Miles Davis publicly called him crazy. Leonard Bernstein thought he was wonderful. There were few people who didn't have a strong opinion about the case of Ornette Coleman. A kind of outlaw who preferred to play his own compositions rather than jazz standards, the America saxophonist also developed Harmolodics, a theory that united harmony and melody. Coleman would remain a trailblazer, a troublemaker who would influence legions of musicians; and exasperate a few as well...
Born on 9 March 1930 at Fort Worth in Texas, Coleman would start out playing bebop and rhythm and blues on the tenor saxophone at first, working with Prince Lasha and Charles Moffett in particular. He moved onto the alto after an assault in which his tenor sax was broken. He joined the Pee Wee Crayton group, with whom he toured in Los Angeles. His unusual style of play, less rigid than that of his bandmates, meant he found it hard to find musicians to play with. But this style was intriguing, and found supporters all the same (including the pianist Paul Bley). In 1958, the label Contemporary signed him to record his first record Something Else!!!! The Music Of Ornette Coleman with trumpet player Don Cherry, drummer Billy Higgins, Don Payne on the double bass and pianist Walter Norris.
Create a free account to keep reading
