Johnny Griffin
One of the all-time great tenor saxophonists, Johnny Griffin will go down in the annals of jazz as a performer easily able to negotiate the tricky harmonic changes and swift tempos of modern music. He'll also be remembered as a player who could masterfully interpret tender ballads, rivaling Ben Webster in that regard.
Born John Arnold Griffin III in Chicago, Illinois, on April 24, 1928, he resided on the South Side of the Second City with his mother, who was a singer, and father, who played cornet. An adolescent Griffin heard Gene Ammons play in the big band of King Kolax. Two years later he picked up an alto saxophone, and soon thereafter was working with bluesman T-Bone Walker. A student at DuSable High School, he was tutored by the legendary band director Captain Walter Dyett. Upon graduation, he toured with Lionel Hampton's big band, switched to the tenor sax, and moved to New York City. The late '40s saw Griffin honking his share of R&B with Joe Morris up to 1950, Joe Morris' band in 1950, and with Arnett Cobb in 1951. He enlisted in the armed services stationed in Hawaii and played in an Army band.
After his military commitment, he returned to Chicago and was in the company of Thelonious Monk's various ensembles up to the mid-'60s. Griffin cut his Blue Note album Introducing Johnny Griffin in 1958, and that year formed a sextet with Detroiters Pepper Adams and Donald Byrd. He collaborated with pianists Bud Powell and Elmo Hope, was briefly enlisted by Art Blakey as a member of the Jazz Messengers, energized his solo recording career for the Riverside label, and obtained his nickname, "The Little Giant," with that eponymously titled LP in 1959. His most famous and popular collaboration was with fellow saxophonist Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis. Griffin also recorded the legendary A Blowin' Session for the Blue Note label with John Coltrane and Hank Mobley.
Griffin grew weary of the U.S. and its apathy regarding jazz, so he became an expatriate. He was living in Paris, France, by 1963 and made many albums with European rhythm sections for the Storyville, Black Lion, and SteepleChase labels. He was also a charter member and chief soloist for many years in the Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band alongside American and Continental standouts. The year 1975 was an important one for Griffin, who was featured with the bands of Dizzy Gillespie and Count Basie, as documented in recordings of their sets at the Montreux Jazz Festival. He also collaborated with German saxophonist Klaus Doldinger and his fusion band Passport. In the late '70s, Griffin returned to the States to record for the Galaxy label, and toured with fellow expatriate tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon.
He left Paris for the countryside of the Netherlands to live on a farm, then headed to the Côte d'Azur in 1980, and in 1984 to rural Availles-Limouzine. In 1986 he was a member of the Paris Reunion Band with Woody Shaw, Dizzy Reece, Slide Hampton, and Kenny Drew, making one album for the Sonet label. During his time in France, Griffin recorded for the Antilles and Verve labels, including The Cat in 1991 and Chicago, New York, Paris in 1994. Often, during the week of his birthday, Griffin made regular appearances at the Jazz Showcase back home in Chicago. In his later years he collaborated with pianist Martial Solal and saxophonist Steve Grossman. Griffin passed away at age 80 on July 25, 2008, in Mauprévoir.
© Michael G. Nastos /TiVo
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Battle Stations
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Johnny Griffin
Jazz - Erschienen bei Original Jazz Classics am 04.12.2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
In Copenhagen
Johnny Griffin, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
Modern Jazz - Erschienen bei Storyville am 01.01.1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Close Your Eyes
Johnny Griffin & Horace Parlan
Jazz - Erschienen bei Minor Music am 03.02.2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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The Chicago Sound
Jazz - Erschienen bei Fresh Sound Records am 11.11.2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Polish Jazz Radio Archives, Vol. 11
Jazz - Erschienen bei Polskie Radio S.A. am 24.03.2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Catharsis!
Modern Jazz - Erschienen bei Storyville Records am 20.10.1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ow! Live at the Penthouse (Live)
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Johnny Griffin
Jazz - Erschienen bei Cellar Live am 06.12.2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
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The Congregation (2006 Digital Remaster)
Jazz - Erschienen bei Blue Note Records am 09.08.2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
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From Johnny Griffin With Love
Jazz - Erschienen bei Storyville am 14.09.2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
White Gardenia
Jazz - Erschienen bei Original Jazz Classics am 06.12.2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Griff & Lock (Complete Studio Recordings, 1960-1961)
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Johnny Griffin
Jazz - Erschienen bei Fresh Sound Records am 01.06.2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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The Congregation
Jazz - Erschienen bei Firefly Entertainment am 27.02.2016
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Introducing Johnny Griffin (Album of 1956)
Pop - Erschienen bei Jazz Classics am 31.10.2019
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The Little Giant - Change of Pace
Jazz - Erschienen bei Fresh Sound Records am 03.04.2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Johnny Griffin's Studio Jazz Party
Jazz - Erschienen bei Riverside am 01.01.1960
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo