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 A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer's ...

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 ...

died in 1990. Blakey led or co-led the group from the outset. "Art Blakey" and "Jazz Messengers" became synonymous over the years, though Blakey did lead non-Messenger recording sessions and played as a sideman for other groups throughout his career. The group evolved into a proving ground for young jazz talent. While veterans occasionally re-appeared in the group, by and large, each iteration of the Messengers included a lineup of new young players. Having the Messengers on one's resume was a rite of passage in the jazz world, and conveyed immediate bona fides. Many former members of the Jazz Messengers established careers as solo musicians, such as

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'' ...

Benny Golson Benny Golson (born January 25, 1929) is an American bebop/ hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He came to prominence with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie, more as a writer than a performer, before laun ...

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 ...

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives ...

Bobby Timmons Robert Henry Timmons (December 19, 1935 – March 1, 1974) was an American jazz pianist and composer. He was a sideman in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers for two periods (July 1958 to September 1959; February 1960 to June 1961), between which he wa ...

Curtis Fuller Curtis DuBois Fuller (December 15, 1932May 8, 2021) was an American jazz trombonist. He was a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and contributed to many classic jazz recordings. Early life Fuller was born in Detroit on December 15, 19 ...

Cedar Walton Cedar Anthony Walton Jr. (January 17, 1934 – August 19, 2013) was an American hard bop jazz pianist. He came to prominence as a member of drummer Art Blakey's band, The Jazz Messengers, before establishing a long career as a bandleader and co ...

Keith Jarrett Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945) is an American jazz and classical music pianist and composer. Jarrett started his career with Art Blakey and later moved on to play with Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s, he has also been a ...

Joanne Brackeen Joanne Brackeen (born Joanne Grogan; July 26, 1938) is an American jazz pianist and music educator. Music career Brackeen was born in Ventura, California, United States, and attended the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music. She was a fan of pop pi ...

Woody Shaw Woody Herman Shaw Jr. (December 24, 1944 – May 10, 1989) was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer, arranger, band leader, and educator. Shaw is widely known as one of the most important and influential jazz trumpet ...

Chuck Mangione Charles Frank Mangione ( ; born November 29, 1940) is an American flugelhorn player, voice actor, trumpeter and composer. He came to prominence as a member of Art Blakey's band in the 1960s, and later co-led the Jazz Brothers with his brother ...

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 Award ...

Branford Marsalis Branford Marsalis (born August 26, 1960) is an American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. While primarily known for his work in jazz as the leader of the Branford Marsalis Quartet, he also performs frequently as a soloist with classical ens ...

, Terence Blanchard,

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 ...

and Mulgrew Miller. Some members, such as bassist

Clarence Seay Clarence Seay (born January 7, 1957, Washington, DC) is a jazz bassist and composer. He has been an acoustic bassist with the Wallace Roney Quintet for over 15 years. Seay, also known as "Big C", is a disciple of the Paul Chambers school of ja ...

and

Gregory Charles Royal Gregory Charles Royal, also known as Chuck Royal, is an American musician, trombonist, composer, writer, co-founder of '' The BeBop Channel''. founder of the New York Jazz Film Festival, a judge on '' America's Hot Musician''. and the artistic d ...

, are documented to have played in the Jazz Messengers but did not record with the group.

History

Origins

On December 17, 1947, Blakey led a group known as "Art Blakey's Messengers" in his first recording session as a leader, for

Blue Note Records Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derived its name from the blue notes of jazz and the blues. ...

. The records were released as 78s at the time and two of the songs were released on the ''New Sounds'' 10" LP compilation (BLP 5010). This octet included

Kenny Dorham McKinley Howard "Kenny" Dorham (August 30, 1924 – December 5, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and composer. Dorham's talent is frequently lauded by critics and other musicians, but he never received the kind of attention or public ...

, Howard Bowe, Sahib Shihab, Musa Kaleem, Ernest Thompson,

Walter Bishop Jr. Walter Bishop Jr. (October 4, 1927 – January 24, 1998) was an American jazz pianist. Early life Bishop was born in New York City on October 4, 1927.Greene, Philip; Kernfeld, Barr"Bishop, Walter Jr." ''The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz'' (2nd ed ...

, and LaVerne Barker. Around the same time—in 1947 or 1949—Blakey led a big band called "Seventeen Messengers." The band proved to be financially unstable and broke up soon after. The Messengers name then went dormant for several years. Blakey and

Horace Silver Horace Ward Martin Tavares Silver (September 2, 1928 – June 18, 2014) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, particularly in the hard bop style that he helped pioneer in the 1950s. After playing tenor saxophone and piano at sc ...

began working together in the early 1950s. Some cite the group that included Blakey, Silver, Kenny Dorham,

Lou Donaldson Lou Donaldson (born November 1, 1926) is an American retired jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop ...

and Gene Ramey in 1953 as the original Jazz Messengers. On February 21, 1954, a group billed as the "Art Blakey Quintet" produced the live set of records called '' A Night at Birdland''. The quintet included

Clifford Brown Clifford Benjamin Brown (October 30, 1930 – June 26, 1956) was an American jazz trumpeter and composer. He died at the age of 25 in a car accident, leaving behind four years' worth of recordings. His compositions "Sandu", "Joy Spring", an ...

and

Curly Russell Curly is a surname, given name, nickname or stage name. It may refer to: First name, nickname or stage name * Crazy Horse (1840–1877), Oglala Sioux war chief nicknamed "Curly" * Curly (scout), nickname of Ashishishe (c. 1856–1923), Crow Ind ...

. These records were quite successful, and some cite this date as the beginning of the Jazz Messengers.

The Jazz Messengers (1954–56)

Most date the origin of the Jazz Messengers to 1954, or 1955, when the first recordings credited to the band appeared. The Jazz Messengers formed as a collective, nominally led by

Silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

or Blakey on various dates. Blakey credits Silver with reviving the Messengers name for the group. The other members included Kenny Dorham,

Hank Mobley Henry "Hank" Mobley (July 7, 1930 – May 30, 1986) was an American hard bop and soul jazz tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to de ...

and

Doug Watkins Douglas Watkins (March 2, 1934 – February 5, 1962) was an American jazz double bassist. He was best known for being an accompanist to various hard bop artists in the Detroit area, including Donald Byrd and Jackie McLean. Biography Watkins ...

. Their first recordings officially using the Jazz Messengers name were a pair of

live dates This is the complete discography of the rock band Wishbone Ash. Over the years they have released 24 studio albums, 12 live albums, 10 compilation albums and 20 singles. Albums Studio albums Other albums Live albums Compilation albums S ...

, recorded at the Café Bohemia in 1955. A pair of earlier recordings from sessions in late 1954 and early 1955—released on Blue Note 10" LPs as the ''Horace Silver Quintet, vol. 1 and vol. 2''—were subsequently reissued as a 12" LP entitled '' Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers''. The pioneering members of the Jazz Messengers (Horace Silver, Hank Mobley, Kenny Dorham, Doug Watkins, and of course Blakey) believed that the band needed a professional look, and they abandoned

jam sessions A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without ext ...

. In 1956 Dorham left the band to go out on his own and was replaced by

Donald Byrd Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter and vocalist. A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was one of the few hard bop ...

. This group released '' The Jazz Messengers'' on

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

. Later in the year, the original group disbanded, but Blakey retained the Jazz Messengers name for his future groups.

The "Second" Messengers (1956–58)

For a brief period in 1956 Donald Byrd stayed on as a new lineup was formed. It included Kenny Drew, Wilbur Ware, and

Ira Sullivan Ira Sullivan (May 1, 1931 – September 21, 2020) was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, flautist, saxophonist, and composer born in Washington, D.C., United States. An active musician since the 1950s, he often worked with Red Rodn ...

playing tenor sax rather than his main instrument, trumpet. The only recording of this version of the Messengers was two tracks backing up singer

Rita Reys Rita Reys (born Maria Everdina Reijs; 21 December 1924 – 28 July 2013) was a jazz singer from the Netherlands. She was promoted as "Europe's First Lady of Jazz". In the 1980s, Rita returned to the American Songbook, recording albums such as ...

on ''

The Cool Voice of Rita Reys ''The Cool Voice of Rita Reys'' is the debut album by Dutch jazz singer Rita Reys which features sessions recorded with bands led by drummers Art Blakey and her husband Wessel Ilcken. The sessions are divided over each side of the original LP wh ...

'' on Columbia. Blakey then formed a new lineup that would prove to be much more stable. The most notable name, at the time, was

Jackie McLean John Lenwood "Jackie" McLean (May 17, 1931 – March 31, 2006) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and educator, and is one of the few musicians to be elected to the ''DownBeat'' Hall of Fame in the year of their deat ...

. He was only 25, but had already recorded with

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

and

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 an ...

Bill Hardman William Franklin Hardman Jr. (April 6, 1933 – December 6, 1990) was an American jazz trumpeter and flugelhornist who chiefly played hard bop. He was married to Roseline and they had a daughter Nadege. Career Hardman was born and grew ...

Sam Dockery Samuel Dockery (1929 – December 21, 2015), nicknamed Sure-Footed Sam, was a hard bop pianist and well-respected musician on the Philadelphia jazz scene since the early 1950s.Allmusic Biography See als"A Veteran Piano Man Just Keeps on Playing" ...

and Jimmy "Spanky" DeBrest complete the group. They recorded another record for

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region i ...

: ''

Hard Bop Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop (or "bop") music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gospe ...

''—still under the collective's moniker The Jazz Messengers. They went on to record for several different labels including RCA subsidiary

Vik Records Vik Records was a subsidiary of RCA Victor Records established in April 1953. In the ''Billboard'' issue of the 11th of that month, it was announced that RCA was launching, namelessly, a new label that was the company's first to be distributed inde ...

Pacific Jazz Pacific Jazz Records was a Los Angeles-based record company and label best known for cool jazz or West coast jazz. It was founded in 1952 by producer Richard Bock (1927–1988) and drummer Roy Harte (1924–2003). Harte, in 1954, also co-founded ...

, Elektra,

Cadet A cadet is an officer trainee or candidate. The term is frequently used to refer to those training to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. Its meaning may vary between countries which can include youths in ...

Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

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 ...

and a date on

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 ...

featuring

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", ...

. Over this time the band's name evolved to include Blakey's name, starting with "The Jazz Messengers, featuring Art Blakey" on

Ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...

, then "Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers" on several records, and also "Art Blakey and his Jazz Messengers" on

Cu-Bop ''Cu-Bop'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers with conguero Sabu recorded in 1957 and originally released on the Jubilee label.

Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers (1959–64)

In 1958 Blakey formed a new lineup with four Philadelphia natives: Lee Morgan, Benny Golson,

, and

Jymie Merritt Jymie Merritt (May 3, 1926 – April 10, 2020) was an American jazz double-bassist, electric-bass pioneer, band leader and composer. Merritt was a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers group from 1957 until 1962. The same year he left Blakey's b ...

. This marked the beginning of perhaps the most fruitful period of the Jazz Messengers. They returned to

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical c ...

and the first record—entitled simply '' Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers''—produced their biggest hit: "

Moanin' ''Moanin'' (originally titled ''Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers'') is a jazz album by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers recorded in 1958 for the Blue Note label and released in 1959. Background This was Blakey's first album for Blue Note ...

". It featured two more songs which would become Messengers classics, and jazz classics as well: "

Blues March "Blues March" is a composition by Benny Golson. It was first recorded for Blue Mitchell's Riverside album '' Big 6'' on July 2 and 3, 1958,Yanow, Scot"Blue Mitchell: Big 6" AllMusic. Retrieved December 21, 2013. and has become a jazz standard.B ...

" and "Along Came Betty" by Benny Golson. Golson left the band in 1959 after a European tour (which produced live albums and a film soundtrack on

Fontana Records Fontana Records is a record label that was started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records. The independent label distributor Fontana Distribution takes its name from the label. History Fontana started in the 1950s as a sub ...

and French

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

) to be replaced, briefly, by

. Mobley did not accompany the band to a Canadian jazz festival in 1959; Lee Morgan encountered

at the festival, and he joined the band in Mobley's place. This lineup produced several notable recordings, including the second Messenger album, ''

A Night in Tunisia "A Night in Tunisia" is a musical composition written by Dizzy Gillespie around 1940–42, while Gillespie was playing with the Benny Carter band. It has become a jazz standard. It is also known as "Interlude", and with lyrics by Raymond Leveen w ...

''. In 1961 the group expanded to a sextet with the addition of

. This lineup produced the '' Art Blakey!!!!! Jazz Messengers!!!!!'' album for

Impulse! Records 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 ...

. At the end of that summer, Lee Morgan and

left and were replaced by

and

respectively. This lineup recorded '' Three Blind Mice'' for

United Artists United Artists Corporation (UA), currently doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, is an American digital production company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the stu ...

and two albums for Blue Note: ''

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

'' and ''

Buhaina's Delight ''Buhaina's Delight'' is a jazz album released by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers in 1963. Produced by Alfred Lion, the album was recorded in two sessions on November 28, 1961 and December 18, 1961 at Van Gelder Studio in Englewood Cliffs, New ...

''. In mid-1962

Reggie Workman Reginald "Reggie" Workman (born June 26, 1937 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American avant-garde jazz and hard bop double bassist, recognized for his work with both John Coltrane and Art Blakey. Career Early in his career, Workman wo ...

replaced long-time double bassist

, who wanted to settle down in Philadelphia. This version of the group produced three albums for Riverside: ''

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 , is a 1953 Japanese historical drama and fantasy film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi starring Masayuki Mori and Machiko Kyō. It is based on two stories in Ueda Akinari's 1776 book of the same name, combining elements of the '' jidaigeki'' ( ...

'', and ''

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the c ...

''; in addition to another

under the name '' Free for All''. This lineup stayed together until March 1964, when Lee Morgan rejoined in place of Freddie Hubbard. Around this time—the recording date is unknown—the band produced an album from the musical '' Golden Boy'' for the

Colpix Colpix Records was the first recording company for Columbia Pictures–Screen Gems. Colpix got its name from combining Columbia (Col) and Pictures (Pix). CBS, which owned Columbia Records, then sued Columbia Pictures for trademark infringement o ...

label with an expanded lineup. This lineup included both Freddie Hubbard and Lee Morgan on trumpet, plus Charles Davis,

Julius Watkins Julius Watkins (October 10, 1921 – April 4, 1977) was an American jazz musician who played French horn. Described by AllMusic as "virtually the father of the jazz French horn", Watkins won the ''Down Beat'' critics poll in 1960 and 1961 for M ...

, and

Bill Barber William Charles Barber (born July 11, 1952) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played twelve seasons for the Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League (NHL). As part of the famed LCB (Leach, Clarke, Barber) line, B ...

. In April 1964, the Jazz Messengers produced their final, new, recording for the Blue Note label: '' Indestructible''.

The "New" Messengers (1964–66)

In September 1964, Wayne Shorter left the Messengers to join the

band that was later called the Second Great Quintet. Lee Morgan enlisted long-time

Sun Ra Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific ou ...

tenor saxophonist

John Gilmore John Gilmore may refer to: * John Gilmore (activist) (born 1955), co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Cygnus Solutions * John Gilmore (musician) (1931–1995), American jazz saxophonist * John Gilmore (representative) (1780–1845) ...

to fill in—though it was understood he would return to Sun Ra after a time. Gilmore brought along fellow

Arkestra Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific out ...

member Victor Sproles and

John Hicks Sir John Richards Hicks (8 April 1904 – 20 May 1989) was a British economist. He is considered one of the most important and influential economists of the twentieth century. The most familiar of his many contributions in the field of economic ...

joined on

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

. The edition of the Messengers would see more quick turnover of members than the previous. The band signed with

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

' new Mercury sub-label

Limelight Records Limelight Records was a jazz record label and subsidiary of Mercury Records started in 1962. The catalogue included music by Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Earl Hines, Milt Jackson, Gerry Mulligan, and Oscar Peterson. Originally headed by Quincy ...

. This group—still including Curtis Fuller on trombone—recorded the first album for the label: ''

'S Make It S Make It (slang for 'Let's go') is a recording by the hard bop Art Blakey jazz ensemble. It was recorded in Los Angeles in 1964 and issued on the Limelight label.Matsubayashi, KMercury Records Collection: LS-86001: 'S Make It / Art Blakey And Th ...

''. The band soon reverted to a quintet as Fuller departed. Alto saxophonist Gary Bartz replaced the departing John Gilmore and this quintet—with

sitting in alongside Morgan—recorded ''

Soul Finger "Soul Finger" is the first single released by R&B group the Bar-Kays. It was issued by Stax Records on the Volt Records label on April 14, 1967. Background The song was written by the Bar-Kays while they were rehearsing with Norman West to per ...

'' for Limelight. By January 1966 the band had completely turned over again. Now

occupied the trumpet chair with Frank Mitchell on tenor sax,

on piano and Reggie Johnson on bass. This lineup produced the live album ''

Buttercorn Lady ''Buttercorn Lady'' is a live album by drummer Art Blakey's New Jazz Messengers recorded at The Lighthouse jazz club in 1966 and originally released that year on the Limelight label. The album was the first commercial recording to feature pianis ...

'' under the moniker ''Art Blakey and the "New" Jazz Messengers''. While the band continued to perform live, this would be the final Jazz Messengers recording of the decade.

The dark years (1966–76)

The late 1960s saw the ascendance of rock music in popular culture, and the jazz world was experimenting with

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

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and ke ...

, styles Blakey did not care for. It was difficult for Blakey to maintain a steady lineup for the Messengers, during this period, and even more difficult to produce recordings. Between 1966 and 1972, the Messengers produced only a single official record: ''

Jazz Messengers '70 ''Jazz Messengers '70'' is a live album by drummer Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers recorded in Tokyo in 1970 and originally released on the Catalyst label.

'', a live date in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

. This particular lineup included Bill Hardman, Carlos Garnett,

and Jan Arnet. Blakey kept the Messengers working during this period—particularly abroad in Europe and Japan where they maintained their popularity. But the lineups were fluid, with several musicians rotating through based on who was available for the particular engagement. In various combinations, between 1966 and 1972 the band included trumpet players

and

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was born on No ...

in addition to Hardman; saxophonists Garnett, Mitchell,

Billy Harper Billy Harper (born January 17, 1943) is an American jazz saxophonist, "one of a generation of Coltrane-influenced tenor saxophonists" with a distinctively stern, hard-as-nails sound on his instrument.Chris KelseyBilly Harper Biography '' AllMus ...

and Ramon Morris; and trombonists

Slide Hampton Locksley Wellington Hampton (April 21, 1932 – November 18, 2021) was an American jazz trombonist, composer and arranger. As his nickname implies, Hampton's main instrument was slide trombone, but he also occasionally played tuba and flugel ...

and Julian Priester. The piano chair saw the greatest turnover. After Jarrett, pianists included Mike Nock,

Lonnie Liston Smith Lonnie Liston Smith Jr. (born December 28, 1940) is an American jazz, soul, and funk musician who played with such jazz artists as Pharoah Sanders and Miles Davis before forming Lonnie Liston Smith and the Cosmic Echoes, recording a number of ...

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

McCoy Tyner Alfred McCoy Tyner (December 11, 1938March 6, 2020) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet (from 1960 to 1965) and his long solo career afterwards. He was an NEA Jazz Master and five-time Gram ...

Ronnie Mathews Ronald Mathews (December 2, 1935 in New York City – June 28, 2008 in Brooklyn) was an American jazz pianist who worked with Max Roach from 1963 to 1968 and Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. He acted as lead in recording from 1963 and 1978–79. Hi ...

, George Cables,

Albert Dailey Albert Preston Dailey (June 16, 1939 – June 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist. Early life Dailey was born in Baltimore, Maryland. His parents were Albert Preston Dailey Sr, and Gertrude Johnson Dailey.Jon Pareles"Albert Dailey, 46, Jazz ...

, plus occasionally veterans John Hicks, Cedar Walton, and

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 ...

Bassists included Juni Booth,

Buster Williams Charles Anthony "Buster" Williams (born April 17, 1942) is an American jazz bassist. Williams is known for his membership in pianist Herbie Hancock's early 1970s group, working with guitarist Larry Coryell from the 1980s to present, working in the ...

, Larry Evans,

Scotty Holt Scotty Holt is an American jazz bassist. He is known for his work with Jackie McLean for Blue Note Records in the 1960s, on albums such as '' New and Old Gospel'' and ''Hipnosis''. He also performed in McLean's quartet, along with Billy Higgins an ...

, Arnet, and Mickey Bass. In 1972 the Messengers were signed to

Prestige Records Prestige Records is a jazz record company and label founded in 1949 by Bob Weinstock in New York City which issued recordings in the mainstream, bop, and cool jazz idioms. The company recorded hundreds of albums by many of the leading jazz music ...

and produced three albums. ''

Child's Dance ''Child's Dance'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers recorded in 1972 and released on the Prestige label.George Cables on both acoustic and electric pianos; and Mickey Bass. The band was augmented by

Buddy Terry Edlin "Buddy" Terry (January 30, 1941 - November 29, 2019) was an American jazz musician and alto/tenor sax player. He was born in Newark, New Jersey. In the 1960s and 1970s Terry made albums for Prestige Records and Mainstream Records. He played w ...

(soprano sax), Manny Boyd (flute), Michael Howard (guitar),

Stanley Clarke Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, film composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first ja ...

(electric bass), and percussionists Nathaniel Bettis, Sonny Morgan, Pablo Landrum, Emmanuel Rahim and Ray Mantilla for different tunes across the two sessions. In 1973, a regular lineup of Woody Shaw, newcomer

Carter Jefferson Carter Jefferson (1946 – 9 December 1993) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Jefferson played clarinet and alto saxophone early in his career, playing in the backing bands for The Temptations, The Supremes, and Little Richard in the 1960s. ...

, Cedar Walton, and Mickey Bass recorded two more

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 ...

albums: ''

Anthenagin ''Anthenagin'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers recorded in 1973 and released on the Prestige label.Buhaina ''Buhaina'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers recorded in 1973 and released on the Prestige label.Conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest) ...

player Tony Waters appears on ''Anthenagin'' and trombonist

Steve Turre Stephen Johnson Turre (born September 12, 1948, in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American jazz trombonist and a pioneer of using seashells as instruments, a composer, arranger, and educator at the collegiate-conservatory level. For years, Turre has be ...

appears on ''Buhaina''. Blakey struggled to keep the band going the next three years. Only one recording—a 1975 collaboration with

Sonny Stitt Edward Hammond Boatner Jr. (February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982), known professionally as Sonny Stitt, was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/ hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of h ...

called '' In Walked Sonny'' on the Swedish

Sonet Synchronous optical networking (SONET) and synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) are standardized protocols that transfer multiple digital bit streams synchronously over optical fiber using lasers or highly coherent light from light-emitting diode ...

label—was produced between 1973 and 1976. That album included long time trumpet stalwart Bill Hardman again occupying the trumpet chair.

David Schnitter David Schnitter (born March 19, 1948, in Newark, New Jersey) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Allmusic/ref> Schnitter played clarinet as a youth and switched to tenor sax at age 15. After moving to New York City he played with Ted Dunbar ...

was now on tenor sax and would stay with the Messengers for some time to come. Walter Davis Jr. was back on piano, and the new bassist was

Isao Suzuki was a Japanese jazz double-bassist. Biography Born in Tokyo, Japan, Suzuki learned to play bass on United States military bases, and played early in his career with Shotaro Moriyasu, Hidehiko Matsumoto, and Sadao Watanabe. He led his own ense ...

. The Messengers were still popular in Japan, and travelled there annually. Hardman and Schnitter were constants throughout this period. Pianists also included Albert Dailey and

Mickey Tucker Mickey Tucker (born Michael B. Tucker; April 28, 1941) is an American jazz pianist and organist. Biography Tucker was born in Durham, North Carolina in 1941. He grew up in Rankin, Pennsylvania before moving back to North Carolina aged 12. When h ...

and bassists after Suzuki included Cameron Brown and Chris Amberger.

Messengers rejuvenation (1976–90)

In 1976 the Messengers recorded a record for

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 ...

–

Backgammon Backgammon is a two-player board game played with counters and dice on tables boards. It is the most widespread Western member of the large family of tables games, whose ancestors date back nearly 5,000 years to the regions of Mesopotamia and Pe ...

—featuring Hardman, Schnitter, Dailey and Suzuki. In that year Blakey began a professional relationship with

Wim Wigt Willem (Wim) Wigt, (Utrecht, October 13, 1944) is a Dutch artist manager, promoter, producer and founder of the record label Timeless Records. Life and work Born in Utrecht in 1944, Wigt went on to study non-western sociology at the Landbouwu ...

, a Dutch music booker and owner of the

Timeless Timeless (or atemporal) or timelessness (or atemporality) may refer to: * Agelessness, the condition of being unaffected by the passage of time * Akal (Sikh term), timelessness in Sikhism * Eternity, timeless existence or infinite duration * Im ...

label. Wigt booked the Messengers throughout Europe. A second record for

followed, featuring Schnitter,

and newcomers Valery Ponomarev,

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 ...

, and

Dennis Irwin __NOTOC__ Dennis Irwin (November 28, 1951 in Birmingham, Alabama - March 10, 2008) was an American jazz double bassist. He toured and recorded with John Scofield and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra among others, and played on over 500 albums. Bio ...

. From this point the lineups began to stabilize as the band worked more regularly. In October 1977 Blakey hired a new, regular, pianist: James Williams. This group (Ponomarev, Watson, Schnitter, Willams and Irwin) recorded '' In My Prime Vol. 1'' on November 1977 for Wigt's Timeless label. In 1978 they recorded '' In This Korner'' for

Concord Jazz Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the ...

and ''

In My Prime Vol. 2 ''In My Prime Vol. 2'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers recorded in 1977 and released on the Dutch Timeless label.Reflections in Blue'' for Timeless. In February 1979, they recorded the third Messengers album entitled '' Night in Tunisia'' for

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters is ...

. In November 1979 they recorded '' One by One'', a live album in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, for the Italian Palcoscenico label. In 1979 Blakey decided to assemble an 11-piece "big band" to take on a European tour in 1980. This band was unique in that it included two sets of brothers: Wynton and

and

Robin Robin may refer to: Animals * Australasian robins, red-breasted songbirds of the family Petroicidae * Many members of the subfamily Saxicolinae (Old World chats), including: **European robin (''Erithacus rubecula'') ** Bush-robin **Forest r ...

and Kevin Eubanks, and that the group had the first guitarist that Blakey ever hired,

Bobby Broom Robert Broom Jr. (born January 18, 1961) is an American jazz guitarist, composer, and educator. He was born and raised in New York City, then moved to Chicago, which has been his home town since 1984. He performs and records with The Bobby Broo ...

. The young musicians were cultivated by playing in the smaller Jazz Messengers combo around New York City through 1979. Broom left the group before the 1980 tour. These would be Ponomarev's last appearances with the Messengers. While

Watson Watson may refer to: Companies * Actavis, a pharmaceutical company formerly known as Watson Pharmaceuticals * A.S. Watson Group, retail division of Hutchison Whampoa * Thomas J. Watson Research Center, IBM research center * Watson Systems, make ...

and Williams continued with the Messengers, David Schnitter was replaced by Bill Pierce and

was replaced by Charles Fambrough. This band also featured a second drummer: John Ramsay. ''

Live at Montreux and Northsea ''Live at Montreux and Northsea'' is an album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers Big Band recorded in 1980 at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland (with one track recorded at the North Sea Jazz Festival in the Netherlands) and rele ...

'' by the Jazz Messengers Big Band was recorded at the Northsea and Montreux Jazz Festivals by Timeless. The regular working sextet that emerged from this European tour now included

, Bill Pierce, James Williams and Charles Fambrough. This group produced '' Art Blakey in Sweden'' on the Amigo label, ''Album of the Year'' on Timeless and ''Straight Ahead'' on the Concord Jazz imprint—all in early 1981. When

graduated from the

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 1981, he joined his brother in place of

. Donald Brown replaced James Williams at this time as well. In January 1982 this lineup produced

Keystone 3 ''Keystone 3'' is a live album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers recorded at the Keystone Korner in San Francisco in 1982 and released on the Concord Jazz label.

, the third live album recorded by the band at

Keystone Korner Keystone Korner was a jazz club in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, which opened in 1972 and continued operation until 1983. Many live recordings were made at the club. Jessica Williams was the house pianist for a number of years. ...

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

. Wynton Marsalis' star was rising quickly. He and his

brother A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-famili ...

left to form their own band in early 1982. Due to Donald Brown's struggles with arthritis, he left the band at this time as well. The new lineup was Terence Blanchard and

on the front line, and Johnny O'Neal on piano, joining Pierce and Fambrough. This lineup recorded '' Oh-By the Way'' for Timeless in 1982. The band turned over gradually over the next year. Pierce left to begin teaching at Berklee in September 1982. He was replaced by

Jean Toussaint Jean Toussaint (born July 27, 1960) is an American jazz tenor and soprano saxophonist. Life and career Toussaint was born in Aruba, Dutch Antilles, and was raised in Saint Thomas and New York City. He learned to play calypso as a child and att ...

. Fambrough left in mid-1983 to be replaced by

Lonnie Plaxico Lonnie Plaxico (born September 4, 1960) is an American jazz double bassist. Biography Plaxico was born in Chicago, Illinois, into a musical family, and started playing the bass at the age of twelve, turning professional at fourteen (playing bot ...

. And Mulgrew Miller took over for Johnny O'Neal in 1984. This new lineup –

Blanchard Blanchard is a French family name. It is also used as a given name. It derives from the Old French word ''blanchart'' which meant "whitish, bordering upon white". It is also an obsolete term for a white horse. Geographical distribution As of 2014, ...

Harrison Harrison may refer to: People * Harrison (name) * Harrison family of Virginia, United States Places In Australia: * Harrison, Australian Capital Territory, suburb in the Canberra district of Gungahlin In Canada: * Inukjuak, Quebec, or " ...

, Toussaint, Miller, and Plaxico—stayed together throughout 1985, into 1986. They recorded ''

New York Scene ''New York Scene'' is a live album by drummer Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers recorded in New York City in 1984 and released on the Concord Jazz label.

'' in 1984 and '' Live at Kimball's'' in 1985, both for Concord Jazz. A live date from

Ronnie Scott's Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club is a jazz club that has operated in Soho, London, since 1959. History The club opened on 30 October 1959 in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street in London's Soho district. It was set up and managed by musicians Ronnie Sco ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

also appeared. Blanchard and

formed their own band in mid-1986. They were replaced by

Wallace Roney Wallace Roney (May 25, 1960 – March 31, 2020) was an American jazz ( hard bop and post-bop) trumpeter. He has won 1 Grammy award and has two nominations. Roney took lessons from Clark Terry and Dizzy Gillespie and studied with Miles Davis fr ...

and Kenny Garrett, respectively. Tim Williams was also added on

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

. This group recorded the ''

Feeling Good "Feeling Good" (also known as "Feelin' Good") is a song written by English composers Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for the musical ''The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd''. It was first performed on stage in 1964 by Cy Gr ...

'' album for

Delos The island of Delos (; el, Δήλος ; Attic: , Doric: ), near Mykonos, near the centre of the Cyclades archipelago, is one of the most important mythological, historical, and archaeological sites in Greece. The excavations in the island ar ...

. By the end of 1987 the band had turned over once again. Philip Harper was the new

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

player,

Javon Jackson Javon Anthony Jackson (born June 16, 1965) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist, bandleader, and educator. He first became known as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers from 1987 until Blakey's death in 1990. and went on to release 22 rec ...

joined on tenor, and

Robin Eubanks Robin Eubanks (born October 25, 1955) is an American jazz and jazz fusion slide trombonist, the brother of guitarist Kevin Eubanks and trumpeter Duane Eubanks. His uncles are jazz pianist Ray Bryant and bassist Tommy Bryant. His mother, Vera Eub ...

returned on trombone. The new pianist was Benny Green and Peter Washington was the bassist. This lineup recorded '' Not Yet'' and '' I Get a Kick Out of Bu'' (with Leon Dorsey replacing

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

on bass), both for

Soul Note Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italian independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz. History Black S ...

in 1988. In 1989, what became the final Jazz Messengers lineup was established: Brian Lynch on trumpet,

and

Dale Barlow Dale Barlow (born Sydney, Australia, 25 December 1959) is a jazz saxophonist, flute player and composer. He has a Masters of Music degree begun at City College New York under Ron Carter and completed at ANU Canberra. He has received ARIA Awards, ...

on tenors,

Steve Davis Steve Davis (born 22 August 1957) is an English retired professional snooker player who is currently a commentator, musician, DJ, and author. He is best known for dominating professional snooker during the 1980s, when he reached eight World S ...

and/or Frank Lacy on trombone,

Geoff Keezer Geoffrey Keezer (born November 20, 1970) is an American jazz pianist. Keezer was playing in jazz clubs as a teenager, playing piano for Art Blakey at age 18 and touring with Joshua Redman, Benny Golson and Ray Brown in his 20s. He has toured w ...

on piano and Essiet Okon Essiet on bass. A concert at the Leverkusen Jazz Festival in Germany commemorated in October 1989 commemorated Blakey's 70th birthday. Playing were the current messengers, plus many special guests: Freddie Hubbard, Terence Blanchard,

, Wayne Shorter, Benny Golson, Curtis Fuller, Walter Davis Jr.,

Roy Haynes Roy Owen Haynes (born March 13, 1925) is an American jazz drummer. He is among the most recorded drummers in jazz. In a career lasting over 80 years, he has played swing, bebop, jazz fusion, avant-garde jazz and is considered a pioneer of jaz ...

, and

Michele Hendricks Michele (), is an Italian male given name, akin to the English male name Michael. Michele (pronounced ), is also an English female given name that is derived from the French Michèle. It is a variant spelling of the more common (and identically ...

singing a song composed for the occasion by Horace Silver. This final group recorded the final Messengers album, '' One for All'', on

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

Discography

Timeline

DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:11/13/1954 till:10/16/1990 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy ImageSize = width:1200 height:2000 PlotArea = left:110 bottom:60 top:10 right:10 AlignBars = justify Colors= #id:Separator value:black legend:Separator id:Drums value:orange legend:Drums id:Trumpet value:yellow legend:Trumpet id:Alto value:gray(0.75) legend:Alto_Sax id:Tenor value:gray(0.5) legend:Tenor_Sax id:Trombone value:coral legend:Trombone id:Piano value:purple legend:Piano id:Bass value:blue legend:Bass id:Guitar value:green legend:Guitar ScaleMajor = increment:5 start:1955 gridcolor:black ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1955 Legend = orientation:horizontal left:220 top:30 BarData = bar:Blakey text:Art Blakey bar:sep1 text: bar:Dorham text:Kenny Dorham bar:Mobley text:Hank Mobley bar:Silver text:Horace Silver bar:Watkins text:Doug Watkins bar:Byrd text:Donald Byrd bar:sep2 text: bar:Sullivan text:Ira Sullivan bar:Drew text:Kenny Drew bar:Ware text:Wilbur Ware bar:Hardman text:Bill Hardman bar:McLean text:Jackie McLean bar:sep3 text: bar:Dockery text:Sam Dockery bar:DeBrest text:Spanky DeBrest bar:Griffin text:Johnny Griffin bar:Mance text:Junior Mance bar:GTucker text:George Tucker bar:sep4 text: bar:Golson text:Benny Golson bar:Timmons text:Bobby Timmons bar:Morgan text:Lee Morgan bar:Merritt text:Jymie Merritt bar:Shorter text:Wayne Shorter bar:sep5 text: bar:Davis text:Walter Davis, Jr. bar:Fuller text:Curtis Fuller bar:Hubbard text:Freddie Hubbard bar:Walton text:Cedar Walton bar:Workman text:Reggie Workman bar:sep6 text: bar:Hicks text:John Hicks bar:Gilmore text:John Gilmore bar:Sproles text:Victor Sproles bar:Bartz text:Gary Bartz bar:Mangione text:Chuck Mangione bar:sep7 text: bar:Mitchell text:Frank Mitchell bar:Smith text:Lonnie Liston Smith bar:Johnson text:Reggie Johnson bar:Jarrett text:Keith Jarrett bar:Nock text:Mike Nock bar:sep8 text: bar:Corea text:Chick Corea bar:Booth text:Juni Booth bar:Tyner text:McCoy Tyner bar:Harper text:Bill Harper bar:Hampton text:Slide Hampton bar:sep9 text: bar:Priester text:Julian Priester bar:Mathews text:Ronnie Mathews bar:Evans text:Larry Evans bar:Shaw text:Woody Shaw bar:Garnett text:Carlos Garnett bar:sep10 text: bar:Cables text:George Cables bar:Holt text:Scotty Holt bar:Arnet text:Jan Arnet bar:Brackeen text:Joanne Brackeen bar:Morris text:Ramon Morris bar:sep11 text: bar:Clarke text:Stanley Clarke bar:Jefferson text:Carter Jefferson bar:Bass text:Mickey Bass bar:Henderson text:Eddie Henderson bar:Schnitter text:David Schnitter bar:sep12 text: bar:Suzuki text:Yoshio Suzuki bar:MTucker text:Mickey Tucker bar:Amberger text:Chris Amberger bar:Brown text:Cameron Brown bar:Ponomarev text:Valery Ponomarev bar:sep13 text: bar:Watson text:Bobby Watson bar:Irwin text:Dennis Irwin bar:Williams text:James Williams bar:Pierce text:Billy Pierce bar:Fambrough text:Charles Fambrough bar:sep14 text: bar:WMarsalis text:Wynton Marsalis bar:REubanks text:Robin Eubanks bar:BMarsalis text:Branford Marsalis bar:KEubanks text:Kevin Eubanks bar:DBrown text:Donald Brown bar:sep15 text: bar:Roney text:Wallace Roney bar:Blanchard text:Terence Blanchard bar:Harrison text:Donald Harrison bar:ONeal text:Johnny O'Neal bar:Toussaint text:Jean Toussaint bar:sep16 text: bar:Plaxico text:Lonnie Plaxico bar:Miller text:Mulgrew Miller bar:Garrett text:Kenny Garrett bar:TWilliams text:Tim Williams bar:Washington text:Peter Washington bar:sep17 text: bar:PHarper text:Philip Harper bar:Jackson text:Javon Jackson bar:BGreen text:Benny Green bar:Lynch text:Bryan Lynch bar:Essiet text:Essiet Okon Essiet bar:sep18 text: bar:Lacy text:Frank Lacy bar:SDavis text:Steve Davis bar:Barlow text:Dale Barlow bar:Keezer text:Geoff Keezer Define $Separator = from:11/13/1954 till:end width:1 PlotData= width:11 textcolor:black align:left bar:Blakey from:11/13/1954 till:end color:Drums bar:Dorham from:11/13/1954 till:12/01/1955 color:Trumpet bar:Mobley from:11/13/1954 till:05/01/1956 color:Tenor bar:Silver from:11/13/1954 till:05/01/1956 color:Piano bar:Watkins from:11/13/1954 till:05/01/1956 color:Bass bar:Byrd from:12/01/1955 till:08/01/1956 color:Trumpet bar:Sullivan from:07/25/1956 till:10/30/1956 color:Tenor bar:Drew from:07/25/1956 till:10/30/1956 color:Piano bar:Ware from:07/25/1956 till:10/30/1956 color:Bass bar:Hardman from:10/30/1956 till:10/20/1958 color:Trumpet bar:McLean from:10/30/1956 till:04/25/1957 color:Alto bar:Dockery from:10/30/1956 till:07/29/1957 color:Piano bar:DeBrest from:10/30/1956 till:05/01/1958 color:Bass bar:Griffin from:03/30/1957 till:06/26/1958 color:Tenor bar:Mance from:10/09/1957 till:06/26/1958 color:Piano bar:GTucker from:05/01/1958 till:10/30/1958 color:Bass bar:Golson from:06/26/1958 till:02/01/1959 color:Tenor bar:Timmons from:06/26/1958 till:08/08/1961 color:Piano bar:Morgan from:10/30/1958 till:08/08/1961 color:Trumpet bar:Merritt from:10/30/1958 till:10/12/1962 color:Bass bar:Mobley from:03/08/1959 till:07/24/1959 color:Tenor bar:Shorter from:08/01/1959 till:08/17/1964 color:Tenor bar:Davis from:11/03/1959 till:02/18/1961 color:Piano bar:Fuller from:07/02/1961 till:12/31/1964 color:Trombone bar:Hubbard from:08/08/1961 till:03/10/1964 color:Trumpet bar:Walton from:08/08/1961 till:10/01/1964 color:Piano bar:Workman from:10/12/1962 till:10/21/1964 color:Bass bar:Morgan from:03/10/1964 till:08/13/1965 color:Trumpet bar:Hicks from:10/01/1964 till:09/09/1965 color:Piano bar:Gilmore from:10/21/1964 till:08/13/1965 color:Tenor bar:Sproles from:10/21/1964 till:11/08/1965 color:Bass bar:Bartz from:05/12/1965 till:11/09/1965 color:Alto bar:Mangione from:11/09/1965 till:02/07/1967 color:Trumpet bar:Mitchell from:11/09/1965 till:05/01/1967 color:Tenor bar:Smith from:11/09/1965 till:01/01/1966 color:Piano bar:Johnson from:11/09/1965 till:08/14/1966 color:Bass bar:Jarrett from:01/01/1966 till:02/16/1966 color:Piano bar:Nock from:02/16/1966 till:04/02/1966 color:Piano bar:Smith from:04/02/1966 till:05/07/1966 color:Piano bar:Corea from:05/07/1966 till:10/15/1966 color:Piano bar:Booth from:08/14/1966 till:02/07/1968 color:Bass bar:Tyner from:10/15/1966 till:02/07/1968 color:Piano bar:Hardman from:02/07/1967 till:04/15/1969 color:Trumpet bar:Harper from:07/25/1967 till:04/15/1969 color:Tenor bar:Hampton from:07/25/1967 till:02/07/1968 color:Trombone bar:Priester from:02/07/1968 till:04/15/1969 color:Trombone bar:Mathews from:02/07/1968 till:04/15/1969 color:Piano bar:Evans from:02/07/1968 till:04/15/1969 color:Bass bar:Shaw from:04/15/1969 till:01/05/1970 color:Trumpet bar:Garnett from:04/15/1969 till:01/04/1971 color:Tenor bar:Cables from:04/15/1969 till:01/05/1970 color:Piano bar:Holt from:04/15/1969 till:07/05/1969 color:Bass bar:Arnet from:07/05/1969 till:09/11/1970 color:Bass bar:Hardman from:01/05/1970 till:07/23/1972 color:Trumpet bar:Brackeen from:01/05/1970 till:03/23/1972 color:Piano bar:Morris from:01/04/1971 till:06/26/1973 color:Tenor bar:Shaw from:03/23/1972 till:05/03/1973 color:Trumpet bar:Clarke from:05/23/1972 till:03/26/1973 color:Bass bar:Cables from:07/28/1972 till:03/26/1973 color:Piano bar:Jefferson from:03/26/1973 till:01/03/1975 color:Tenor bar:Walton from:03/26/1973 till:01/03/1975 color:Piano bar:Bass from:03/26/1973 till:01/03/1975 color:Bass bar:Henderson from:07/04/1973 till:01/03/1975 color:Trumpet bar:Hardman from:01/03/1975 till:02/14/1977 color:Trumpet bar:Schnitter from:01/03/1975 till:03/11/1980 color:Tenor bar:Mathews from:01/03/1975 till:07/19/1976 color:Piano bar:Suzuki from:01/03/1976 till:07/19/1976 color:Bass bar:MTucker from:07/19/1976 till:07/14/1977 color:Piano bar:Amberger from:07/19/1976 till:08/05/1976 color:Bass bar:Brown from:08/05/1976 till:07/14/1977 color:Bass bar:Ponomarev from:02/14/1977 till:08/26/1980 color:Trumpet bar:Watson from:02/14/1977 till:11/06/1981 color:Alto bar:Davis from:02/14/1977 till:11/01/1977 color:Piano bar:Irwin from:02/14/1977 till:03/11/1980 color:Bass bar:Williams from:11/01/1977 till:07/12/1981 color:Piano bar:Pierce from:03/11/1980 till:08/31/1982 color:Tenor bar:Fambrough from:03/11/1980 till:07/08/1983 color:Bass bar:WMarsalis from:06/21/1980 till:08/01/1981 color:Trumpet bar:REubanks from:06/21/1980 till:08/01/1980 color:Trombone bar:BMarsalis from:06/21/1980 till:08/01/1980 color:Alto bar:KEubanks from:06/21/1980 till:08/01/1980 color:Guitar bar:DBrown from:07/02/1981 till:04/01/1982 color:Piano bar:Roney from:08/01/1981 till:01/01/1982 color:Trumpet bar:BMarsalis from:07/07/1981 till:04/01/1982 color:Alto bar:WMarsalis from:01/01/1982 till:04/01/1982 color:Trumpet bar:Blanchard from:04/01/1982 till:05/11/1986 color:Trumpet bar:Harrison from:04/01/1982 till:05/11/1986 color:Alto bar:ONeal from:04/01/1982 till:05/08/1984 color:Piano bar:Toussaint from:09/01/1982 till:05/03/1987 color:Tenor bar:Plaxico from:07/08/1982 till:05/11/1986 color:Bass bar:Miller from:05/08/1984 till:05/11/1986 color:Piano bar:TWilliams from:03/09/1986 till:05/03/1987 color:Trombone bar:Roney from:05/11/1986 till:05/03/1987 color:Trumpet bar:Garrett from:05/11/1986 till:07/02/1987 color:Alto bar:DBrown from:05/11/1986 till:05/03/1987 color:Piano bar:Washington from:05/11/1986 till:02/12/1989 color:Bass bar:PHarper from:05/03/1987 till:12/20/1988 color:Trumpet bar:Jackson from:05/03/1987 till:end color:Tenor bar:BGreen from:05/03/1987 till:12/29/1989 color:Piano bar:REubanks from:08/28/1987 till:02/12/1989 color:Trombone bar:Lynch from:12/20/1988 till:end color:Trumpet bar:Lacy from:02/12/1989 till:end color:Trombone bar:Essiet from:02/12/1989 till:end color:Bass bar:SDavis from:02/01/1990 till:end color:Trombone bar:Barlow from:02/01/1990 till:end color:Tenor bar:Keezer from:02/01/1990 till:end color:Piano bar:sep1 $Separator bar:sep2 $Separator bar:sep3 $Separator bar:sep4 $Separator bar:sep5 $Separator bar:sep6 $Separator bar:sep7 $Separator bar:sep8 $Separator bar:sep9 $Separator bar:sep10 $Separator bar:sep11 $Separator bar:sep12 $Separator bar:sep13 $Separator bar:sep14 $Separator bar:sep15 $Separator bar:sep16 $Separator bar:sep17 $Separator bar:sep18 $Separator

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jazz Messengers Hard bop ensembles Musical groups established in 1955 Musical groups disestablished in 1990 1955 establishments in the United States 1990 disestablishments in the United States