Frank Strozier
Encyclopedia
Frank Strozier is an alto saxophonist
renowned for his playing in the hard bop
idiom.
Strozier grew up in Memphis Memphis, Tennessee
. He recorded with the MJT + 3 from 1959–1960, and led sessions for Vee-Jay Records
.
After moving to New York, Strozier was briefly with the Miles Davis
Quintet in 1963 (between the tenures of Hank Mobley
and George Coleman
) and also gigged with Roy Haynes
.
He relocated to Los Angeles, where he worked with Chet Baker
, Shelly Manne
, and most notably the Don Ellis
big band.
Returning to New York in 1971, Strozier worked with the Jazz Contemporaries, the New York Jazz Repertory Company, Horace Parlan
and Woody Shaw
, as well others.
Alto saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions...
renowned for his playing in the hard bop
Hard bop
Hard bop is a style of jazz that is an extension of bebop music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz which incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gospel music, and blues, especially in the saxophone and piano...
idiom.
Strozier grew up in Memphis Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
. He recorded with the MJT + 3 from 1959–1960, and led sessions for Vee-Jay Records
Vee-Jay Records
Vee-Jay Records is a record label founded in the 1950s, specializing in blues, jazz, rhythm and blues and rock and roll. It was owned and operated by African Americans.-History:...
.
After moving to New York, Strozier was briefly with the Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
Quintet in 1963 (between the tenures of Hank Mobley
Hank Mobley
Henry 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...
and George Coleman
George Coleman
George Edward Coleman is an American hard bop saxophonist, bandleader, and composer, known chiefly for his work with Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock in the 1960s.-Biography:...
) and also gigged with Roy Haynes
Roy Haynes
Roy Owen Haynes is an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Haynes is among the most recorded drummers in jazz, and in a career lasting more than 60 years has played in a wide range of styles ranging from swing and bebop to jazz fusion and avant-garde jazz...
.
He relocated to Los Angeles, where he worked with Chet Baker
Chet Baker
Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker, Jr. was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist and singer.Though his music earned him a large following , Baker's popularity was due in part to his "matinee idol-beauty" and "well-publicized drug habit."He died in 1988 in Amsterdam, the...
, Shelly Manne
Shelly Manne
Shelly Manne , born Sheldon Manne in New York City, was an American jazz drummer. Most frequently associated with West Coast jazz, he was known for his versatility and also played in a number of other styles, including Dixieland, swing, bebop, avant-garde jazz and fusion, as well as contributing...
, and most notably the Don Ellis
Don Ellis
Don Ellis was an American jazz trumpeter, drummer, composer and bandleader. He is best known for his extensive musical experimentation, particularly in the area of unusual time signatures...
big band.
Returning to New York in 1971, Strozier worked with the Jazz Contemporaries, the New York Jazz Repertory Company, Horace Parlan
Horace Parlan
Horace Parlan is an American hard bop and post-bop piano player.He is noted for his contributions to the classic Charles Mingus recordings Mingus Ah Um and Blues & Roots....
and Woody Shaw
Woody Shaw
Woody Shaw was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer and band leader, often referred to as the "last innovator" in the jazz trumpet lineage...
, as well others.
As leader
- 1960: The Fantastic Frank Strozier (Vee Jay) with Booker LittleBooker LittleBooker Little, Jr was an American jazz trumpeter and composer.-Biography:Despite his premature death from kidney failure at the age of 23, Little made an important contribution to jazz. Stylistically, his sound is rooted in the playing of Clifford Brown, featuring crisp articulation, a burnished...
, Wynton KellyWynton KellyWynton Kelly was a Jamaican-born jazz pianist, who spent his career in the United States. He is perhaps best known for working with trumpeter Miles Davis from 1959-1962.-Biography:...
, Paul ChambersPaul ChambersPaul Laurence Dunbar Chambers, Jr. was a jazz bassist. A fixture of rhythm sections during the 1950s and 1960s, his importance in the development of jazz bass can be measured not only by the length and breadth of his work in this short period but also his impeccable time, intonation, and virtuosic...
, Jimmy CobbJimmy Cobb-External links:* - includes full discography* * * * * * *... - 1960: Waltz Of The Demons (Atlantic) with Booker Little, Wynton Kelly, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb
- 1960: Cloudy and Cool (Vee Jay) with Billy Wallace, Bill LeeBill Lee (musician)William James Edwards "Bill" Lee III is an American musician. He has played the bass for many artists including Cat Stevens, Harry Belafonte, Chad Mitchell Trio, Gordon Lightfoot, Aretha Franklin, Odetta, Simon and Garfunkel, and Bob Dylan...
, Vernel FournierVernel fournierVernel Anthony Fournier and, from 1975, known as Amir Rushdan, was a jazz drummer probably best known for his work with Ahmad Jamal from 1956 to 1962.... - 1961: Long Night (JazzlandRiverside 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...
) - 1962: March Of The Siamese Children (Jazzland)
- 1976: Remember Me (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...
) with Harold MabernHarold MabernHarold Mabern is a hard bop and soul jazz pianist.Early in his career, Mabern played in Chicago with Walter Perkins' MJT + 3 in the late 1950s before moving to New York in 1959. Mabern has worked with Jimmy Forrest, Lionel Hampton, the Jazztet , Donald Byrd, Miles Davis , J. J...
, Howard JohnsonHoward Johnson (jazz musician)Howard Lewis Johnson in Montgomery, Alabama, is an American jazz musician known mainly for his work on tuba and baritone saxophone, although he also plays the bass clarinet, trumpet and other reed instruments.... - 1977: What's Going On (Steeplechase)
As sideman
- Chet BakerChet BakerChesney Henry "Chet" Baker, Jr. was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist and singer.Though his music earned him a large following , Baker's popularity was due in part to his "matinee idol-beauty" and "well-publicized drug habit."He died in 1988 in Amsterdam, the...
: Baby Breeze (Verve, 1965), with Phil UrsoPhil UrsoPhil Urso was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and composer....
, Kenny BurrellKenny BurrellKenneth Earl "Kenny" Burrell is an American jazz guitarist. His playing is grounded in bebop and blues; he has performed and recorded with a wide range of jazz musicians.-Biography:...
, Bob JamesBob James (musician)Robert McElhiney James is a jazz keyboardist, arranger and producer.-Biography:During the 1970s, Bob James played a major role in establishing the smooth jazz genre. "Angela", the instrumental theme from the sitcom Taxi, is probably Bob James' most well-known work to date...
, Hal GalperHal Galper-Biography:He studied classical piano as a boy, but switched to jazz which he studied at the Berklee College of Music from 1955 to 1958. He hung out at Herb Pomeroy's club, The Stable, hearing local Boston musicians like Jackie Byard, Alan Dawson and Sam Rivers. Galper started sitting in and became...
, Michael Fleming, Charlie Rice, Bobby ScottBobby Scott (musician)Bobby Scott was an American musician, record producer, and songwriter.-Biography:He was born Robert William Scott in Mount Pleasant, New York, and became a pianist, vibraphonist, and singer, and could also play the accordion, cello, clarinet, and double bass... - Don Ellis OrchestraDon EllisDon Ellis was an American jazz trumpeter, drummer, composer and bandleader. He is best known for his extensive musical experimentation, particularly in the area of unusual time signatures...
: Autumn (Columbia, 1968) - Booker ErvinBooker ErvinBooker Telleferro Ervin II was an American tenor saxophone player. He was perhaps best known for his association with bassist Charles Mingus....
: Exultation!Exultation!Exultation! is an album by American jazz saxophonist Booker Ervin featuring performances recorded in 1963 for the Prestige label.-Reception:...
(Prestige, 1963) - Louis HayesLouis HayesLouis Hayes is an American jazz drummer.-Biography:His father played drums and piano and his mother the piano and he refers to the early influence of hearing jazz, especially that of big bands, on the radio...
: Variety Is the Spice (Gryphon, 1977) - Roy HaynesRoy HaynesRoy Owen Haynes is an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Haynes is among the most recorded drummers in jazz, and in a career lasting more than 60 years has played in a wide range of styles ranging from swing and bebop to jazz fusion and avant-garde jazz...
: Cymbalism (OJC, 1963) - Stafford JamesStafford James-Biography:As a young man, Stafford James enlisted in the Air Force; after his discharge he studied at the University of Chicago with Rudolf Fahsbender. In 1969 he moved to New York City and studied under Julius Levine at the Mannes College for Music. Here he met Pharaoh Sanders, with whom he...
: The Stafford James Ensemble (Red, 1977) - MJT + 3: Walter Perkins' MJT + 3 (Vee-Jay, 1959), with Willie Thomas, Harold MabernHarold MabernHarold Mabern is a hard bop and soul jazz pianist.Early in his career, Mabern played in Chicago with Walter Perkins' MJT + 3 in the late 1950s before moving to New York in 1959. Mabern has worked with Jimmy Forrest, Lionel Hampton, the Jazztet , Donald Byrd, Miles Davis , J. J...
, Bob CranshawBob CranshawMelbourne R. "Bob" Cranshaw is an American jazz bassist. His career spans the heyday of Blue Note Records to his recent involvement with the Musicians Union. He is perhaps best known for his long association with Sonny Rollins...
, Walter Perkins - MJT + 3: Make Everybody Happy (Vee-Jay, 1960)
- MJT + 3: MJT + 3 (Vee-Jay, 1960)
- MJT + 3: Message from Walton Steet (Koch Records, 2000)
- Horace ParlanHorace ParlanHorace Parlan is an American hard bop and post-bop piano player.He is noted for his contributions to the classic Charles Mingus recordings Mingus Ah Um and Blues & Roots....
: Frank-ly SpeakingFrank-ly SpeakingFrank-ly Speaking is an album by American jazz pianist Horace Parlan featuring performances recorded in the U.S. in 1977 and released on the Danish-based SteepleChase label.-Reception:...
(SteepleChaseSteepleChase 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...
, 1977) - The Three SoundsThe Three SoundsThe Three Sounds were an American jazz trio that formed in 1956 and disbanded in 1973. The trio played and recorded with Lester Young, Lou Donaldson, Nat Adderley, Johnny Griffin, Anita O'Day, Bucky Pizzarelli, Stanley Turrentine and Sonny Stitt among others.The band formed in Benton Harbor,...
and the Oliver NelsonOliver NelsonOliver Edward Nelson was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger and composer.-Early life and career:...
Orchestra: Coldwater FlatColdwater FlatColdwater Flat is an album by jazz group The Three Sounds featuring performances with an orchestra arranged by Oliver Nelson recorded in 1968 and released on the Blue Note label.-Reception:...
(Blue Note, 1968) - The Young LionsThe Young Lions (band)The Young Lions were a jazz ensemble consisting of Lee Morgan, Frank Strozier, Wayne Shorter, Bobby Timmons, Bob Cranshaw, Louis Hayes, and Albert "Tootie" Heath. They released one album in 1960 for Vee Jay Records....
: The Young Lions (Vee-Jay, 1960) with Lee MorganLee MorganEdward Lee Morgan was an American hard bop trumpeter.-Biography:...
, Wayne ShorterWayne ShorterWayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
, Bobby TimmonsBobby TimmonsRobert Henry "Bobby" Timmons was an African American jazz pianist and composer.He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and is best known for his role as sideman in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and the composition of "Moanin'", "Dat Dere", and "This Here", each of which are typical of his...
, Bob CranshawBob CranshawMelbourne R. "Bob" Cranshaw is an American jazz bassist. His career spans the heyday of Blue Note Records to his recent involvement with the Musicians Union. He is perhaps best known for his long association with Sonny Rollins...
, Louis HayesLouis HayesLouis Hayes is an American jazz drummer.-Biography:His father played drums and piano and his mother the piano and he refers to the early influence of hearing jazz, especially that of big bands, on the radio...
, Albert "Tootie" Heath