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Jackie McLean

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For other persons named John McLean, see John McLean (disambiguation).

Jackie McLean
McLean in 1982
McLean in 1982
Background information
Birth nameJohn Lenwood McLean
Born(1931-05-17)May 17, 1931
New York City, U.S.
DiedMarch 31, 2006(2006-03-31) (aged 74)
Hartford, Connecticut, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • composer
  • educator
InstrumentAlto saxophone
Years active1951–2004

John Lenwood McLean (May 17, 1931 – March 31, 2006)[1] was an American jazz alto saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and educator. He is one of the few musicians to be elected to the DownBeat Hall of Fame in the year of their death.

Biography

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McLean was born in Harlem, New York City.[2][1] His father, John Sr., played guitar in Tiny Bradshaw's orchestra. After his father's death in 1939, Jackie's musical education was continued by his godfather, his record-store-owning stepfather, and several noted teachers. He also received informal tutoring from neighbors Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, and Charlie Parker. During high school McLean played in a band with Kenny Drew, Sonny Rollins, and Andy Kirk, Jr. (the saxophonist son[3] of Andy Kirk).

Along with Rollins, McLean played on Miles Davis' Dig album when he was 20 years old. As a young man he also recorded with Gene Ammons, Charles Mingus (for Pithecanthropus Erectus), George Wallington, and as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. McLean joined Blakey after reportedly being punched by Mingus. Fearing for his life, McLean pulled out a knife and contemplated using it against Mingus in self-defense, but later stated he was grateful that he had not stabbed the bassist.[4]

McLean's early recordings as leader were in the hard bop school. He later became an exponent of modal jazz without abandoning his foundation in hard bop. Throughout his career he was known for a distinctive tone, akin to the tenor saxophone and often described with such adjectives as "bittersweet", "piercing", or "searing", a slightly sharp pitch, and a strong foundation in the blues.

McLean was a heroin addict throughout his early career, and the resulting loss of his New York City cabaret card forced him to undertake a large number of recording dates to earn income in the absence of nightclub performance opportunities. Consequently, he produced an extensive body of recorded work in the 1950s and 1960s. He was under contract with Blue Note Records from 1959 to 1967, having previously recorded for Prestige. Blue Note offered better pay and more artistic control than other labels, and his work for this organization is highly regarded and includes leadership and sideman dates with a wide range of musicians, including Donald Byrd, Sonny Clark, Lee Morgan, Ornette Coleman, Dexter Gordon, Freddie Redd, Billy Higgins, Freddie Hubbard, Grachan Moncur III, Bobby Hutcherson, Mal Waldron, Tina Brooks and many others.

In 1962, he recorded Let Freedom Ring for Blue Note. This album was the culmination of attempts he had made over the years to deal with harmonic problems in jazz, incorporating ideas from the free jazz developments of Ornette Coleman and the "new breed" which inspired his blending of hard bop with the "new thing": "the search is on, Let Freedom Ring". Let Freedom Ring began a period in which he performed with avant-garde jazz musicians rather than the veteran hard bop performers he had been playing with previously. His adaptation of modal jazz and free jazz innovations to his vision of hard bop made his recordings from 1962 on distinctive.

McLean recorded with dozens of musicians and had a gift for spotting talent. Saxophonist Tina Brooks, trumpeter Charles Tolliver, pianist Larry Willis, trumpeter Bill Hardman, and tubist Ray Draper were among those who benefited from McLean's support in the 1950s and 1960s. Drummers such as Tony Williams, Jack DeJohnette, Lenny White, Michael Carvin, and Carl Allen gained important early experience with McLean.

In 1967, his recording contract, like those of many other progressive musicians, was terminated by Blue Note's new management. His opportunities to record promised so little pay that he abandoned recording as a way to earn a living, concentrating instead on touring. In 1968, he began teaching at The Hartt School of the University of Hartford. He later set up the university's African American Music Department (now the Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz) and its Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies program. His Steeplechase recording New York Calling, made with his son René McLean, showed that by 1980 the assimilation of all influences was complete.

In 1970, he and his wife, Dollie McLean, along with jazz bassist Paul (PB) Brown, founded the Artists Collective, Inc. of Hartford, an organization dedicated to preserving the art and culture of the African Diaspora. It provides educational programs and instruction in dance, theatre, music and visual arts. The membership of McLean's later bands were drawn from his students in Hartford, including Steve Davis and his son René, who is a jazz saxophonist and flautist as well as a jazz educator. Also in McLean's Hartford group was Mark Berman, the jazz pianist and broadway conductor of Smokey Joe's Cafe and Rent. In 1979 he reached No. 53 in the UK Singles Chart with "Doctor Jackyll and Mister Funk".[5] This track, released on RCA as a 12" single, was an unusual sidestep for McLean to contribute towards the funk/disco revolution of the late 1970s. Many people, at the time, in the clubs where it was played confused the female singers on the track with his name thinking he was actually female.

He received an American Jazz Masters fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts in 2001 and numerous other national and international awards. McLean was the only American jazz musician to found a department of studies at a university and a community-based organization almost simultaneously. Each has existed for over three decades.

McLean died on March 31, 2006, in Hartford, Connecticut, after a long illness.[1] In 2006 he was elected to the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame via the International Critics Poll.[6] He is interred in Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx, New York City, with an image of him playing the saxophone, etched in black granite, high on a hill.[7]

A. B. Spellman's 1966 study, Black Music, Four Lives: Cecil Taylor, Ornette Coleman, Herbie Nichols, Jackie McLean, still in print,[8] includes extensive mid-career reflections by McLean on his youth and career to date. Derek Ansell's full-length biography of McLean, Sugar Free Saxophone.[9] details the story of his career and provides a full analysis of his music on record.

Discography

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As leader/co-leader

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Recording date Title / Co-leader Label Year released Notes
1955-10 Presenting... Jackie McLean Ad Lib 1955
1956-01 Lights Out! Prestige 1956
1956-07 4, 5 and 6 Prestige 1956
1956-08 Jackie's Pal a.k.a. Steeplechase Prestige 1957 As Jackie McLean Quintet (introducing Bill Hardman)
1956-12,
1957-02 		McLean's Scene Prestige (New Jazz) 1959
1957-02 Jackie McLean & Co. Prestige 1957
1957-05 Alto Madness with John Jenkins Prestige 1957
1957-02,
1957-07 		Strange Blues Prestige 1967
1957-02,
1957-08 		Makin' the Changes Prestige (New Jazz) 1960
1957-02,
1957-08 		A Long Drink of the Blues Prestige (New Jazz) 1961
1957-12 Fat Jazz Jubilee 1959
1959-05 New Soil Blue Note 1959
1959-10 Swing, Swang, Swingin' Blue Note 1960
1960-04 Capuchin Swing Blue Note 1960
1960-06 Street Singer with Tina Brooks Blue Note 1980
1959-01,
1960-09 		Jackie's Bag Blue Note 1961
1961-01 Bluesnik Blue Note 1962
1961-10 A Fickle Sonance Blue Note 1962
1961-11 Inta Somethin' with Kenny Dorham Pacific Jazz 1962
1962-03 Let Freedom Ring Blue Note 1963
1962-09 Tippin' the Scales Blue Note 1979 Blue Note Sekai Hatsutōjō 1800 Series (Japan only)
1959-05,
1962-06,
1963-02 		Vertigo Blue Note 1980 LT series
1963-04 One Step Beyond Blue Note 1964
1963-09 Destination... Out! Blue Note 1964
1964-08 It's Time! Blue Note 1965
1964-09 Action Action Action Blue Note 1967
1965-01 Right Now! Blue Note 1966
1965-12 Consequence Blue Note 1979 LT series
1965-09,
1966-04 		Jacknife Blue Note 1975
1966-12 Dr. Jackle SteepleChase 1979
1966-12 Tune Up SteepleChase 1981
1962-06,
1967-02 		Hipnosis Blue Note 1978
1967-03 New and Old Gospel Blue Note 1968
1967-09 'Bout Soul Blue Note 1969
1967-12 Demon's Dance Blue Note 1970
1972-08 Live at Montmartre SteepleChase 1972 Live
1973-07 Altissimo with Lee Konitz, Gary Bartz and Charlie Mariano Philips 1973
1973-07 Ode to Super SteepleChase 1973 featuring Gary Bartz
1973-07 A Ghetto Lullaby SteepleChase 1974 Live
1973-07 The Meeting SteepleChase 1974 Live featuring Dexter Gordon
1973-07 The Source SteepleChase 1974 featuring Dexter Gordon (Vol. 2)
1974-08 Antiquity with Michael Carvin SteepleChase 1975
1974-10 New York Calling SteepleChase 1974 with the Cosmic Brotherhood (Billy Skinner, René McLean, Billy Gault, James "Fish" Benjamin, Michael Carvin)
1976-04 Like Old Times with Mal Waldron Victor (JP) 1976
1978-04 New Wine in Old Bottles East Wind (JP) 1978
1978-11 –
1979-01 		Monuments RCA 1979
1985-04 It's About Time with McCoy Tyner Blue Note 1985
1986-09 Left Alone '86 with Mal Waldron Paddle Wheel 1986 Live
1988-11 Dynasty Triloka 1990 featuring René McLean
1991-01 Rites of Passage Triloka 1991 featuring René McLean
1991-04 The Jackie Mac Attack Live Birdology/Verve 1993 Live
1992-03 Rhythm of the Earth Antilles/Birdology 1992
1996-01 Hat Trick Somethin' Else (JP) 1996 with Junko Onishi
1997-07 Fire & Love Somethin' Else (JP)/Blue Note 1997
1999-06 Nature Boy Somethin' Else (JP)/Blue Note 1999

Compilations

  • Complete 1955-1957 Quartet Quintet Sextet Sessions (Jazz Connections, 2007) – comprises Presenting... Jackie McLean up to Fat Jazz
  • The Complete Jubilee Sessions (Lone Hill Jazz, 2008) – combines Fat Jazz and Jackie McLean Quintet

As sideman

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The sortable table's default is the date of the recording session. An asterisk (*) behind the album's title signifies only a minor contribution by McLean to the recording.

Recorded date Leader Album Label Year released
1951-01,
1951-10 		Miles Davis Blue Period Blue Note 1953
1951-10 Miles Davis The New Sounds Blue Note 1951
1951-10 Miles Davis Dig Blue Note 1956
1952-05 Miles Davis Young Man with a Horn Blue Note 1953
1952-05 Miles Davis Miles Davis Vols. 1 & 2 Blue Note 1956
1955-08 Miles Davis (and Milt Jackson) Quintet/Sextet Prestige 1956
1955-09 George Wallington Live at the Café Bohemia Progressive 1956
1956-01 Charles Mingus Jazz Workshop Pithecanthropus Erectus Atlantic 1956
1956-04 Gene Ammons Hi Fidelity Jam Session a.k.a. The Happy Blues Prestige 1956
1956-07 Gene Ammons Jammin' with Gene Prestige 1956
1956-07 Hank Mobley Mobley's Message Prestige 1957
1956-08 Art Farmer and Donald Byrd 2 Trumpets Prestige 1957
1956-12 Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers Hard Bop Columbia 1957
1956-12 Art Blakey Originally Columbia 1982
1956-12 Art Blakey Drum Suite Columbia 1957
1957-01 Gene Ammons Funky Prestige 1957
1957-01,
1957-02 		Art Blakey Ritual Pacific Jazz 1960
1957-02 Art Taylor Taylor's Wailers Prestige 1957
1957-03 Kenny Burrell and Jimmy Raney 2 Guitars Prestige 1957
1957-03 Art Blakey A Midnight Session a.k.a. Mirage Elektra, Savoy 1957
1957-03 Ray Draper Tuba Sounds Prestige 1957
1957-04? Art Blakey Tough! Cadet 1966
1957-04 Art Blakey A Night in Tunisia Vik 1957
1957-04 Gene Ammons Jammin' in Hi Fi with Gene Ammons Prestige 1957
1957-04 Mal Waldron Mal/2 (and The Dealers) Prestige (Status) 1957
1958-01 Sonny Clark Cool Struttin' Blue Note 1958
1958-12 Donald Byrd Off to the Races Blue Note 1959
1959-02 Charles Mingus Blues & Roots Atlantic 1960
1959-02 Mal Waldron Left Alone* Bethlehem 1959
1959-08 Walter Davis Jr. Davis Cup Blue Note 1960
1959-10 Donald Byrd Fuego Blue Note 1960
1960-02 Freddie Redd The Music from "The Connection" Blue Note 1960
1960-03 Jimmy Smith Open House Blue Note 1968
1960-03 Jimmy Smith Plain Talk* Blue Note 1968
1960-04 Lee Morgan Lee-Way Blue Note 1961
1960-07 Donald Byrd Byrd in Flight Blue Note 1960
1960-08 Freddie Redd Shades of Redd Blue Note 1961
1960-09 Tina Brooks Back to the Tracks Blue Note 1998
1961 Freddie Redd Redd's Blues Blue Note 1988
1962 Kenny Dorham Matador United Artists 1963
1963 Grachan Moncur III Evolution Blue Note 1964
1964 Lee Morgan Tom Cat Blue Note 1980
1965 Lee Morgan Cornbread Blue Note 1967
1965 Lee Morgan Infinity Blue Note 1981
1966 Lee Morgan Charisma Blue Note 1969
1967 Jack Wilson Easterly Winds Blue Note 1968
1967 Hank Mobley Hi Voltage Blue Note 1968
1967 Lee Morgan The Sixth Sense Blue Note 1970
1976 Mal Waldron Like Old Time Victor (Jp) 1976
1977 Art Farmer Live in Tokyo CTI (Jp) 1977
1985 All Star band One Night with Blue Note Preserved Vol. 2 Blue Note 1985
1989 All star band Birdology: Live at the TBB Jazz Festival (Vol. 1 & 2) Verve (F) 1989, 1990
1989 All star band with Dizzy Gillespie The Paris All Stars - Homage to Charlie Parker A&M 1990
1989 Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers The Art of Jazz In & Out 1989
1990 Abbey Lincoln The World Is Falling Down Verve 1990
1991 Miles Davis Black Devil a.k.a. At La Villette (DVD)* Beech Marten, JVC (Jp) 1992, 2001
1992 Dizzy Gillespie To Bird with Love Telarc 1992
1992 Dizzy Gillespie Bird Songs: The Final Recordings* Telarc 1992

Filmography

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Keepnews, Peter (April 3, 2006). "Jackie McLean, Jazz Saxophonist and Mentor, Dies at 74". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2018. John Lenwood McLean was born in Harlem on May 17, 1931. (Many sources give his year of birth as 1932, but The Grove Dictionary of Jazz and other authoritative reference works say he was born a year earlier.)
  2. ^ "Jackie McLean - Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved October 13, 2018.
  3. ^ Watrous, Peter (December 15, 1992). "Andy Kirk, 94, Big-Band Leader Known for the Kansas City Sound". The New York Times. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  4. ^ Liner notes to the album Dynasty
  5. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 341. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  6. ^ "DownBeat Archives". Downbeat.com. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  7. ^ "Jazz | Woodlawn Cemetery • Crematory • Conservancy". Woodlawn.org. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  8. ^ Spellman, A. B. (2004). Four jazz lives. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. pp. 179–236. ISBN 0472022644.
  9. ^ Ansell, Derek (2013). Sugar free saxophone : the life and music of Jackie McLean. London: Northway Publications. ISBN 978-0955788864.

Further reading

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