the end of the 1950s, and in the early 1960s, Blue Note headquarters...
) - Wrapped TightWrapped TightWrapped Tight is an album by American jazz saxophonist Coleman Hawkins featuring performances recorded in 1965 for the Impulse! label.-Reception:...
by Coleman HawkinsColeman HawkinsColeman Randolph Hawkins was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Hawkins was one of the first prominent jazz musicians on his instrument. As Joachim E. Berendt explained, "there were some tenor players before him, but the instrument was not an acknowledged jazz horn"...
(Impulse!, 1965) - Bopstacle CourseBopstacle CourseBopstacle Course is a jazz album by vibraphonist Terry Gibbs, recorded in 1974 for Xanadu Records.-Track listing:# "Bopstacle Course" - 4:39# "Body and Soul" - 7:06# "Waltz For My Children" - 4:42...
by Terry GibbsTerry GibbsTerry Gibbs is an American jazz vibraphonist and band leader.He has performed and/or recorded with Tommy Dorsey, Chubby Jackson, Buddy Rich, Woody Herman, Benny Goodman, Louie Bellson, Charlie Shavers, Mel Tormé, Buddy DeFranco, and others...
(1974; Xanadu RecordsXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
) - Biting the Apple by Dexter GordonDexter GordonDexter Gordon was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and an Academy Award-nominated actor . He is regarded as one of the first and most important musicians to adapt the bebop musical language of people like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell to the tenor saxophone...
(1976; Steeplechase RecordsSteepleChase RecordsSteepleChase Records is a jazz record label based in Copenhagen, Denmark. SteepleChase was founded in 1972 by Nils Winther, who was a student at Copenhagen University at the time...
) - Saturday MorningSaturday Morning (album)Saturday Morning is a slow bluesy jazz album by alto saxophonist Sonny Criss, recorded on March 1, 1975 for Xanadu Records.-Track listing:#"Angel Eyes"#"Tin Tin Deo "#"Jeannie's Knees"#"Saturday Morning"#"My Heart Stood Still"...
by Sonny CrissSonny CrissWilliam "Sonny" Criss was an American jazz musician.An alto saxophonist of prominence during the bebop era of jazz, he was one of many players influenced by Charlie Parker.-Biography:...
(1975; Xanadu RecordsXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
) - Al Cohn's AmericaAl Cohn's AmericaAl Cohn's America is a jazz album by saxophonist Al Cohn, recorded in 1976 for Xanadu Records.-Track listing:#"You're My Thrill"#"Pauletta"#"Neptune"#"This Masquerade"#"Magic Carpet"#"Shapes"- Personnel :* Al Cohn – sax...
by Al CohnAl CohnAl Cohn was an American jazz saxophonist and arranger and composer.-Biography:Alvin Gilbert Cohn was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was initially known in the 1940s for playing in Woody Herman's Second Herd as one of the Four Brothers, along with Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, and Serge Chaloff...
(1976; Xanadu RecordsXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
) - True BlueTrue Blue (jazz album)True Blue is a jazz album by saxophonist Dexter Gordon and saxophonist Al Cohn, recorded in 1976 for Xanadu Records.- Personnel :* Al Cohn & Dexter Gordon - tenor saxophone* Blue Mitchell & Sam Noto - trumpet* Barry Harris piano...
by Al CohnAl CohnAl Cohn was an American jazz saxophonist and arranger and composer.-Biography:Alvin Gilbert Cohn was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was initially known in the 1940s for playing in Woody Herman's Second Herd as one of the Four Brothers, along with Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, and Serge Chaloff...
, Dexter GordonDexter GordonDexter Gordon was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and an Academy Award-nominated actor . He is regarded as one of the first and most important musicians to adapt the bebop musical language of people like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell to the tenor saxophone...
(1976; Xanadu RecordsXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
) - Silver BlueSilver Blue (album)Silver Blue is a jazz album by saxophonists Al Cohn and Dexter Gordon, recorded in 1976 for Xanadu Records.- Personnel :* Al Cohn & Dexter Gordon - tenor saxophone* Blue Mitchell & Sam Noto - trumpet* Barry Harris piano* Sam Jones - bass guitar...
by Al CohnAl CohnAl Cohn was an American jazz saxophonist and arranger and composer.-Biography:Alvin Gilbert Cohn was born in Brooklyn, New York. He was initially known in the 1940s for playing in Woody Herman's Second Herd as one of the Four Brothers, along with Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, and Serge Chaloff...
, Dexter GordonDexter GordonDexter Gordon was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and an Academy Award-nominated actor . He is regarded as one of the first and most important musicians to adapt the bebop musical language of people like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell to the tenor saxophone...
(1976; Xanadu RecordsXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
) - The Colossus of DetroitThe Colossus of DetroitThe Colossus Of Detroit is an album by jazz saxophonist Billy Mitchell, released in 1978 by Xanadu Records.-Track listing:#"Recorda-Me"#"I Had the Craziest Dream"#"I Should Care"#"Unforgettable"#"How Am I to Know"#"Be My Guest"- Personnel :...
by Billy MitchellBilly Mitchell (jazz musician)Billy Mitchell was an American jazz tenor saxophonist known for his close association with fellow Detroiter Thad Jones and work with a variety of big bands including Woody Herman when he replaced Gene Ammons in his band...
(1978; Xanadu RecordsXanadu RecordsXanadu Records was a jazz music record label specializing in bebop throughout the 1970s and 1980s founded by Don Schlitten, recording and issuing recordings by some legendary names in jazz music.-Discography:...
) - Swinging The Blues by The Earl May Quartet featuring Barry Harris (2005; Arbors RecordsArbors RecordsArbors Records is an independent American jazz record label based in Clearwater, Florida. It was founded by the family team of Mat and Rachel Domber in 1989, initially devoted to the recordings of their friend Rick Fay.-History:...
)