Daniel Asbury Mixon (born August 19, 1949) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

pianist. Mixon was born in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

, New York City. He gained some attention in the 1970s and continues to record and play in New York and abroad. He started off as a tap dancer, attending the Ruth Williams Dance Studio. Later, he attended the High School of Performing Arts with Dance as his major but soon switched to playing the piano after being inspired by visits with his grandfather to see jazz artists playing at the Apollo Theater. In 1966, at the age of 17, Mixon was invited to play with the trumpet player Sam Brown's band backing Patti LaBelle & the Blue Bells in Atlantic City at Reggie's Cocktail Lounge. After working with

Joe Lee Wilson Joe Lee Wilson (December 22, 1935 – July 17, 2011) was an American jazz singer from Bristow, Oklahoma, who lived in Europe since 1977. Biography Part African-American and part Creek Native American,John Fordham"Joe Lee Wilson obituary: Elo ...

from 1967 to 1970, Mixon started to play regularly with Betty Carter during the years 1971–72. He formed his own jazz trio, recorded with the Piano Choir and worked with a variety of important jazz musicians including Kenny Dorham,

Cecil Payne Cecil Payne (December 14, 1922 – November 27, 2007) was an American jazz baritone saxophonist born in Brooklyn, New York. Payne also played the alto saxophone and flute. He played with other prominent jazz musicians, in particular Dizzy Gilles ...

, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Frank Foster,

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Recording prolifically for Blue Note Records as both leader and sideman, Green performed in the hard bop, soul jazz, bebop, and Latin-tinged idioms ...

, Pharoah Sanders (1975),

Joe Williams (jazz singer) Joe Williams (born Joseph Goreed; December 12, 1918 – March 29, 1999) was an American jazz singer. He sang with big bands such as the Count Basie Orchestra and the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and with his combos. He sang in two films with the ...

, Eddie Jefferson and Dee Dee Bridgewater. 1976 saw Mixon playing in Charles Mingus' band. He then played with

Dannie Richmond Charles Daniel Richmond (December 15, 1931 – March 16, 1988) was an American jazz drummer who is best known for his work with Charles Mingus. He also worked with Joe Cocker, Elton John and Mark-Almond. Biography Richmond was born Charles ...

in the late 1970s, toured the U.S. with

Yusef Lateef Yusef Abdul Lateef (born William Emanuel Huddleston; October 9, 1920 – December 23, 2013) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and prominent figure among the Ahmadiyya Community in America. Although Lateef's main instruments ...

and played a few years with the Lionel Hampton Big Band. Since his twenties Mixon has worked continuously with Frank Foster as a pianist for the Big Band; Frank Foster's Loud Minority, and his quartet - the Non-Electric Company. Mixon plays piano on many recordings. He appears with Hank Crawford on the compact discs ''Tight'' and ''After Dark'' and has also recorded with The Danny Mixon Trio. His most recent CD is entitled ''On My Way''. In 2004 Danny Mixon was presented with an award honoring him as a legendary pianist, by the

National Jazz Museum in Harlem The National Jazz Museum in Harlem is a museum dedicated to preservation and celebration of the jazz history of Harlem, Manhattan, New York City. The idea for the museum was conceived in 1995. The museum was founded in 1997 by Leonard Garment, co ...

from their series “Harlem Speaks” honoring Harlem Heroes. In September 2007 Danny was Honoree at the 18th Annual Legends Purple Carpet Awards, honoring contributors of the promotional arts and entertainment industry at Brooklyn's Toro's. Danny Mixon was also the musical director of the

Lenox Lounge Lenox Lounge was a long-standing bar in Harlem, New York City. It was located in 288 Lenox Avenue, between 124th and 125th. The bar was founded in 1939 by Ralph Greco and served as a venue for performances by many great jazz artists, including Bi ...

, where he also regularly played with the Danny Mixon Trio, until it closed in 2012. Danny Mixon performed with Antoinette Montague at Marcus Garvey Park's Charlie Parker Jazz Festival 2016 in New York City, and several others venues in 2016 New York City.

Selected discography

As leader

* ''Mixin' With Mixon'' (Cinderella, 1983) * ''Building Bridges'' (2004) * ''On My Way'' (2003) * ''Pass It On'' (2015) With The Piano Choir *''

Handscapes ''Handscapes'' is a double live album by The Piano Choir featuring Stanley Cowell, Nat Jones, Hugh Lawson, Webster Lewis, Harold Mabern, Danny Mixon, and Sonelius Smith recorded in 1973 and first released on the Strata-East label. Reception ...

'' (Strata-East, 1974)

As sideman

With Betty Carter * ''Betty Carter'' (Bet-Car Productions, 1976) With Hank Crawford *''

Tight Tight may refer to: Clothing * Skin-tight garment, a garment that is held to the skin by elastic tension * Tights, a type of leg coverings fabric extending from the waist to feet * Tightlacing, the practice of wearing a tightly-laced corset ...

'' (Milestone, 1996) *'' After Dark'' (Milestone, 1998) With Charles Mingus * '' Cumbia & Jazz Fusion'' (Atlantic, 1978) With

*'' Ode to Mingus'' (Soul Note, 1979) With Pharoah Sanders * '' Live in Paris (1975) (Lost ORTF Recordings)'' (Transversales Disques, 2020) With

* ''Without A Song'' (Inner City Records, 1978)

References

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mixon, Danny 1949 births African-American pianists American jazz pianists American male pianists American jazz bandleaders Musicians from New York City Living people 20th-century American pianists Jazz musicians from New York (state) 21st-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians