Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) 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 m ...
trumpeter. He played
bebop,
hard bop, and
post-bop
Post-bop is a genre of small-combo jazz that evolved in the early to mid 1960s in the United States. Pioneers of the genre, such as Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, John Coltrane and Jackie McLean, crafted syntheses ...
styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives for modern jazz and bebop.
Career beginnings
Hubbard started playing the
mellophone and trumpet in his school band at
Arsenal Technical High School in
Indianapolis,
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...
. Trumpeter Lee Katzman, former sideman with
Stan Kenton, recommended that he begin studying at the Arthur Jordan Conservatory of Music (now the Jordan College of the Arts at
Butler University) with Max Woodbury, the principal trumpeter of the
Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In his teens, Hubbard worked locally with brothers
Wes and
Monk Montgomery,
and worked with bassist
Larry Ridley and saxophonist
James Spaulding. In 1958, at the age of 20, he moved to New York and began playing with some of the best jazz players of the era, including
Philly Joe Jones,
Sonny Rollins,
Slide Hampton,
Eric Dolphy,
J. J. Johnson
J.J. Johnson (January 22, 1924 – February 4, 2001), born James Louis Johnson and also known as Jay Jay Johnson, was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger.
Johnson was one of the earliest trombonists to embrace bebop.
Biograph ...
, and
Quincy Jones.
On June 19, 1960, Hubbard made his first record as a leader, ''
Open Sesame
"Open sesame" (french: Sésame, ouvre-toi; ar, افتح يا سمسم) is a magical phrase in the story of "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" in Antoine Galland's version of ''One Thousand and One Nights''. It opens the mouth of a cave in which ...
'', at the beginning of his contract with
Blue Note Records, with saxophonist
Tina Brooks, pianist
McCoy Tyner, bassist
Sam Jones, and drummer
Clifford Jarvis. Six days later he returned the favor to Brooks and recorded with him on ''
True Blue''.
1960s
In December 1960, Hubbard was invited to play on
Ornette Coleman's ''
Free Jazz
Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...
'', after Coleman had heard him performing with
Don Cherry.
Then in May 1961, Hubbard played on ''
Olé Coltrane'',
John Coltrane's final recording session for
Atlantic Records. Coltrane also hired Hubbard,
Eric Dolphy and
Art Davis, who all appeared ''Olé'', to record ''
Africa/Brass
''Africa/Brass'' is the eighth studio album by jazz musician John Coltrane, released on September 1, 1961 on Impulse! Records. The sixth release for the fledgling label and Coltrane's first for Impulse!, it features Coltrane's working quartet a ...
'', Coltrane's first album with
Impulse!, which was begun just after ''Olé''. In August 1961, Hubbard recorded ''
Ready for Freddie
''Ready for Freddie'' is an album by trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, released on the Blue Note label in 1962 as BLP 4085 and BST 84085. In 2003, it was remastered and issued on CD with the addition of two alternate takes. It contains performances by ...
'' (Blue Note), which was also his first collaboration with saxophonist
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles D ...
. Hubbard became Shorter's bandmate when he replaced
Lee Morgan
Edward Lee Morgan (July 10, 1938 – February 19, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter and composer.
One of the key hard bop musicians of the 1960s, Morgan came to prominence in his late teens, recording on John Coltrane's '' Blue Train'' ...
in
Art Blakey's
Jazz Messengers later in 1961.
He played on more than 10 live and studio recordings with Blakey during one of the most acclaimed eras of the Jazz Messengers, including ''
Caravan
Caravan or caravans may refer to:
Transport and travel
*Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together
**Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop
*Camel train, a convoy using camels as pack animals
*Convoy, a group of veh ...
'', ''
Ugetsu'', ''
Mosaic'', and ''
Free for All''. In all, during the 1960s, he recorded eight studio albums as a bandleader for Blue Note, and more than two dozen as a sideman. Hubbard remained with Blakey until 1966, leaving to form the first of several small groups of his own, which featured, among others, his Blue note associate
James Spaulding, pianist
Kenny Barron and drummer
Louis Hayes.
This group recorded for Atlantic.
It was during this time that he began to develop his own sound, distancing himself from the early influences of
Clifford Brown and Morgan, and won the ''
DownBeat'' jazz magazine "New Star" award on trumpet.
["Freddie Hubbard"]
NEA Jazz Masters, 2006.
Throughout the 1960s, Hubbard played as a sideman on some of the most important albums from that era, including
Oliver Nelson's ''
The Blues and the Abstract Truth
''The Blues and the Abstract Truth'' is an album by American composer and jazz saxophonist Oliver Nelson recorded in February 1961 for the Impulse! label. It remains Nelson's most acclaimed album and features a lineup of notable musicians: Freddi ...
'',
Eric Dolphy's ''
Out to Lunch!'',
Herbie Hancock's ''
Maiden Voyage'', and
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles D ...
's ''
Speak No Evil
''Speak No Evil'' is the sixth album by Wayne Shorter. It was released in June 1966 by Blue Note Records. The music combines elements of hard bop and modal jazz, and features Shorter on tenor saxophone, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, pianist Herbie H ...
''. Hubbard was described as "the most brilliant trumpeter of a generation of musicians who stand with one foot in 'tonal' jazz and the other in the atonal camp". Though he never fully embraced the
free jazz
Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...
of the 1960s, he appeared on two of its landmark albums: Coleman's ''
Free Jazz
Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...
'' and Coltrane's ''
Ascension'', as well as on Sonny Rollins' "
new thing" track, "
East Broadway Run Down" (on the 1966 album of the same name), with
Elvin Jones and
Jimmy Garrison.
1970s
Hubbard achieved his greatest popular success in the 1970s with a series of albums for
Creed Taylor and his record label
CTI Records, overshadowing
Stanley Turrentine,
Hubert Laws, and
George Benson. Although his early 1970s jazz albums ''
Red Clay'', ''
First Light'', ''
Straight Life'', and ''
Sky Dive
''Sky Dive'' is the twentieth album by jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, recorded in 1972. It was his fourth album released on Creed Taylor's CTI label and features performances by Hubbard, Keith Jarrett, George Benson, Ron Carter, Billy Cob ...
'' were particularly well received and considered among his best work, the albums he recorded later in the decade were attacked by critics for their commercialism. ''First Light'' won a 1972
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
and included pianists
Herbie Hancock and
Richard Wyands, guitarists
Eric Gale and
George Benson, bassist
Ron Carter, drummer
Jack DeJohnette, and percussionist
Airto Moreira. In 1994, Hubbard, collaborating with Chicago jazz vocalist/co-writer
Catherine Whitney, had lyrics set to the music of ''First Light''.
In 1977, Hubbard joined the all-star V.S.O.P. band, which also featured
Herbie Hancock,
Tony Williams,
Ron Carter and
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter (born August 25, 1933) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles D ...
. All of the band's members except Hubbard were members of the mid-1960s
Miles Davis Quintet.
Several live recordings of this group were released as ''
V.S.O.P'', ''
V.S.O.P. The Quintet'', ''
V.S.O.P. Tempest in the Colosseum'' (all 1977) and ''
V.S.O.P. Live Under the Sky'' (1979).
Hubbard's trumpet playing was featured on the track "Zanzibar" from the 1978
Billy Joel album ''
52nd Street'' (the 1979 Grammy Award Winner for Best Album). The track ends with a fade during Hubbard's performance. An unfaded version was released on the 2004 Billy Joel boxed set ''
My Lives
''My Lives'' is a box set compilation of demos, outtakes, B-sides, soundtrack cuts, live recordings and album cuts by American singer/songwriter Billy Joel. It was released on November 22, 2005. The album name is derivative of the Billy Joel song ...
''.
Later life
In the 1980s Hubbard was again leading his own jazz group – this time with
Billy Childs and
Larry Klein, among others, as members – attracting favorable reviews, playing at concerts and festivals in the US and Europe, often in the company of
Joe Henderson, playing a repertory of
hard bop and
modal jazz
Modal jazz is jazz that makes use of musical modes, often modulating among them to accompany the chords instead of relying on one tonal center used across the piece. Although precedents exist, modal jazz was crystallized as a theory by compos ...
pieces.
Hubbard played at the
Monterey Jazz Festival in 1980 and in 1989 (with
Bobby Hutcherson). He and
Woody Shaw recorded two albums as co-leaders for Blue Note and played live concerts together from 1985 to 1987. In 1987, he was a co-leader with
Benny Golson on the ''Stardust'' album.
In 1988, he teamed up once more with Blakey at an engagement in the Netherlands, from which came ''Feel the Wind''.
In 1988, Hubbard played with
Elton John, contributing trumpet and flugelhorn and trumpet solos on the track "
Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters (Part Two)
"Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters (Part Two)" is a song by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin from the album ''Reg Strikes Back''. It was released as a 12" single in 1988 only in the United States. The single did not include the ...
" for John's ''
Reg Strikes Back'' album. In 1990, he appeared in Japan headlining an American-Japanese concert package which also featured Elvin Jones,
Sonny Fortune, pianists
George Duke and
Benny Green, bass players
Ron Carter, and
Rufus Reid, with jazz vocalist
Salena Jones Salena may refer to:
* Salena, Nepal, village development committee
* Salena Jones (born 1930 or 1944), American jazz and cabaret singer
* Salena Godden
Salena Godden is an English poet, author, activist, broadcaster, memoirist and essayist ...
.
He also performed at the Warsaw Jazz Festival, at which ''Live at the Warsaw Jazz Festival'' (Jazzmen 1992) was recorded.
Following a long setback of health problems and a serious lip injury in 1992 where he ruptured his upper lip and subsequently developed an infection, Hubbard was again playing and recording occasionally, even if not at the high level that he set for himself during his earlier career. His best records ranked with the finest in his field.
Legacy and honors
In 2006, the
National Endowment for the Arts accorded Hubbard its highest honor in jazz, the
NEA Jazz Masters Award.
On December 29, 2008, Hubbard died in Sherman Oaks, California from complications caused by a heart attack he suffered on November 26.
Hubbard had close ties to the
Jazz Foundation of America in his later years. He is quoted as saying, "When I had congestive heart failure and couldn't work, The Jazz Foundation paid my mortgage for several months and saved my home! Thank God for those people."
["Freddie Hubbard"](_blank)
, Jazz Foundation of America. The Jazz Foundation of America's Musicians' Emergency Fund took care of him during times of illness. After his death, Hubbard's estate requested that tax-deductible donations be made in his name to the Jazz Foundation of America.
Discography
As leader/co-leader
''Sortable table with last recording session for each release as primal order.''
Compilation
* ''
Polar AC
''Polar AC'' is a compilation album by jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard. It was his final album released on Creed Taylor's CTI label and features performances by Hubbard, Hubert Laws, George Benson, Junior Cook, and Ron Carter. It was put tog ...
'' (CTI, 1975) - recorded 1971–1973
As sideman
''Sortable table with main artist alphabetically as primal order.''
Filmography
* 1981 – ''Studiolive'' (Sony)
* 1985 – ''
One Night with Blue Note
''One Night with Blue Note'' is a 1985 feature length jazz film directed by John Charles Jopson.
To celebrate record executive Bruce Lundvall having relaunched the defunct Blue Note Records label in 1985 under the parent label EMI Manhattan Rec ...
''
* 2004 – ''Live at the Village Vanguard'' (Immortal)
* 2005 – ''All Blues'' (FS World Jazz)
* 2009 – ''Freddie Hubbard: One of a Kind''
References
External links
*
*
*
Freddie Hubbard interview In Black America – Jazz Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, April 1, 1984 at the
American Archive of Public Broadcasting
Howard Mandel, "Jazz Trumpeter Freddie Hubbard Dies" NPR Music, December 30, 2008.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hubbard, Freddie
1938 births
2008 deaths
African-American jazz musicians
American jazz trumpeters
American male trumpeters
American jazz composers
American male jazz composers
American jazz flugelhornists
American jazz cornetists
Grammy Award winners
Hard bop trumpeters
Jazz-funk trumpeters
Jazz fusion trumpeters
The Jazz Messengers members
Mainstream jazz trumpeters
Musicians from Indianapolis
Post-bop trumpeters
Soul-jazz trumpeters
Enja Records artists
Blue Note Records artists
Columbia Records artists
Prestige Records artists
Atlantic Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Timeless Records artists
21st-century American composers
20th-century American composers
V.S.O.P. (group) members
Resonance Records artists
20th-century jazz composers
CTI Records artists
HighNote Records artists
Pablo Records artists
20th-century American male musicians
21st-century jazz composers