It has been widely reported online and across social media that Horace Silver, one of jazz’s most prolific composers and influential pianists, has died aged 85 after a lengthy illness. Perhaps best remembered for his hard-bop output on Blue Note, for whom he recorded from the beginning of his recording career until the 1970s, he first appeared on a session with Lou Donaldson in 1952. This in turn led to the start of his solo recording career at the label. Teaming up with hard-swinging drummer Art Blakey in 1953 saw the pair create a milestone in the development of hard-bop, Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers, which featured soon-to-be standards ‘Doodlin’’ and ‘The Preacher’. His vast body of work for the label went on to include such classic albums as Six Pieces of Silver, Blowin’ The Blues Away, Song For My Father, Cape Verdean Blues, Finger Poppin’ with the Horace Silver Quintet and The Tokyo Blues among many others.
Born on 2 September 1928 in Norwalk Connecticut, Silver initially started out on saxophone and piano, drawing on the blues and gospel music as well as the sax style of Lester Young and piano style of Bud Powell as formative influences. His early break came in 1950 when his trio were playing at the Sundown Club in Hartford, Connecticut and one night found themselves backing visiting sax star Stan Getz, who was so impressed he took them on the road and recorded three of Silver’s tunes – the pianist making his recording debut with the sax great. A year later Silver moved to New York and was soon working with a host of the pre-eminent saxophonists of the time including Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young and, and his original link to Blue Note, Lou Donaldson.
While his writing and piano style were in themselves hugely important in the development of the punchy accessibility of hard bop, his band too served as springboard for a wide range of emerging sax and trumpet stylists including Donald Byrd, Woody Shaw, Joe Henderson, Benny Golson and the Brecker Brothers, who all passed through this unique finishing school at early stages in their careers. Silver’s influence even stretched to wild avant garde pianist Cecil Taylor who claimed he had taken elements of his style into his playing and Dave Douglas, one of today’s most adventurous trumpeters, spent time in one of his later line ups.
Leaving Blue Note in the late 1970s Silver started his own label, Silverto, but in spite of the high quality of his self-released recordings the albums struggled to make an impact due to poor distribution and a decade later he had signed a new deal with Colombia. He then when on to record for Impulse!, GRP and Universal releasing The Hard Bop Grandpop (1996), A Prescription for the Blues (1997) and Jazz Has a Sense of Humor (1999). Always working with the finest musicians, even reuniting with Michael and Randy Brecker on A Prescription for the Blues, it’s testimony to Silver’s instantly recognisable style that no matter who he played with, he always sounded like himself.
– Mike Flynn
(απο το jazzwisemagazine.com )
Born on 2 September 1928 in Norwalk Connecticut, Silver initially started out on saxophone and piano, drawing on the blues and gospel music as well as the sax style of Lester Young and piano style of Bud Powell as formative influences. His early break came in 1950 when his trio were playing at the Sundown Club in Hartford, Connecticut and one night found themselves backing visiting sax star Stan Getz, who was so impressed he took them on the road and recorded three of Silver’s tunes – the pianist making his recording debut with the sax great. A year later Silver moved to New York and was soon working with a host of the pre-eminent saxophonists of the time including Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young and, and his original link to Blue Note, Lou Donaldson.
While his writing and piano style were in themselves hugely important in the development of the punchy accessibility of hard bop, his band too served as springboard for a wide range of emerging sax and trumpet stylists including Donald Byrd, Woody Shaw, Joe Henderson, Benny Golson and the Brecker Brothers, who all passed through this unique finishing school at early stages in their careers. Silver’s influence even stretched to wild avant garde pianist Cecil Taylor who claimed he had taken elements of his style into his playing and Dave Douglas, one of today’s most adventurous trumpeters, spent time in one of his later line ups.
Leaving Blue Note in the late 1970s Silver started his own label, Silverto, but in spite of the high quality of his self-released recordings the albums struggled to make an impact due to poor distribution and a decade later he had signed a new deal with Colombia. He then when on to record for Impulse!, GRP and Universal releasing The Hard Bop Grandpop (1996), A Prescription for the Blues (1997) and Jazz Has a Sense of Humor (1999). Always working with the finest musicians, even reuniting with Michael and Randy Brecker on A Prescription for the Blues, it’s testimony to Silver’s instantly recognisable style that no matter who he played with, he always sounded like himself.
– Mike Flynn
(απο το jazzwisemagazine.com )
