Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

July 25, 2008 5:34:48 PM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Jazzman Giuffre Dead at 86

Posted Apr 26, 08 6:26 AM CDT in Arts & Living 

(Newser) – The iconoclastic clarinetist and composer Jimmy Giuffre died Thursday, two days before what would have been his 87th birthday, the New York Times reports. The Texas-born jazz legend's 50-year career took him from big-band hits with Woody Herman to minimalist trios, with a stint playing in mess halls as a GI in WWII. Giuffre's experimental, blues-infused styling made him a leading figure in the '50s "cool jazz" scene.

Giuffre's releases in the '60s—"moody, overlapping improvisations with no fixed key or tempo"—didn't enjoy much commercial success at the time, but on their reissue in the '90s, awed critics realized he had been a pioneer for the "long-distance future," Ben Ratliff writes. 

Source New York Times

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • 50 Top Pop Brainiacs

    May 25, 08 11:43 AM CDT
    50 Top Pop Brainiacs "Towering natural abilities" and "exceptional creative powers" infuse the most memorable music of generations, forged by Blender's top 50 pop-music geniuses. The top 10:

    1. Bob Dylan: Each of his brave self-reinventions is "an authentic American original."
    2. John Lennon: "His drive pushed the Beatles from a covers band to the world’s best-loved and most influential pop act."
    3. Chuck Berry: His guitar riffs are still the "bedrock" of rock and roll five decades on.
    4. Bob Marley: "No one did more to define and popularize a musical genre."
    5. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards: Duo created "decade of classics."
    More »

  • Bird Lives! And He Does It in Fanatic Detail

    May 17, 08 6:38 PM CDT
    Bird Lives! And He Does It in Fanatic Detail A white guy from Queens may be our best link to a music rooted in black history. Phil Schapp grew up in a home full of jazz, and has hosted a radio show obsessed with the music's minutiae for decades, the New Yorker reports. He's liable to digress on Charlie Parker's pronunciation of "Okiedoke," but that's an improvement: "For the first twenty years, I was concerned about telling you absolutely everything about every tune," he said. More »

  • E Street Rocker Danny Federici Is Dead at 58

    Apr 18, 08 7:36 AM CDT
    E Street Rocker Danny Federici Is Dead at 58 Longtime Bruce Springsteen keyboardist Danny Federici died yesterday at the age of 58 in New York after a three-year battle with melanoma. As a member of the Boss’ E Street Band, he performed on hit records for decades and helped bring Springsteen into the spotlight after jamming in New Jersey in the 1960s. “We grew up together,” Springsteen said in an online statement. More »

  • Corinne Bailey Rae's Husband Found Dead

    Mar 24, 08 7:54 AM CDT
    Corinne Bailey Rae's Husband Found Dead The husband of British soul singer Corinne Bailey Rae has been found dead from a suspected drug overdose at his home in the UK. Jason Rae, 31, a saxophone player, is said to have struggled with drug abuse for years, according to Britain's Daily Mail. His band, the Haggis Horns, had backed Amy Winehouse. More »

  • Leonard Cohen to Tour

    Mar 19, 08 5:30 PM CDT
    Leonard Cohen to Tour The man Lou Reed called “one of the most important songwriters of our time” will hit the road this summer. Leonard Cohen, 73, will kick off his first tour in 15 years in his native Canada and then head to Europe, the Independent reports. So far, there are no US dates for Cohen, who was enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame earlier this month. More »

The Jimmy Giuffre trio plays a song.   (sky50)
American jazz clarinetist and composer Jimmy Giuffre has died aged 86.   (Magnum Photos)
Jimmy Giuffre's half-century journey through jazz took him from big bands to experimental drummerless trios.   (yusuke1200mk4)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
The Jimmy Giuffre trio plays folk song "The Train and the River."   (sky50)

« Prev « Prev  |  Next » Next »
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (1 of 2)

Tags

music  • obituary  • musician  • jazz  • saxophone


Loading...

Loading...

Today's Most Popular


Other Arts & Living Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »