Andy McGhee (November 3, 1927 – October 12, 2017) was a tenor saxophonist and educator.

Career

McGhee graduated from

New England Conservatory The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on Hu ...

in 1949 and worked for a short time with trumpeter

Roy Eldridge David Roy Eldridge (January 30, 1911 – February 26, 1989), nicknamed "Little Jazz", was an American jazz trumpeter. His sophisticated use of harmony, including the use of tritone substitutions, his virtuosic solos exhibiting a departure from t ...

and local Boston musician Fat Man Robinson. After marrying in 1950, he served in the Army in Korea and at

Fort Dix, New Jersey Fort Dix, the common name for the Army Support Activity (ASA) located at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, is a United States Army post. It is located south-southeast of Trenton, New Jersey. Fort Dix is under the jurisdiction of the Air Force A ...

where he played in an Army band and gave lessons to other musicians. From 1957–1963 he worked in

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles M ...

's band, touring the United States, Europe, and the Far East. His composition "McGhee" can be found on ''The Many Sides of Lionel Hampton''. McGhee worked with

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...

from 1963 to 1966. McGhee joined the faculty of

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

in 1966. Among his students were saxophonists Bill Pierce,

Javon Jackson Javon Anthony Jackson (born June 16, 1965) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist, bandleader, and educator. He first became known as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers from 1987 until Blakey's death in 1990. and went on to release 22 reco ...

Donald Harrison Donald Harrison Jr. (born June 23, 1960) is an African-American jazz saxophonist and the Big Chief of The Congo Square Nation Afro-New Orleans Cultural Group from New Orleans, Louisiana. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the Berklee Col ...

, Antonio Hart,

Sam Newsome Sam Newsome (born April 28, 1965) is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and educator. His music combines straight-ahead jazz, world music (drawing influences from North Africa and East Asia) and experimental jazz, which uses extended techni ...

, Richie Cole,

Greg Osby Greg Osby (born August 3, 1960) is an American saxophonist and composer. Biography Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Osby studied at Howard University, then at the Berklee College of Music. He moved to New York City in 1982, where he played with Jaki ...

, and

Ralph Moore Ralph Moore (born 24 December 1956) is an English jazz saxophonist. Early life Moore was born in Brixton, London, England. His mother was the dancer Josie Woods, and his father was in the US military. He spent his childhood in Brixton, and afte ...

. While devoting his time to teaching, McGhee wrote the instruction books ''Improvisation for Saxophone and Flute: The Scale/Mode Approach'' and ''Modal Strategies for Saxophone''. On March 15, 1978, he performed with Lionel Hampton and the Lionel Hampton Alumni Band as part of the Boston Globe Jazz Festival. The band included

Bob Wilber Robert Sage Wilber (March 15, 1928 – August 4, 2019) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, and band leader. Although his scope covers a wide range of jazz, Wilber was a dedicated advocate of classic styles, working throughout his caree ...

, clarinet,

Ernie Wilkins Ernest Brooks Wilkins Jr. (July 20, 1922 – June 5, 1999) was an American jazz saxophonist, conductor and arranger who spent several years with Count Basie. He also wrote for Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, and Dizzy Gillespie. He was musical direc ...

, saxophones,

Teddy Wilson Theodore Shaw Wilson (November 24, 1912 – July 31, 1986) was an American jazz pianist. Described by critic Scott Yanow as "the definitive swing pianist", Wilson had a sophisticated, elegant style. His work was featured on the records of ma ...

, piano,

Alan Dawson Alan Dawson (July 14, 1929 – February 23, 1996) was an American jazz drummer and percussion teacher based in Boston. Biography Dawson was born in Marietta, Pennsylvania and raised in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Serving in the U.S. Army during th ...

and Terri Lynne Carrington, drums and Hampton on vibraphone. The performance marked the 50th anniversary of the start of Lionel Hampton's career as a professional musician. In the early 1990s, McGhee toured with Lionel Hampton as member of the Golden Men of Jazz tour. The band featured

Harry "Sweets" Edison Harry "Sweets" Edison (October 10, 1915 – July 27, 1999) was an American jazz trumpeter and a member of the Count Basie Orchestra. His most important contribution was as a Hollywood studio musician, whose muted trumpet can be heard bac ...

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948–51), Duke ...

Benny Bailey Ernest Harold "Benny" Bailey (August 13, 1925 – April 14, 2005) was an American jazz trumpeter. Biography A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Bailey briefly studied flute and piano before turning to trumpet. He attended the Cleveland Conserva ...

Al Grey Al Grey (June 6, 1925 – March 24, 2000) was an American jazz trombonist who was a member of the Count Basie orchestra. He was known for his plunger mute technique and wrote an instructional book in 1987 called ''Plunger Techniques''. Care ...

, and

Benny Golson Benny Golson (born January 25, 1929) is an American bebop/hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He came to prominence with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie, more as a writer than a performer, before launch ...

. The Golden Men of Jazz played concerts throughout Europe and on returning to the United States played for President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

in Washington, D.C. In May 2006, McGhee was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music from

Discography

As leader

* ''Could it Be'' (Mags, 1992)

As sideman

With

* ''Hamp's Big Band'' (Audio Fidelity, 1959) * ''Golden Vibes'' (Columbia, 1959) * ''The Many Sides of Hamp'' (Glad-Hamp, 1961) * ''The Exciting Hamp in Europe'' (Glad-Hamp, 1962) * ''Live!'' (Glad-Hamp 1979) With

* ''My Kind of Broadway'' (Columbia, 1964) * ''The Swinging Herman Herd-Recorded Live'' (Philips, 1964) * ''Woody's Winners'' (Columbia, 1965) * ''Woody's Big Band Goodies'' (Philips, 1965) * ''The Jazz Swinger'' (Columbia, 1966) * ''Woody Live East and West'' (Columbia, 1967) * ''Live in Antibes 1965'' (France's Concert, 1988)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McGhee, Andy 1927 births 2017 deaths American jazz tenor saxophonists American male saxophonists American music educators American male jazz musicians 20th-century American saxophonists People from Wilmington, North Carolina