Ralph Peterson Jr. (May 20, 1962 – March 1, 2021) 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 ...

drummer and bandleader.

Early life

Four of Peterson's uncles and his grandfather were drummers. Peterson himself began on percussion at age three. He was raised in Pleasantville, where he played trumpet at Pleasantville High School and worked locally in

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

groups. He applied to

Livingston College From 1969 to 2007 Livingston College was one of the residential colleges that comprised Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey's undergraduate liberal arts programs. It was located on Livingston Campus (originally Kilmer) in Piscataway, ...

and

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

to study drums, but he failed the percussion entrance exam and enrolled as a trumpeter instead, graduating in 1984.

Later life and career

In 1983, he joined

Art Blakey Arthur Blakey (October 11, 1919 – October 16, 1990) was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He was also known as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina after he converted to Islam for a short time in the late 1940s. Blakey made a name for himself in the 1 ...

Jazz Messengers The Jazz Messengers were a jazz combo that existed for over thirty-five years beginning in the early 1950s as a collective, and ending when long-time leader and founding drummer Art Blakey died in 1990. Blakey led or co-led the group from the o ...

as the group's second drummer for several years. He worked with

Terence Blanchard Terence Oliver Blanchard (born March 13, 1962) is an American trumpeter and composer. He started his career in 1982 as a member of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, then The Jazz Messengers. He has composed more than forty film scores and performed ...

and

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 ...

in 1984, and with Walter Davis (1985, 1989),

Tom Harrell Tom Harrell (born June 16, 1946) is an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, and arranger. Voted Trumpeter of the Year of 2018 by ''Jazz Journalists Association'', Harrell has won awards and grants throughout his career, including mul ...

(1985), Out of the Blue (1985–1988),

Branford Marsalis Branford Marsalis (born August 26, 1960) is an American saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed inst ...

(1986), David Murray,

Craig Harris Craig S. Harris (born September 10, 1953) is an American jazz trombonist, who started working with Sun Ra in 1976. He also has worked with Abdullah Ibrahim, David Murray, Lester Bowie, Cecil Taylor, Sam Rivers, Muhal Richard Abrams, and Char ...

(1987),

James Spaulding James Ralph Spaulding Jr. (born July 30, 1937) is an American jazz saxophonist and flutist. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, United states, Spaulding attended the Chicago Cosmopolitan School of Music. Between 1957 and 1961, he was a member of Sun ...

(1988),

Roy Hargrove Roy Anthony Hargrove (October 16, 1969 – November 2, 2018) was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved worldwide acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing styles ...

(1989),

Jon Faddis Jon Faddis (born July 24, 1953) is an American jazz trumpet player, conductor, composer, and educator, renowned for both his playing and for his expertise in the field of music education. Upon his first appearance on the scene, he became known ...

(1989),

Dewey Redman Walter Dewey Redman (May 17, 1931 – September 2, 2006) was an American saxophonist who performed free jazz as a bandleader and with Ornette Coleman and Keith Jarrett. Redman mainly played tenor saxophone, though he occasionally also played ...

Mark Helias Mark Helias (born October 1, 1950) is an American double bass player and composer born in New Brunswick, New Jersey. He started playing the double bass at the age of 20, and studied with Homer Mensch at Rutgers University from 1971 to 1974, then ...

(1989), and

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Awar ...

(with the

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

ghost band). During the 1990s, Peterson played as a sideman with

Jack Walrath Jack Arthur Walrath (born May 5, 1946) is an American post-bop jazz trumpeter and musical arranger known for his work with Ray Charles, Gary Peacock, Charles Mingus, and Glenn Ferris, among others. Biography Walrath was born in Stuart, Florida. ...

Craig Handy Craig Mitchell Handy (born September 25, 1962) is an American tenor saxophonist. Born in Oakland, California, he attended North Texas State University from 1981 to 1984, and following this played with Art Blakey, Wynton Marsalis, Roy Haynes, Ab ...

, Charles Lloyd,

Kip Hanrahan Kip Hanrahan (born December 9, 1954) is an American jazz music impresario, record producer and percussionist. Personal life Hanrahan was born in a Puerto Rican neighborhood in the Bronx to an Irish-Jewish family. His father left when he was 6 m ...

(1992),

Bheki Mseleku Bhekumuzi Hyacinth Mseleku, generally known as Bheki Mseleku (3 March 1955 – 9 September 2008), was a jazz musician from South Africa. He was a pianist, saxophonist, guitarist, composer and arranger who was entirely self-taught.John Fordham"Bh ...

Courtney Pine Courtney Pine, (born 18 March 1964), is a British jazz musician, who was the principal founder in the 1980s of the black British band the Jazz Warriors. Although known primarily for his saxophone playing, Pine is a multi-instrumentalist, also ...

Steve Coleman Steve Coleman (born September 20, 1956) is an American saxophonist, composer, bandleader and music theorist. In 2014, he was named a MacArthur Fellow. Early life Steve Coleman was born and grew up in South Side, Chicago. He started playing al ...

George Colligan George Colligan (born December 29, 1969) is an American jazz pianist, organist, drummer, trumpeter, educator, composer, and bandleader. Early life and education Colligan was born in New Jersey and raised in Columbia, Maryland. He attended the P ...

Stanley Cowell Stanley Cowell (May 5, 1941 – December 17, 2020) was an American jazz pianist and co-founder of the Strata-East Records label. Early life Cowell was born in Toledo, Ohio. He began playing the piano around the age of four, and became interest ...

Mark Shim Mark Shim (born November 21, 1973 in Kingston, Jamaica) is a jazz tenor saxophonist. History Shim's family moved from Kingston to Canada when he was eight years old, and then settled in Richmond, Virginia five years later. He started on sax ...

, and

Betty Carter Betty Carter (born Lillie Mae Jones; May 16, 1929 – September 26, 1998) was an American jazz singer known for her improvisational technique, scatting and other complex musical abilities that demonstrated her vocal talent and imaginative inter ...

. He began recording as a leader in 1988, with a quintet (Terence Blanchard, Steve Wilson,

Geri Allen Geri Antoinette Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. In addition to her career as a performer and bandleader, Allen was also an associate professor of music at the University of Pittsburgh ...

, and

Phil Bowler Phillip Charles Bowler (born March 2, 1948, New York City) is an American jazz double-bassist and radio host. Career Bowler attended the University of Hartford, where he received a bachelor's degree in music in 1972. He played with Roland Kirk ...

) on ''V'' and ''Volition''. He also worked with Allen and Bowler as a trio in "Triangular";

Essiet Essiet Essiet Okon Essiet (born September 1, 1956 in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American jazz double-bassist. Essiet's parents were Nigerian immigrants to the United States.Lara Pellegrinelli, "Essiet Essiet". '' The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz''. 2nd edit ...

replaced Bowler for the 1988 ''Triangular'' recording. In 1989 he recorded in the quartet format as "The Fo'tet" with

Don Byron Donald Byron (born November 8, 1958) is an American composer and multi-instrumentalist. He primarily plays clarinet but has also played bass clarinet and saxophone in a variety of genres that includes free jazz and klezmer. Biography His mother w ...

, Steve Wilson (later Bobby Franchesini), Melissa Slocum (later Belden Bullock), and

Bryan Carrott Bryan Carrott is an American jazz musician playing vibraphone and marimba. He has recorded with Butch Morris, Henry Threadgill, Dave Douglas, David "Fathead" Newman, Ralph Peterson, Steven Kroon, Greg Osby, Tom Harrell, John Lurie and The Loun ...

. After living in Canada for some time, he returned to Philadelphia, where he worked again with "The Fo'tet,” and recorded as ''Triangular 2'' with Slocum and

Uri Caine Uri Caine (born June 8, 1956, Philadelphia, United States) is an American classical and jazz pianist and composer. Biography Early years The son of Burton Caine, a professor at Temple Law School, and poet Shulamith Wechter Caine, Caine began p ...

. He also led the group "Hip Pocket,” with whom he played trumpet. Peterson taught at

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 Boston and University of the Arts in Philadelphia. In 2010, Peterson started his own Onyx Productions Music Label. Peterson died at his home in

Dartmouth, Massachusetts Dartmouth (Massachusett: ) is a coastal town in Bristol County, Massachusetts. Old Dartmouth was the first area of Southeastern Massachusetts to be settled by Europeans, primarily English. Dartmouth is part of New England's farm coast, which co ...

, from complications of cancer on March 1, 2021, at age 58.

Discography

As leader

* ''V'' (Blue Note, 1988) * ''Triangular'' (Blue Note, 1989) * ''Volition'' (Blue Note, 1990) * ''Ralph Peterson Presents the Fo'tet'' (Somethin' Else, 1990) * ''Ornettology'' (Somethin' Else, 1991) * ''Art'' (Blue Note, 1993) * ''The Reclamation Project'' (Evidence, 1995) * ''The Fo'tet Plays Monk'' (Evidence, 1997) * ''Back to Stay'' (Sirocco, 1999) * ''Triangular 2'' (Sirocco, 2000) * ''The Art of War'' (Criss Cross, 2001) * ''Subliminal Seduction'' (Criss Cross, 2002) * ''Tests of Time'' (Criss Cross, 2003) * ''The Fo'tet Augmented'' (Criss Cross, 2004) * ''Outer Reaches'' (Onyx, 2010) * ''The Duality Perspective'' (Onyx 2012) * ''Alive at Firehouse 12 Vol. 1'' (Onyx, 2013) * ''Alive at Firehouse 12 Vol. 2: Fo' n Mo'' (Onyx, 2016) * ''Triangular III'' (Onyx, 2016) * ''Dream Deferred'' (Onyx, 2016) * ''I Remember Bu: Alive Vol. 4 @ Scullers'' (Onyx, 2018) * ''Inward Venture: Alive Vol. 5 At The Side Door'' (Onyx 2018) * ''Legacy Alive Vol. 6 at the Side Door'' (Onyx, 2019) * ''Listen Up!'' (Onyx, 2019) * ''Onward & Upward'' (Onyx, 2020) * ''Raise Up Off Me'' (Onyx, 2021)

As sideman

With

* '' Sphere Music'' (Winter & Winter, 2005) * ''

Toys A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pet ...

'' (JMT, 1995) * ''

Blue Wail ''Blue Wail'' is an album by pianist Uri Caine which was released on the Winter & Winter label in 1999. Reception In his review for Allmusic, David R. Adler notes that "Caine and company imbue every tune with an extraordinary blues feeling and a ...

'' (Winter & Winter, 1999) * '' The Goldberg Variations'' (Winter & Winter, 2000) With

Wayne Escoffery Wayne Escoffery (born 23 February 1975) is an American jazz saxophonist. Performing history Since 2000, he has been working in New York City with Carl Allen, Eric Reed, and the Mingus Big Band. Other musicians performed with include Ralph Pet ...

* ''Intuition'' (Nagel Heyer, 2004) * ''Live at Smalls'' (SmallsLIVE, 2015) * ''Vortex'' (Sunnyside, 2018) * ''The Humble Warrior'' (Smoke Sessions, 2020) With

Orrin Evans Orrin Evans (born 28 March 1975) is an American jazz pianist. Evans was born in Trenton, New Jersey and raised in Philadelphia.Lutz, Phillip. "Orrin Evans The Instigator." ''Downbeat'' 81.11 (2014): 42-45. Print. He attended Rutgers University ...

* ''Captain Black'' (Criss Cross, 1998) * ''Grown Folk Bizness'' (Criss Cross, 1999) * ''Mother's Touch'' (Posi-Tone, 2014) With David Murray * '' New Life'' (Black Saint, 1987) * '' Lovers'' (DIW, 1988) * '' I Want to Talk About You'' (Black Saint, 1989) * '' Deep River'' (DIW, 1989) * ''

Ballads A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

'' (DIW, 1990) * ''

Spirituals Spirituals (also known as Negro spirituals, African American spirituals, Black spirituals, or spiritual music) is a genre of Christian music that is associated with Black Americans, which merged sub-Saharan African cultural heritage with the e ...

'' (DIW, 1990) * ''Hope Scope'' (Black Saint, 1991) * ''

Tenors A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is widel ...

'' (DIW, 1993) With others *

Melissa Aldana Melissa Aldana (born 3 December 1988) is a Chilean tenor saxophone player, who performs both as a soloist and with her band Melissa Aldana & Crash Trio. Life and career Early life and training Aldana was born in Santiago, Chile. She began playin ...

, ''Free Fall'' (Inner Circle Music, 2010) * Pat Bianchi, ''Back Home'' (Doodlin, 2010) *

, ''Discernment'' (Bellaphon, 1986) *

Don Braden Don Braden (born November 20, 1963) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist.https://jazzbakery.org/events/saxophoniest-don-braden-quartet-presents-earth-wind-and-wonder saxophonist Don Braden Quartet presents Earth Wind and Wonder Career Braden w ...

, ''Contemporary Standards Ensemble'' (Double-Time, 2000) * Anthony Branker, ''Spirit Songs'' (Sons of Sound, 2005) *

, ''Tuskegee Experiments'' (Nonesuch, 1992) * Don Byron, ''Music for Six Musicians'' (Nonesuch, 1995) *

, ''Activism'' (SteepleChase, 1996) * George Colligan, ''Ultimatum'' (Criss Cross, 2002) *

, ''Mandara Blossoms'' (SteepleChase, 1996) * Anthony Cox, ''Factor of Faces'' (Minor Music, 1993) *

Walter Davis Jr. Walter Davis Jr. (September 2, 1932 – June 2, 1990) was an American bebop and hard bop pianist. Davis once left the music world to be a tailor, but returned. A soloist, bandleader, and accompanist, he amassed a body of work while never be ...

, ''Scorpio Rising'' (SteepleChase, 1989) * Duane Eubanks, ''My Shining Hour'' (TCB, 1999) * Duane Eubanks, ''Second Take'' (TCB, 2001) *

, ''Into the Faddisphere'' (Epic, 1989) *

, '' Split Second Timing'' (Arabesque, 1992) * Craig Handy, ''

Introducing Three for All + One ''Introducing Three for All + One'' is the second album led by saxophonist Craig Handy which was recorded in 1993 and released on the Arabesque label. Reception The AllMusic review by Scott Yanow said "The improvisations are explorative yet melo ...

'' (Arabesque, 1993) *

, ''Exotica'' (American Clave, 1992) *

, ''Diamond in the Rough'' (Novus, 1990) *

, ''Moon Alley'' (Criss Cross, 1986) *

, '' Blackout in the Square Root of Soul'' (JMT, 1988) *

, ''Nascence'' (CBS, 1986) * Sean Jones, ''Eternal Journey'' (Mack Avenue, 2004) * Charles Lloyd, ''Notes from Big Sur'' (ECM, 1992) * Charles Lloyd, ''Quartets'' (ECM, 2013) *

Frank Lowe Frank Lowe (June 24, 1943 – September 19, 2003) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist and composer. Biography Born and brought up in Memphis, Tennessee, Lowe took up the tenor saxophone at the age of 12. As an adult he moved to San Fra ...

, ''Soul Folks No More'' (No. 10, 2001) *

Carmen Lundy Carmen Latretta Lundy (born November 1, 1954) is an American jazz singer. She has been performing for three decades, with a focus on original material. She has been positively compared with Aretha Franklin, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. Lu ...

, ''This Is Carmen Lundy'' (Afrasia, 2001) *

, ''Royal Garden Blues'' (CBS, 1986) *

Delfeayo Marsalis Delfeayo Marsalis (; born July 28, 1965) is an American jazz trombonist, record producer and educator. Life and career Marsalis was born in New Orleans, the son of Dolores (née Ferdinand) and Ellis Louis Marsalis, Jr., a pianist and music pro ...

, ''An Evening with Delfeayo Marsalis Kalamazoo'' (Troubadour Jass, 2017) *

, ''Beauty of Sunrise'' (Verve, 1997) *

Jeremy Pelt Jeremy Pelt (born November 4, 1976, in California) is an American jazz trumpeter. Career Pelt studied classical trumpet as a child and focused on jazz after playing in a high school jazz ensemble. He studied at Berklee College of Music. Among th ...

, ''Profile'' (Fresh Sound, 2002) * Jeremy Pelt, ''Insight'' (Criss Cross, 2003) *

Jamaaladeen Tacuma Jamaaladeen Tacuma (born Rudy McDaniel; June 11, 1956) is an American free jazz bassist born in Hempstead, New York. He was a bandleader on the Gramavision label and worked with Ornette Coleman during the 1970s and 1980s, mostly in Coleman's Pr ...

, ''Groove 2000'' (Caramelle, 1998) *

, '' Gotstabe a Better Way!'' (Muse, 1990) *

Michele Rosewoman Michele Rosewoman (born March 19, 1953) is an American jazz pianist who leads the big band New Yor-Uba. She has worked with Baikida Carroll, Julius Hemphill, Julian Priester, Oliver Lake, Billy Bang, Freddie Waits, Rufus Reid, Billy Hart, Re ...

, ''Occasion to Rise'' (Somethin' Else, 1991) *

, ''Mind Over Matter'' (Blue Note, 1998) *

Bobby Watson Robert Michael Watson Jr. (born August 23, 1953), known professionally as Bobby Watson, is an American saxophonist, composer, and educator. Music career Watson was born in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and grew up in Kansas City, Kansas. He ...

, ''Quiet As It's Kept'' (Red Record, 1999)

References

Sources

* Gary W. Kennedy, "Ralph Peterson Jr.". '' Grove Jazz'' online. *

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 ...

Ralph Peterson Ralph Peterson may refer to: * Ralph Peterson Jr. (1962–2021), American jazz drummer and bandleader * Ralph Peterson (writer) Ralph Wilton Peterson (21 February 1921 – 2 November 1996) was an Australian writer (dramatist and playwright ...

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 ...

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, Ralph Jr. 1962 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American drummers 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American drummers 21st-century American male musicians American jazz drummers American male drummers American male jazz musicians Blue Note Records artists Criss Cross Jazz artists Deaths from cancer in Massachusetts Musicians from New Jersey Out of the Blue (American band) members People from Dartmouth, Massachusetts People from Pleasantville, New Jersey Pleasantville High School (New Jersey) alumni Rutgers University alumni University of the Arts (Philadelphia) faculty