Art Blakey

Arthur (Art) Blakey, also known as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina, (October 11, 1919 - October 16, 1990) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Along with Kenny Clarke and Max Roach he was one of the inventors of the modern, bebop style of drumming. He was known as a powerful musician and a ferocious groover. He is undoubtedly one of the most influential jazz musicians ever; his brand of bluesy, funky hard bop is now the mainstream form of jazz. Over more than thirty years his band, the Jazz Messengers, included many young musicians who went on to become some of the most prominent names in jazz, including Jackie McLean, Freddie Hubbard, Wayne Shorter, Curtis Fuller, Donald Byrd, Cedar Walton, Lee Morgan, Hank Mobley, Benny Golson, Bobby Timmons, Jymie Merritt, Wynton Marsalis, Gary Bartz, Keith Jarrett, and Johnny Griffin. It is now widely regarded as an important training ground for many of the best young hard bop players of the time.

The Jazz Messengers

In 1955 he and pianist Horace Silver were co-leading the Jazz Messengers, an acoustic hard bop ensemble. The name was first used on a 1954 recording nominally led by Silver, also featuring Hank Mobley, Kenny Dorham and Doug Watkins - the same quintet would record The Jazz Messengers at the Cafe Bohemia the following year, still as a collective rather than being led by Blakey. Blakey took over the group name when Silver left after the band's first year, and the band was known as "Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers" from then on.

Related Topics:
1955 - Horace Silver - Hard bop - 1954 - Hank Mobley - Kenny Dorham - Doug Watkins

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Two of the group's most famous lineups featured Wayne Shorter on saxophone. The first was a quintet that existed from 1959 to 1961 and included Blakey, Shorter, Jymie Merritt, Lee Morgan, and Bobby Timmons. The second was a sextet that added trombonist Curtis Fuller and replaced Morgan and Timmons with Freddie Hubbard and Cedar Walton, respectively. Shorter was the musical director of the group, and contributed many original compositions.

Related Topics:
Wayne Shorter - Jymie Merritt - Lee Morgan - Bobby Timmons - Curtis Fuller - Freddie Hubbard - Cedar Walton

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