Steve Lacy (born Steven Norman Lackritz; July 23, 1934 – June 4, 2004) 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 ...

saxophonist and composer recognized as one of the important players of

soprano saxophone The soprano saxophone is a higher-register variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument invented in the 1840s. The soprano is the third-smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists (from smallest to largest) of the soprillo, sop ...

. Coming to prominence in the 1950s as a progressive dixieland musician, Lacy went on to a long and prolific career. He worked extensively in experimental jazz and to a lesser extent in

free improvisation Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician(s) involved. The term can refer to both a technique (employed by any musician in any genre) and as a recognizable genre in its ...

, but Lacy's music was typically melodic and tightly-structured. Lacy also became a highly distinctive composer, with compositions often built out of little more than a single questioning phrase, repeated several times. The music of

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk (, October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including " 'Round Midnight", "B ...

became a permanent part of Lacy's repertoire after a stint in the pianist's band, with Monk's works appearing on virtually every Lacy album and concert program; Lacy often partnered with trombonist

Roswell Rudd Roswell Hopkins Rudd Jr. (November 17, 1935 – December 21, 2017) was an American jazz trombonist and composer. Although skilled in a variety of genres of jazz (including Dixieland, which he performed while in college), and other genres of musi ...

in exploring Monk's work. Beyond Monk, Lacy performed the work of jazz composers such as

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was based ...

and

Herbie Nichols Herbert Horatio Nichols (January 3, 1919 – April 12, 1963) was an American jazz pianist and composer who wrote the jazz standard " Lady Sings the Blues". Obscure during his lifetime, he is now highly regarded by many musicians and critics. Lif ...

; unlike many jazz musicians he rarely played standard popular or show tunes.

Early life and career

Lacy began his career at sixteen playing

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

music with much older musicians such as

Henry "Red" Allen Henry James "Red" Allen, Jr. (January 7, 1908 – April 17, 1967) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist whose playing has been claimed by Joachim-Ernst Berendt and others as the first to fully incorporate the innovations of Louis Armst ...

Pee Wee Russell Charles Ellsworth "Pee Wee" Russell (March 27, 1906 – February 15, 1969), was an American jazz musician. Early in his career he played clarinet and saxophones, but he eventually focused solely on clarinet. With a highly individualistic and sp ...

, George "Pops" Foster and

Zutty Singleton Arthur James "Zutty" Singleton (May 14, 1898 – July 14, 1975) was an American jazz drummer. Career Singleton was born in Bunkie, Louisiana, United States, and raised in New Orleans. According to his ''Jazz Profiles'' biography, his unusual ...

and then with Kansas City jazz players like

Buck Clayton Wilbur Dorsey "Buck" Clayton (November 12, 1911 – December 8, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter who was a member of Count Basie's orchestra. His principal influence was Louis Armstrong, first hearing the record "Confessin' That I Love You" ...

Dicky Wells William Wells (June 10, 1907 – November 12, 1985), known professionally as Dicky Wells (sometimes Dickie Wells), was an American jazz trombonist. Career Dickie Wells is believed to have been born on June 10, 1907 in Centerville, Tennessee, Un ...

, and

Jimmy Rushing James Andrew Rushing (August 26, 1901 – June 8, 1972) was an American singer and pianist from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., best known as the featured vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948. Rushing was known as " Mr. Five by ...

. He then became involved with the

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

, performing on ''

Jazz Advance ''Jazz Advance'' is the debut album by pianist Cecil Taylor, recorded for the Transition label in September 1956. The album features performances by Taylor with Buell Neidlinger, Denis Charles and Steve Lacy. Music The album contains three Ta ...

'' (1956), the debut album of Cecil Taylor, and appearing with Taylor's groundbreaking quartet at the 1957

Newport Jazz Festival The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island. Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hire ...

; he also made a notable appearance on an early

Gil Evans Ian Ernest Gilmore Evans (né Green; May 13, 1912 – March 20, 1988) was a Canadian–American jazz pianist, arranger, composer and bandleader. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest orchestrators in jazz, playing an important role ...

album. His most enduring relationship, however, was with the music of

: he recorded the first album to feature only Monk compositions ('' Reflections'', Prestige, 1958) and briefly played in Monk's band in 1960 and later on Monk's '' Big Band and Quartet in Concert'' album (Columbia, 1963).

Europe and sextet

Lacy's first visit to Europe came in 1965, with a visit to Copenhagen in the company of

Kenny Drew Kenneth Sidney "Kenny" Drew (August 28, 1928 – August 4, 1993) was an American-Danish jazz pianist. Biography Drew was born in New York City, United States, and received piano lessons from the age of five.Feather, Leonard, & Ira Gitler ( ...

; he went to Italy and formed a quartet with Italian trumpeter

Enrico Rava Enrico Rava (born 20 August 1939), is an Italian jazz trumpeter. He started on trombone, then changed to the trumpet after hearing Miles Davis. Career He was born in Trieste, Italy. His first commercial work was as a member of Gato Barbieri' ...

and the South African musicians

Johnny Dyani Johnny Mbizo Dyani (30 November 1945 – 24 October 1986) was a South African jazz double bassist, vocalist and pianist, who, in addition to being a key member of The Blue Notes, played with such international musicians as Don Cherry (jazz), Do ...

and

Louis Moholo Louis Tebogo Moholo (born 10 March 1940), is a South African jazz drummer. He has been a member of several notable bands, including The Blue Notes, the Brotherhood of Breath and Assagai. Biography Born in Cape Town, Moholo formed The Blue ...

(their visit to

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

is documented on '' The Forest and the Zoo'', ESP, 1967). After a brief return to New York, he returned to Italy, then in 1970 moved to Paris, where he lived until the last two years of his life. He became a widely respected figure on the European jazz scene, though he remained less well known in the U.S. The core of Lacy's activities from the 1970s to the 1990s was his sextet: his wife, singer/violinist

Irene Aebi Irene Aebi (born 27 July 1939 in Zurich, Switzerland) is a Swiss singer, violinist and cellist. She is noted for her work with jazz saxophonist Steve Lacy, her husband, from the 1960s to his death in 2004. Initially a classically trained instrum ...

, soprano/alto saxophonist Steve Potts, pianist

Bobby Few Bobby Few (October 21, 1935 – January 6, 2021) was an American jazz pianist and vocalist. Early life Few was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and grew up in the Fairfax neighborhood of the city's East Side. Upon his mother's encouragement, he stud ...

, bassist Jean-Jacques Avenel, and drummer Oliver Johnson (later

John Betsch John Betsch (born October 8, 1945) is an American jazz drummer. Biography Betsch was born in Jacksonville, Florida. His family belonged to the African-American upper class; his grandfather was the black millionaire Abraham Lincoln Lewis and his ...

). Sometimes this group was scaled up to a large ensemble (e.g. ''Vespers'', Soul Note, 1993, which added Ricky Ford on tenor sax and

Tom Varner Tom Varner (born June 17, 1957 in Morristown, New Jersey, United States) is an American jazz horn (French horn) player and composer. Varner grew up in Millburn, New Jersey, and studied piano in his youth with Capitola Dickerson of Summit, Ne ...

on French horn), sometimes pared down to a quartet, trio, or even a two-saxophone duo. He played duos with pianist Eric Watson. Lacy also, beginning in the 1970s, became a specialist in solo saxophone; he ranks with Sonny Rollins,

Anthony Braxton Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American experimental composer, educator, music theorist, improviser and multi-instrumentalist who is best known for playing saxophones, particularly the alto. Braxton grew up on the South Side of Chica ...

Evan Parker Evan Shaw Parker (born 5 April 1944) is a British tenor and soprano saxophone player who plays free improvisation. Recording and performing prolifically with many collaborators, Parker was a pivotal figure in the development of European free ja ...

, and

Lol Coxhill George Lowen Coxhill (19 September 1932 – 10 July 2012) known professionally as Lol Coxhill, was an English free improvising saxophonist. He played soprano and sopranino saxophone. Biography Coxhill was born to George Compton Coxhill ...

in the development of this demanding form of improvisation. Lacy was interested in all the arts: the visual arts and poetry in particular became important sources for him. Collaborating with painters and dancers in multimedia projects, he made musical settings of his favourite writers:

Robert Creeley Robert White Creeley (May 21, 1926 – March 30, 2005) was an American poet and author of more than sixty books. He is usually associated with the Black Mountain poets, though his verse aesthetic diverged from that school. He was close with Char ...

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...

Tom Raworth Thomas Moore Raworth (19 July 1938 – 8 February 2017) was an English-Irish poet, publisher, editor, and teacher who published over 40 books of poetry and prose during his life. His work has been translated and published in many countries. Rawor ...

Taslima Nasrin Taslima Nasrin (born 25 August 1962) is a Bangladeshi-Swedish writer, physician, feminist, secular humanist, and activist. She is known for her writing on women's oppression and criticism of religion. Some of her books are banned in Bangladesh ...

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American people, American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his bes ...

, Brion Gysin and other Beat writers, including settings for the Tao Te Ching and

haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a ''kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a ''kigo'', or se ...

poetry. As Creeley noted in the Poetry Project Newsletter, "There's no way simply to make clear how particular Steve Lacy was to poets or how much he can now teach them by fact of his own practice and example. No one was ever more generous or perceptive."

Later career

In 1992, he was the recipient of a

MacArthur Fellowship The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and commonly but unofficially known as the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation typically to ...

(nicknamed the "genius grant"). He also collaborated with a wide range of musicians, from traditional jazz to the avant-garde to contemporary classical music. Outside of his regular sextet, his most regular collaborator was pianist

Mal Waldron Malcolm Earl "Mal" Waldron (August 16, 1925 – December 2, 2002) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. He started playing professionally in New York in 1950, after graduating from college. In the following dozen years or so Wa ...

, with whom he recorded a number of duet albums (notably '' Sempre Amore'', a collection of Ellington/Strayhorn material, Soul Note, 1987). Lacy played his 'farewell concerts to Europe' in Belgium, in duo and solo, for a small but motivated public. This happened in Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent,

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...

and

Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...

. In duo he played with Fred Van Hove, Joëlle Léandre, Mikhail Bezverkhni, Irène Aebi, Frederic Rzewski, Christopher Culpo and the dancer Shiro Daimon. This recollection is published by Naked Music, Afkikker, Ghent. In Ghent he played with the classical violinist Mikhail Bezverkhni, winner of Queen Elisabeth Concours. Two of these concerts were organized by Rita De Vuyst, his last muse in Europe, to whom he dedicated his solo CD Mother Goose solo @ afkikker. This CD is published within the book, ''Bone'', a tribute to Lacy. He returned to the United States in 2002, where he began teaching at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on H ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. One of his last public performances was in front of 25,000 people at the close of a

peace Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

rally on

Boston Common The Boston Common (also known as the Common) is a public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest city park in the United States. Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street (139 Tremont St.), Park Street, Beacon ...

in March 2003, shortly before the US-led invasion of Iraq. After Lacy was diagnosed with liver cancer in August 2003, he continued playing and teaching until weeks before his death on June 4, 2004, at the age of 69.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

* ''

Soprano Sax The soprano saxophone is a higher-register variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument invented in the 1840s. The soprano is the third-smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists (from smallest to largest) of the soprillo, sop ...

'' (

Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...

, 1957) * '' Reflections'' (Prestige, 1959) – recorded in 1958 * ''

The Straight Horn of Steve Lacy ''The Straight Horn of Steve Lacy'' is the third album by Steve Lacy and the first to be released on the Candid label in 1961. It features performances of tunes written by Thelonious Monk, Cecil Taylor, Miles Davis, by Lacy, Charles Davis, John ...

'' ( Candid, 1961) – recorded in 1960 * ''

Evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports this proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the supported proposition is true. What role evidence plays and how it is conceived varies from field to field. In epistemology, evidenc ...

'' ( New Jazz, 1962) – recorded in 1961 * '' Disposability'' (Vik, 1965) * '' Jazz Realities'' (Fontana, 1966) with Carla Bley and

Michael Mantler Michael Mantler (born August 10, 1943) is an Austrian avant-garde jazz trumpeter and composer of contemporary music. Career: United States Mantler was born in Vienna, Austria. In the early 1960s, he was a student at the Academy of Music and V ...

* ''

Sortie A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. ...

'' (GTA, 1966) * '' The Forest and the Zoo'' (ESP-Disk, 1967) – recorded in 1966 * ''Roba'', as Steve Lacy Gang (Saravah, 1969) * ''

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

'' (BYG Actuel, 1969) * '' Epistrophy'' (BYG Actuel, 1969) * ''Wordless'' (Futura, 1971) * ''Lapis'' (Saravah, 1971) * ''The Gap'' (America, 1972) * ''Live in Lisbon: Estilhacos'' (Guilda Da Música, 1972) * ''Flaps'', with

Franz Koglmann Franz Koglmann (born 22 May 1947) is an Austrian jazz composer. He performs on both the trumpet and flugelhorn in a variety of contexts, most often within avant-garde jazz and third stream contexts. An award-winning composer, Koglmann has perfor ...

(Pipe, 1973) * ''Solo - Théâtre Du Chêne Noir'' (Emanem, 1974) – recorded in 1972 * ''Weal & Woe'' (Emanem, 1974) – recorded in 1972-73 * ''Scraps'' (Saravah, 1974) * ''Flakes'' (RCA, 1974) * ''Saxophone Special'' (Emanem, 1974) * ''School Days'' with

(Emanem, 1975) – recorded in 1963 * ''The Crust'' (Emanem, 1975) – recorded in 1973 * ''Straws'' (strange days, 1975) * ''Dreams'' (Saravah, 1975) * ''Stalks'' (Nippon Columbia, 1975) * ''Solo at Mandara'' (ALM, 1975) * '' Axieme'' (Red, 1975) * ''Stabs'' (FMP, 1975) * ''Clangs'', with

Andrea Centazzo Andrea Centazzo (born 1948) is an Italian-born American composer, percussionist, multimedia artist and record label founder. Music career Centazzo was born in Udine, Italy. In the 1970s he played percussion in avant-garde jazz with John Zorn, S ...

(Ictus, 1976) * ''

Trickles ''Trickles'' is the first album by Steve Lacy to be released on the Italian Black Saint label.Improvising Artists Improvising Artists Inc. known as IAI is a production company created by jazz pianist, Paul Bley Paul Bley, CM (November 10, 1932 – January 3, 2016) was a jazz pianist known for his contributions to the free jazz movement of the 1960s as well ...

) * ''Company, vol. 4'', with Derek Bailey (1976) * ''Trio Live'' (Ictus, 1976) * ''Distant Voices'' with

Masayuki Takayanagi was a Japanese jazz / free improvisation / noise musician. He was active in the Japanese jazz scene from the late 1950s. In the 1960s he formed New Directions (later New Direction Unit), which recorded several albums throughout the 1970s. He also ...

and

Takehisa Kosugi was a Japanese composer, violinist and artist associated with the Fluxus movement. Biography Kosugi studied musicology at the Tokyo University of the Arts and graduated in 1962. He first became drawn to music listening to his father play ha ...

(Nippon Columbia, 1976) – recorded in 1975 * ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

'' (Denon Jazz, 1977) – recorded in 1975 * ''Raps'' (Adelphi, 1977) * ''Threads'' (1977, Horo) * ''Catch'' (Horo, 1977) * ''The Owl'' (Saravah, 1977) * ''Shots'' (Musica, 1977) * ''Lumps'', with

Michel Waisvisz Michel Waisvisz ( ; 8 July 1949, Leiden – 18 June 2008, Amsterdam) was a Dutch composer, performer and inventor of experimental electronic musical instruments. He was the artistic director of STEIM in Amsterdam from 1981, where he collaborated ...

Han Bennink Han Bennink (born 17 April 1942) is a Dutch drummer and percussionist. On occasion his recordings have featured him playing soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, trombone, violin, banjo and piano. Though perhaps best known as one of the pivotal fig ...

, Maarten van Regteren Altena (Instant Composers Pool, 1978) – recorded in 1974 * ''Follies'' (FMP, 1978) – recorded in 1977 * '' Clinkers'' (HatHut, 1978) – recorded in 1977-78 * ''

Stamps Stamp or Stamps or Stamping may refer to: Official documents and related impressions * Postage stamp, used to indicate prepayment of fees for public mail * Ration stamp, indicating the right to rationed goods * Revenue stamp, used on documents to ...

'' (HatHut, 1979) – recorded in 1977-78 * ''Points'' (Le Chant Du Monde, 1978) * ''Crops & The Woe'' (Quark Records & Books, 1979) – recorded in 1973-76 * ''Torments'' (Morgue, 1979) – recorded in 1975 * ''Eronel'' (1979, Horo) * ''

Troubles The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...

'' (Black Saint, 1979) * ''Duet'', with Walter Zuber Armstrong (World Artists, 1979) * '' The Way'' (hat Hut, 1980) – recorded in 1979 * ''Call Notes'', with Walter Zuber Armstrong (World Artists, 1980) – recorded in 1979 * '' Capers'' (hat Hut, 1981) - also released as ''N.Y.Capers'' and N.Y. Capers & Quirks'' – recorded in 1979 * '' Tips'' (hat Hut, 1981) * ''

Songs A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition ...

'' (hat ART, 1981) with Brion Gysin * ''

Ballets Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

'' (ha Hut, 1982) * '' The Flame'' (Black Saint, 1982) * '' Prospectus'' (hat ART, 1983) – recorded in 1982 * ''

Regeneration Regeneration may refer to: Science and technology * Regeneration (biology), the ability to recreate lost or damaged cells, tissues, organs and limbs * Regeneration (ecology), the ability of ecosystems to regenerate biomass, using photosynthesis ...

'', with

Misha Mengelberg Misha Mengelberg (5 June 1935 – 3 March 2017) was a Dutch jazz pianist and composer.Feather, Leonard & Gitler, Ira (2007) ''The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz'', p. 459. Oxford University Press. A prominent figure in post-WWII European Jazz ...

et al. – (1983) * ''Change of Season'', with

et al. – (1984) * ''Blinks (album), Blinks'' (hat ART, 1984) * ''Futurities'' (Hat Hut, 1985) * ''The Condor (album), The Condor'' (Soul Note, 1986) – recorded in 1985 * ''Chirps'' (FMP, 1986) – recorded in 1985 * ''Outings'' (Ismez, 1986) * ''Hocus-Pocus'' (Les Disques Du Crépuscule, 1986) * ''Solo'' (Egg Farm, 1986) * ''Deadline'' (Sound Aspects, 1987) with Ulrich Gumpert – recorded in 1985 * ''Only Monk'' (Soul Note, 1987) – recorded in 1985 * ''The Kiss'' (Lunatic, 1987) * ''One Fell Swoop'' (Silkheart, 1987) * ''The Gleam'' (Silkheart, 1987) * ''Dutch Masters'', with

, George E. Lewis, Ernst Reijseger (1987) * ''Explorations'', with Subroto Roy Chowdury (Jazzpoint, 1987) * ''Momentum (Steve Lacy album), Momentum'' (RCA Novus, 1987) * ''The Window (Steve Lacy album), The Window'' (RCA Novus, 1988) – recorded in 1987 * ''Live in Budapest'' (West Wind, 1988) with Steve Potts – recorded in 1987 * ''Image'' (Ah Um, 1989) – recorded in 1987 * ''The Amiens Concert'' (Amiens, 1987) with Eric Watson and John Lindberg (jazz musician), John Lindberg * ''Paris Blues (album), Paris Blues'' with

(Owl Studios, Owl, 1987) * ''The Door (Steve Lacy album), The Door'' (RCA Novus, 1989) * ''Morning Joy'' (hat ART, 1990) – recorded in 1986 * ''Anthem (Steve Lacy album), Anthem'' (RCA Novus, 1990) * ''Rushes: Ten Songs from Russia'' (New Sound Planet, 1990) * ''Steve Lacy Solo'' (In Situ, 1991) – recorded in 1985 * ''Flim-Flam (album), Flim-Flam'' (hat ART, 1991) with Steve Potts – recorded in 1986 * ''More Monk'' (Soul Note, 1991) – recorded in 1989 * ''Itinerary (album), Itinerary'' (hat ART, 1991) * ''Remains (Steve Lacy album), Remains'' (hat ART, 1992) * ''Live at Sweet Basil (Steve Lacy album), Live at Sweet Basil'' (RCA Novus, 1992) * ''Spirit of Mingus'' (Freelance Records, Freelance, 1992) * ''Clangs'' (hat ART, 1993) * ''We See'' (hat ART, 1993) * ''Revenue (album), Revenue'' (Soul Note, 1993) * ''Vespers (album), Vespers'' (Soul Note, 1993) * ''Three Blokes'' (FMP, 1994) with

and

– recorded in 1992 * ''The Rendezvous'' (Exit, 1995) with Barry Wedgle – recorded in 1994 * ''Packet'' (New Albion, 1995) with Irene Aebi, Frederic Rzewski * ''Actuality'' (Cavity Search, 1995) * ''Eternal Duo '95'' (Take One, 1996) with Masahiko Togashi – recorded in 1995 * ''Blues for Aida'' (Egg Farm, 1996) – recorded in 1995 * ''Bye-Ya'' (Freelance, 1996) * ''Five Facings'' (FMP, 1996) * ''5 x Monk 5 x Lacy'' (Silkheart, 1997) * ''Live at Unity Temple'' (Wobbly Rail, 1998) – recorded in 1997 * ''The Rent'' (Cavity Search, 1999) – recorded in 1997 * ''Sands'' (Tzadik, 1998) * ''The Joan Miró Foundation Concert'' (Nova Era, 1999) with

– recorded in 1995 * ''The Cry (Steve Lacy album), The Cry'' (Soul Note, 1999) – recorded in 1988 * ''Hooky'' (Emanem, 2000) – recorded in 1976 * ''Monk's Dream (Steve Lacy album), Monk's Dream'' (Verve, 2000) – recorded in 1999 * ''Snips (album), Snips'' (2000) * ''Opium for Franz'', with Bill Dixon,

(Between The Lines, 2001) – recorded in 1973-76 * ''Best Wishes: Live At The Labirinti Sonori Festival 2001'' (Labirinti Sonori, 2001) * ''10 of Dukes & 6 Originals'' (Senators, 2002) – recorded in 2000 * ''Apices'' (Studio Songs, 2002) with Masahiko Togashi and Masahiko Satoh – recorded in 2000 * ''The Holy La'' (Free Lance, 2002) – recorded in 1998 & 2001 * ''Mother Goose, solo@afkikker'' in ''Bone: a tribute to Steve Lacy'' (Gent, 2003) - CD attached in book. recorded in 2001. * ''Materioso (Monk's Moods)'' (Onyx JazzClub, 2003) – recorded in 2001 * ''The Beat Suite'' (Universal Music Jazz France, 2003) * ''Work'' (Sawano, 2003) with Anthony Cox、Daniel Humair – recorded in 2002 * ''New Jazz Meeting Baden-Baden 2002'' (hatOLOGY, 2003) – recorded in 2002 * ''The Complete Whitey Mitchell Sessions'' (Lone Hill Jazz, 2004) – recorded in 1956 * ''Leaves Blossoms'' (Naked Music, 2005) – recorded in 2002 * ''One More Time'' (Leo, 2005) with Joëlle Léandre – recorded in 2002 * ''Tao'' with Andrea Centazzo (Ictus, 2006) – recorded in 1976-84 * ''Early and Late'', with Roswell Rudd (Cuneiform, 2007) – recorded in 1962, 1999, 2002 * ''November'' (Intakt, 2010) – recorded in 2003 * ''Last Tour'' (Emanem, 2015) – recorded in 2004

Compilations

* ''Scratching the Seventies/Dreams'' (Saravah, 1996) * ''Associates'' (Musica Jazz, 1996) * ''The Sun'' (Emanem, 2012) * ''Avignon And After Volume 1'' (Emanem, 2012) * ''Avignon And After Volume 2'' (Emanem, 2014) * Blossoms, farewell concerts to Europe, Naked Music, Afkikker

With Mal Waldron

* ''Journey Without End'' (RCA Victor, 1971) * ''Mal Waldron with the Steve Lacy Quintet'' (America, 1972) * ''Hard Talk (album), Hard Talk'' (Enja, 1974) * ''One-Upmanship (album), One-Upmanship'' (Enja, 1977) * ''Moods (Mal Waldron album), Moods'' (Enja, 1978) * '' Sempre Amore'' (Soul Note, 1987) – recorded in 1986 * ''The Super Quartet Live at Sweet Basil'' (Paddle Wheel, 1987) * ''Hot House (Steve Lacy album), Hot House'' (RCA Novus, 1991) – recorded in 1990 * ''I Remember Thelonious'' (Nel Jazz, 1996) – recorded in 1992 * ''Let's Call This... Esteem'' (1993) * ''Communiqué (Steve Lacy & Mal Waldron album), Communiqué'' (1997) * ''One More Time'' (2002) * ''Live at Dreher, Paris 1981'' (hatOLOGY, 2003) – compilation ** ''Live at Dreher, Paris 1981, Round Midnight Vol. 1'' (hat ART, 1996) ** ''Live at Dreher, Paris 1981, The Peak Vol. 2'' (hat ART, 1996) * ''Japan Dream'' (2004) * ''At the Bimhuis 1982'' (2006)

As sideman

* Dick Sutton – ''Jazz Idiom'' (1954) * Dick Sutton Sextet – ''Progressive Dixieland'' (1954) * Tom Stewart – ''Quintet/Sextet'' (1956) * Whitey Mitchell Sextette – ''Whitey Mitchell Sextette'' (1956) * Joe Puma – ''Modern Jazz Sampler'' (1956) * Cecil Taylor – ''

'' (1956) *

– ''Gil Evans & Ten'' (1957) * Cecil Taylor – ''At Newport (Cecil Taylor & Gigi Gryce album), At Newport'' (1958) *

– ''Great Jazz Standards'' (1959) * Miles Davis – ''At Carnegie Hall'' (1961) * Miles Davis – ''Quiet Nights (Davis and Evans album), Quiet Nights'' (1963) *

– '' Big Band and Quartet in Concert'' (1964) * Bobby Hackett – ''Hello Louis'' (1964) *

– ''The Individualism of Gil Evans'' (1964) * Kenny Burrell – ''Guitar Forms'' (1965) * Jazz Composers Orchestra – ''Communication (Jazz Composer's Orchestra album), Communication'' (1965) * Giorgio Gaslini – ''Nuovi Sentimenti'' (1966) * Gary Burton – ''A Genuine Tong Funeral'' (1967) * Max Roach – ''Sounds as a Roach'' (1968) * Giorgio Gaslini – ''Il Grido: Big Band Live'' (1968) * Giovanni Tommaso – ''Indefinitive Atmosphere'' (1969) * Giovanni Tommaso – ''The Healthy Food Band'' (1970) * Alan Silva – ''Seasons (Alan Silva album), Seasons'' (1970) * Giorgio Gaslini & Jean-Luc Ponty – ''Fabbrica Occupata'' (1973) * Maria Monti – ''Il Bestiario'' (1974) * Globe Unity Special – ''Evidence, vol.1'' (1975) * Globe Unity Special – ''Into the Valley, vol.2'' (1975) *

– ''Blown Bone'' (1976) * Area (band), Area – ''Maledetti'' (1976) * Area – ''Event '76'' (1976) * Musica Elettronica Viva – ''United Patchwork'' (Horo, 1977) * Kenny Davern – ''Unexpected'' (Kharma, 1978) *

– ''Parabola (album), Parabola'' (Horo, 1979) * Laboratorio della Quercia – ''Laboratorio della Quercia del Tasso'' (Horo, 1978) * Globe Unity Orchestra – Compositions ((Japo, 1980) * V.A. – ''Amarcord Nino Rota'' (Corbett Vs. Dempsey, 1980) * Tiziana Ghiglioni – ''Somebody Special'' (Soul Note, 1986) * Company (free improvisation group), Company – ''Company'', vol. 5, 6, 7 (Incus, 1991) – recorded in 1977 * V.A. – ''Interpretations Of Monk'' (DIW, 1994) – recorded in 1981 * Roswell Rudd – ''Broad Strokes'' (Knitting Factory, 2000)

References

External links

Discography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lacy, Steve 1934 births 2004 deaths MacArthur Fellows Avant-garde jazz musicians Dixieland jazz musicians American jazz soprano saxophonists American male saxophonists Jazz soprano saxophonists Deaths from cancer in Massachusetts Candid Records artists BYG Actuel artists ESP-Disk artists Novus Records artists Verve Records artists Tzadik Records artists Prestige Records artists RCA Records artists Cavity Search Records artists 20th-century American musicians 20th-century saxophonists American male jazz musicians Globe Unity Orchestra members Black Lion Records artists Improvising Artists Records artists FMP/Free Music Production artists Sunnyside Records artists 20th-century American male musicians Intakt Records artists Jewish jazz musicians