- John Gilmore (musician)
:"This article is about John Gilmore, the jazz saxophonist. See
John Gilmore for other people with this name."Infobox musical artist
Name = John Gilmore
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Background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
Birth_name = John Gilmore
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Born = ca.28 September or29 October ,1931
Died = ca.19 August or20 August ,1995
Origin = Summit,Mississippi , USA
Instrument =tenor saxophone
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Genre =Jazz Avant-garde jazz
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Associated_acts =Clifford Jordan ,Horace Silver ,Art Blakey
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Notable_instruments =John Gilmore (
28 September or29 October ,1931 in Summit,Mississippi -19 August or20 August ,1995 in Philadelphia,Pennsylvania ,United States ) was an Americanjazz tenor saxophone player best-known for his long tenure as a member ofSun Ra 's Arkestra. Aside from his primary instrument of tenor sax, Gilmore occasionally playedbass clarinet and percussion.Biography
Gilmore grew up in Chicago and played clarinet from the age of 14. [cite book| last =Lock | first =Graham| title =Chasing the Vibration| publisher =Stride Publications| date =1994| location =Devon| pages =156-163| isbn=1873012810] He took up the tenor saxophone while serving in the
United States Air Force from 1948-1952, then pursued a musical career, playing briefly with pianistEarl Hines before encounteringSun Ra in 1953.For the next four decades, Gilmore recorded and performed almost exclusively with Sun Ra. This was puzzling to some, who noted Gilmore's talent, and thought he could be a major star like
John Coltrane orSonny Rollins . Coltrane, in fact, was impressed with Gilmore's playing, and took informal lessons from him in the late 1950's. Coltrane's epochal, proto-free jazz "Chasin' the Trane" was inspired partly by Gilmore's sound.In 1957 he co-led with
Clifford Jordan a Blue Note date that is regarded as ahard bop classic: "Blowing In from Chicago".Horace Silver ,Curly Russell , andArt Blakey provided the rhythm section. In the mid-1960s Gilmore toured with the Jazz Messengers and he participated in recording sessions withPaul Bley ,Andrew Hill ("Andrew!" and "Compulsion"), Pete La Roca ("Turkish Women at the Bath"),McCoy Tyner ("Today and Tomorrow") and a handful of others. In 1970 he co-led a recording with Jamaican trumpeterDizzy Reece . His main focus throughout, however, remained with the Sun Ra Arkestra.Gilmore's devotion to Sun Ra was due, in part, to the latter's use of
harmony , which Gilmore considered both unique and a logical extension ofbebop . Gilmore had stated that Sun Ra was "more stretched out than Monk" [cite web |last=Campbell|first=Robert L|url=http://www.dpo.uab.edu/~moudry/camp1.htm |title=FROM SONNY BLOUNT TO SUN RA: The Birmingham and Chicago Years |accessdate=2007-06-23 |format= |work= ] and that "I'm not gonna run across anybody who's moving as fast as Sun Ra ... So I just stay where I am." [cite web |last=Corbett|first=John|url=http://members.tripod.com/~hardbop/gilmore.html |title= John Gilmore |accessdate=2007-06-23 |format= |work= ]Gilmore himself made a huge contribution to Sun Ra's recordings and was the Arkestra's leading sideman, being given solos on almost every track on which he appeared. In the "
Rough Guide to Jazz" criticBrian Priestley says:Gilmore is known for two rather different styles of tenor playing. On performances of a straight ahead
Many fans of jazz saxophone consider him to be among the greatest ever, his fame shrouded in the relative anonymity of being a member of Sun Ra's Arkestra. His "straight ahead post-bop" talents are exemplified in his solo on the Arkestra's rendition of "Blue Lou," as seen on "Mystery, Mr. Ra".post-bop character (which include many of those with Sun Ra), he runs the changes with a fluency and tone halfway betweenJohnny Griffin andWardell Gray , and with a rhythmic and motivic approach which he claims influenced Coltrane. On more abstract material, he is capable of long passages based exclusively on high-register squeals. Especially when heard live, Gilmore was one of the few musicians who carried sufficient conviction to encompass both approaches."After Sun Ra's 1993 death, Gilmore led Ra's "Arkestra" for a few years before his own death from
emphysema .Marshall Allen then took over Arkestra leadership.Discography
Solo
*"Blowing In From Chicago " (Blue Note 1957)WithAndrew Hill
*"Andrew!!! " (Blue Note 1964)
*Compulsion!!!!! (Blue Note 1966)WithChick Corea
*"Bliss! " (Muse, 1973)WithArt Blakey
*"'S Make It " (Limelight 1965)References
External links
* [http://www.jazzhouse.org/gone/lastpost2.php3?edit=920671464 John Gilmore obituary]
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