Bobby Few
Bobby Few (born October 21, 1935 in Cleveland , Ohio , † January 6, 2021 in Paris ) was an American jazz pianist .
Live and act
Few began playing the piano at the age of seven and was trained in both classical music and jazz. The organist Catherine Howland Forbes was his teacher of classical music and Benjamin Austin trained him in jazz. Encouraged by his father's JATP records, he eventually turned more to jazz, while not neglecting classical training.
At the age of 15 he formed the East Jazz Trio in Cleveland with drummer Raymond Farris and bassist Cevera Jeffries Jr. The group, which mainly played standards, stayed together until 1962, the year Few and Jeffries moved to New York on the advice of the Tenor saxophonist Albert Ayler . Through his contacts to the New York music scene, especially his collaboration with Brook Benton , he also got the first opportunity to perform in Europe. The first recordings were made in 1968 when he played in Booker Ervin's band (The "In" Between) ; In early 1969 he worked on Ayler's album Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe . In 1969 he came to Europe again, this time with the Frank Wright Quartet, consisting of Few, Frank Wright, tenor saxophone, Noah Howard , alto saxophone and drummer Muhammad Ali . Few settled in France that same year and toured Europe in a quartet with Wright, Ali and Alan Silva . He also played with Archie Shepp and Sunny Murray .
The quartet broke up in the early 1980s. This was followed by a collaboration with Steve Lacy, which lasted until 1992. Since the early 1990s, Few played in various groups of his own; he also worked as a soloist (such as on the album Continental Jazz Express ), in a duo with Avram Fefer ( Kindred Spirits , 2003) or in a trio with Fefer and Wilber Morris ( Few and Far Between , 2000). Until recently he worked with a large number of musicians.
Discographic notes
- Frank Wright / Muhammad Ali / Bobby Few / Alan Silva: Center of the World , Vol.1 & 2 (Fractal, 1972)
- Zusaan Kali Fasteau / Noah Howard / Bobby Few: Expatriate Kin ( CIMP , 1997)
- Continental Jazz Express ( Boxholder , 2000) solo
- Few and Far Between (Boxholder, 2000) with Avram Fefer , Wilber Morris
- Kindred Spirits (Boxholder, 2003) with Avram Fefer
- Heavenly Places (Boxholder, 2003)
- Lights and Shadows (Boxholder, 2007) solo
Albums as a sideman
- Booker Ervin : The In Between ( Blue Note , 1968)
- Marzette Watts : Marzette Watts ( Savoy , 1969)
- Steve Lacy : The Door (Novus, 1988)
Web links
- Bobby Few at AllMusic (English)
- Review by Bobby Few at allaboutjazz
- Comprehensive discography ( memento of October 30, 2002 in the Internet Archive ) at: mindspring.com
- Bobby Few at Discogs (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Bobby Few RIP 1935-2021. jazzpages, January 8, 2021, accessed January 8, 2021 .
- ↑ Mort de Bobby Few, pianiste sans chapelle. Liberation, January 7, 2021, accessed January 8, 2021 (French).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Few, Bobby |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Few, Robert |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | American jazz pianist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 21, 1935 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Cleveland , Ohio |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 6, 2021 |
| Place of death | Paris |