Donald Ernest Friedman (May 4, 1935 – June 30, 2016) was 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 major ...
pianist. He began playing in Los Angeles and moved to New York in 1958. In the 1960s, he played with both modern stylists and more traditional musicians.
Early life
Friedman was born on May 4, 1935, in San Francisco. Both of his parents immigranted to the United States: his father, Edward Friedman, was from Lithuania, and his mother, Alma Loew, was from Germany. He began playing the piano at the age of four, switching from classical music to jazz after his family moved to Los Angeles when he was fifteen. His early jazz piano influence was Bud Powell. Friedman briefly studied composition at Los Angeles City College.
Later life and career
On the West Coast, Friedman performed with
Dexter Gordon
Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and actor. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians, which included other greats such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gi ...
Buddy DeFranco
Boniface Ferdinand Leonard "Buddy" DeFranco (February 17, 1923 – December 24, 2014) was an Italian-American jazz clarinetist. In addition to his work as a bandleader, DeFranco led the Glenn Miller Orchestra for almost a decade in the 1960s and ...
, and
Ornette Coleman
Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Jazz: A Colle ...
. He was also a member of
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 ...
's big band.
Friedman moved to New York permanently in 1958. In the 1960s, Friedman played with both modern jazz and more traditionally orientated musicians. The former included Coleman, Eric Dolphy,
Jimmy Giuffre
James Peter Giuffre (, ; April 26, 1921 – April 24, 2008) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He is known for developing forms of jazz which allowed for free interplay between the musicians, anticipating f ...
,
Booker Little
Booker Little Jr. (April 2, 1938 – October 5, 1961) – accessed June 2010 was an American
, and
Attila Zoller
Attila Cornelius Zoller (June 13, 1927 – January 25, 1998) was a Hungarian jazz guitarist. After World War II, he escaped the Soviet takeover of Hungary by fleeing through the mountains on foot into Austria. In 1959, he moved to the U.S., wher ...
; the latter included
Bobby Hackett
Robert Leo Hackett (January 31, 1915 – June 7, 1976) was an American jazz musician who played trumpet, cornet, and guitar with the bands of Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Hackett was a featured soloist o ...
and
Herbie Mann
Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (incl ...
. Friedman's first album as a leader was '' A Day in the City'', in 1961. Some of his early albums received top ratings from ''
DownBeat
' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...
'', which also gave him its critics' poll New Star award. He was also an educator in New York. He had many fans in Japan.Don Friedman (1935-2016)
Friedman married three times; the first two ended in divorce. He died of pancreatic cancer, at home in the Bronx on June 30, 2016. Survivors were one daughter, Lynn Adrianna Freedman, and a granddaughter, Ocean Olivo.
Discography
As leader/co-leader
As sideman
With
Buddy Collette
William Marcel "Buddy" Collette (August 6, 1921 – September 19, 2010) was an American jazz flutist, saxophonist, and clarinetist. He was a founding member of the Chico Hamilton Quintet.
Early life
William Marcel Collette was born in L ...
Contemporary
Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...
, 1957) – recorded in 1956–57
With
Herb Geller
Herbert Arnold Geller (November 2, 1928 – December 19, 2013) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer and arranger. He was born in Los Angeles, California, United States.
Early life
His mother, Frances ''(née'' Frances Mildred Fullman, al ...
* ''At The Movies'' (Hep Jazz, 2007)
With Lee Konitz
* ''Lee Konitz Meets Don Friedman'' (InsightAttila Zollers, 1994) – recorded in 1992
* '' Thingin''' ( HatART, 1996) – live recorded in 1995. also with
Attila Zoller
Attila Cornelius Zoller (June 13, 1927 – January 25, 1998) was a Hungarian jazz guitarist. After World War II, he escaped the Soviet takeover of Hungary by fleeing through the mountains on foot into Austria. In 1959, he moved to the U.S., wher ...
.
With Hank De Mano
* ''Listen to The Hank De Mano Quartet'' (Freeway Jazz, 1956)
With
John Handy
John Richard Handy III (born February 3, 1933) is an American jazz musician most commonly associated with the alto saxophone. He also sings and plays the tenor and baritone saxophone, saxello, clarinet, and oboe.
Biography
Handy was born in ...
Roulette
Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning ''little wheel'' which was likely developed from the Italian game Biribi''.'' In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the ...
, 1960)
With
Joe Henderson
Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...
* ''
Tetragon
In geometry a quadrilateral is a four-sided polygon, having four edges (sides) and four corners (vertices). The word is derived from the Latin words ''quadri'', a variant of four, and ''latus'', meaning "side". It is also called a tetragon, ...
'' (
Milestone
A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway line, canal or boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks; or they can give their position on the route relative to so ...
, 1968) – recorded in 1967-68
With
Elvin Jones
Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era.
Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
, 1965)
With
Don Lanphere
Donald Gale Lanphere (June 26, 1928 – October 9, 2003) was an American jazz tenor and soprano saxophonist, known for his 1940s and 1950s work, and recordings with Fats Navarro (in 1948), Woody Herman (1949), Claude Thornhill, Sonny Dunham, Bil ...
* ''
Into Somewhere
''Into Somewhere'' is a studio album by Don Lanphere released by Hep Records in 1983.
Track listing
#Noble Indian Song, Pt. 2
#Dear Old Stockholm
#Take the 'A' Train
#Last Night When We Were Young
#Brown Rock
#I Heard You Cry Last Night
#Here, No ...
Booker Little and Friend
''Booker Little and Friend'' is the final album led by American jazz trumpeter Booker Little featuring performances recorded in 1961 for the Bethlehem label.
'' (
Bethlehem
Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...
Discovery!
''Discovery!'' is the debut album by jazz saxophonist Charles Lloyd released on the Columbia label featuring performances by Lloyd with Don Friedman, Eddie Khan, Roy Haynes, Richard Davis and J.C. Moses. The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awa ...
Herbie Mann
Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (incl ...
* ''
Herbie Mann Live at Newport
''Herbie Mann Live at Newport'' is a live album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann recorded at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1963 for the Atlantic label.
'' (Atlantic, 1963)
* '' My Kinda Groove'' (Atlantic, 1965) – recorded in 1964
* ''
Our Mann Flute
''Our Mann Flute'' is an album by American jazz flautist Herbie Mann released on the Atlantic label in 1966.The Beat Goes On'' (Atlantic, 1967) – recorded in 1964-67
With Eiji Nakayama
* ''Conversation'' (Art Union, 1986)
* ''Sweet View: Eiji Nakayama Don Friedman Live in Japan'' (Jazz Road, 1987)
* ''Legend of the Lake'' (Jazz Road, 1988)
With
Dave Pike
David Samuel Pike (March 23, 1938 – October 3, 2015) was an American jazz vibraphone and marimba player. He appeared on many albums by Nick Brignola, Paul Bley and Kenny Clarke, Bill Evans, and Herbie Mann. He also recorded extensively as le ...
Decca Decca may refer to:
Music
* Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label
* Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group
* Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label
* Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...
, 1964)
* ''
The Doors of Perception
''The Doors of Perception'' is an autobiographical book written by Aldous Huxley. Published in 1954, it elaborates on his psychedelic experience under the influence of mescaline in May 1953. Huxley recalls the insights he experienced, rangin ...
'' (
Vortex
In fluid dynamics, a vortex ( : vortices or vortexes) is a region in a fluid in which the flow revolves around an axis line, which may be straight or curved. Vortices form in stirred fluids, and may be observed in smoke rings, whirlpools in th ...
, 1970) – recorded in 1966
With
Sal Salvador
Sal Salvador (November 21, 1925 – September 22, 1999) was an American bebop jazz guitarist and a prominent music educator.
He was born in Monson, Massachusetts, United States, and began his professional career in New York City. He eventually m ...
Quintet
* ''In Our Own Sweet Way'' (Stash, 1983)
With Yuko Shigeno
* ''Shiny Stockings'' (Space Shower Music, 2011)
* ''Circle Waltz with Don Friedman'' (24 Jazz Japan, 2013)
With Hiromi Shimizu
* ''Waltz Tenderly'' (Jazz on Top, 2008)
* ''Live at Jazz on Top'' (Jazz on Top, 2010) – live
With
Grady Tate
Grady Tate (January 14, 1932 – October 8, 2017) was an American jazz and soul-jazz drummer and baritone vocalist. In addition to his work as sideman, Tate released many albums as leader and lent his voice to songs in the animated ''Schoolhou ...
* ''She Is My Lady'' (
Janus
In ancient Roman religion and myth, Janus ( ; la, Ianvs ) is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces. The month of January is named for Janu ...
, 1972)
With
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 ...
* ''
It's What's Happenin'
''It's What's Happenin (subtitled ''The Varitone Sound of Clark Terry'') is an album by American jazz trumpeter Clark Terry featuring performances recorded in 1967 for the Impulse! label.
'' (
Impulse!
Impulse! Records (occasionally styled as "¡mpulse! Records" and "¡!") is an American jazz record company and label established by Creed Taylor in 1960. John Coltrane was among Impulse!'s earliest signings. Thanks to consistent sales and positiv ...
, 1967)
* ''In Concert: Live'' (Etoile, 1973) – live recorded in 1970
* ''Portraits'' (Chesky, 1989) – recorded in 1988
* ''Live on QE2'' (Chiaroscuro, 2001) – live recorded in 1999
With
Attila Zoller
Attila Cornelius Zoller (June 13, 1927 – January 25, 1998) was a Hungarian jazz guitarist. After World War II, he escaped the Soviet takeover of Hungary by fleeing through the mountains on foot into Austria. In 1959, he moved to the U.S., wher ...