Jack DeJohnette's Special Edition

Jazz drummer, pianist, and composer Jack DeJohnette was born on August 9, 1942 in Chicago, Illinois. He began studying piano at a young age and was playing professionally by the age of 14. In his late teens, he became interested in the drums, changing his allegiance to the kit in his late teens. In 1966, he got the opportunity to move to New York where he became a member of the Charles Lloyd Quartet. In the group, he worked with pianist Keith Jarrett who would go on to become a great influence in DeJohnette's career. Leaving Charles Lloyd in 1968 he moved to the Bill Evans Trio and also worked alongside Stan Getz and Miles Davis. With Davis seeing the potential in the young drummer, he added him to his live band, but they parted ways in 1971 as DeJohnette craved musical freedom to work on his own sound. He formed the group Compost in 1972 but their experimental sound failed to attract an audience and the musicians went their separate ways after less than a year. He rejoined Stan Getz briefly before trying several other groups, with varying levels of success, including the Gateway Trio, Directions, New Directions and Special Edition. While New Directions and Special Edition existed concurrently, Jack DeJohnette began to focus more on Special Edition, which was a horn-focused ensemble that blended avant-garde and traditional jazz. The band’s line-up on their first album, Tin Can Alley (1981), included Chico Freeman (clarinet/flute/saxophone), Peter Warren (double bass/cello), John Purcell (saxophone), and Jack DeJohnette. In 1983, the band released their second album, Inflation Blues, which featured new members Rufus Reid (bass) and Baikida Carroll (trumpet). Album Album (1984) included the addition of David Murray (tenor saxophone) and Howard Johnson (tuba/baritone saxophone). 1987’s Irresistible Forces and 1988’s Audio-Visualscapes featured a new line-up of Special Edition including Greg Osby (saxophone), Mick Goodrick (guitar), Naná Vasconcelos (percussion), Lonnie Plaxico (bass), and Gary Thomas (saxophone/flute). The final Special Edition album, Earth Walk, was released in 1991.