Harold "Geezil" Minerve (January 3, 1922 - June 4, 1992) was a
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
n-born
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 ...
alto saxophonist and flautist.
Minerve was raised in
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
and began playing music at age 12. He played with
Ida Cox early in his career, then worked as a freelance musician in
. Following stints with
Clarence Love
Clarence Eugene Love (born June 16, 1976) is a former American football safety who played in the National Football League. Love starred at local Jackson High School and was a member of the Jackson Citizen Patriot's Dream Team. Love attended colle ...
and
Ernie Fields
Ernest Lawrence Fields (August 28, 1904 – May 11, 1997)Laprarie, Michael Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture'' (accessed May 14, 2010). was an American trombonist, pianist, arranger and bandleader. He first became known for leadin ...
, Minerve served in the
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
from 1943–46, then returned to play with Fields for a short time. He worked with
Buddy Johnson from 1949-1957, then with
Mercer Ellington (1960),
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...
(1962–64), and
Arthur Prysock. In 1971 he joined the
Duke Ellington Orchestra, filling
Johnny Hodges's spot after Hodges's death. Minerve remained with the Ellington Orchestra until 1974, then returned to play with Mercer Ellington. He remained with the Duke Ellington orchestra under direction of Mercer Ellington (Duke's son). Following the success of the Broadway hit "Sophisticated Lady" when he played with the orchestra on stage and the touring company, he left the orchestra for a brief time with Ruth Brown's Black and Blue Review in Paris returning to Ellington in the 80's He did further freelance work later in the 1970s.
References
*
Scott Yanow
Scott Yanow (born October 4, 1954) is an American jazz reviewer, historian, and author.Allmusic Biography/ref>
Biography
Yanow was born in New York City and grew up near Los Angeles.
Since 1974, he was a regular reviewer of many jazz styles an ...
,
Harold "Geezil" Minerveat
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Minerve, Geezil
1922 births
1992 deaths
Cuban jazz musicians
Duke Ellington Orchestra members
20th-century American musicians
Cuban emigrants to the United States