Billy Harper
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Billy Harper (born January 17, 1943) is a Jazz saxophonist, "one of a generation of Coltrane-influenced tenor saxophonists" with a distinctively stern, hard-as-nails sound on his instrument.[1] Harper has played with some of jazz's greatest drummers; he served with Art Blakey's Messengers for two years (1968-1970); he played very briefly with Elvin Jones (1970), he played with the Thad Jones/ Mel Lewis Orchestra in the 1970s, and was a member of Max Roach's band in the late '70s.[2] He has also been a frequent member of Randy Weston's ensembles. He performed on Gil Evans' 1973 album Svengali, and contributed two of the most-performed tunes in the band's repertoire: "Priestess" and "Thoroughbred".
His 1973 album Capra Black "remains one of the seminal recordings of jazz's black consciousness movement--a profoundly spiritual effort that channels both the intellectual complexity of the avant garde as well as the emotional potency of gospel".[3] The Italian jazz label Black Saint was launched with Harper's 1975 album Black Saint. His later releases have mostly been on Steeplechase and Evidence.
Contents |
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- Capra Black, 1973 Strata-East Records
- Black Saint, 1975
- Soran-Bushi, B.H., 1977
- Trying to Make Heaven My Home, 1979 MPS Records
- Billy Harper Quintet in Europe, 1979
- Awakening, 1979
- Destiny Is Yours, 1989
- Somalia, 1993
- If Our Hearts Could Only See, 1998
- Soul of an Angel, 2000
- Blueprints of Jazz, Vol. 2, 2009
[edit] Live Concert Films
- Billy Harper in Concert: Live from Poland, 2007
