Walter Bishop Jr. (October 4, 1927 – January 24, 1998) 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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

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 edition). Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online.

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

. Retrieved February 18, 2016. Subscription required. He had at least two sisters, Marian and Beverly. His father was composer Walter Bishop Sr. In his teens, Bishop Jr.'s friends included future jazz musicians

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

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American retired jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, Rollins recorded over sixt ...

, and

Art Taylor Arthur S. Taylor Jr. (April 6, 1929 – February 6, 1995) was an American jazz drummer, who "helped define the sound of modern jazz drumming".Watrous, Peter (February 7, 1995)"Art Taylor, 65, Jazz Drummer Who Inspired Young Musicians" ''The Ne ...

. He was brought up in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

. He left high school to play in dance bands in the area. In 1945–47 he was in the Army Air Corps. During his military service in 1947 Bishop was based near St Louis and met touring

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early to mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo (usually exceeding 200 bpm), complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerou ...

musicians.

Later life and career

Later in 1947, he returned to New York. That year (or 1949) he was part of drummer

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

's band for 14 weeks and recorded with them. Bishop developed his bebop playing in part by playing in

jam session 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 ...

s at

Minton's Playhouse Minton's Playhouse is a jazz club and bar located on the first floor of the Cecil Hotel at 210 West 118th Street in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City. It is a registered trademark of Housing and Services, Inc. a New York City nonprofit provider ...

. He recorded with

Milt Jackson Milton Jackson (January 1, 1923 – October 9, 1999), nicknamed "Bags", was an American jazz vibraphonist. He is especially remembered for his cool swinging solos as a member of the Modern Jazz Quartet and his penchant for collaborating with ...

and

Stan Getz Stan Getz (born Stanley Gayetski; February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wis ...

in 1949, then played with

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz Saxophone, saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of beb ...

(1951–54),

Oscar Pettiford Oscar Pettiford (September 30, 1922 – September 8, 1960) was an American jazz double bassist and composer. He was one of the earliest musicians to work in the bebop idiom. Jazz bassist Christian McBride called Pettiford "probably the most imp ...

Kai Winding Kai Chresten Winding ( ; May 18, 1922 – May 6, 1983) was a Danish-born American trombonist and jazz composer. He is known for his collaborations with fellow trombonist J. J. Johnson. His version of " More", the theme from the movie ''Mondo Ca ...

, and

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

(1951–53). At this time he was also a drug addict, which led to imprisonment and the withdrawal of his

New York City Cabaret Card The New York City Cabaret Identification Card was a permit required of all workers, including performers, in nightclubs in New York City from Prohibition to 1967. Its administration was fraught with politics, and some artists' cards were revoked o ...

. In 1956, he recorded with

Hank Mobley Henry Mobley (July 7, 1930 – May 30, 1986) was an American tenor saxophonist and composer. Mobley was described by Leonard Feather as the "middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone", a metaphor used to describe his tone, that was neithe ...

. According to the New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, "at some point he became a Muslim and took the name Ibrahim ibn Ismail, but he did not use this publicly." In the early 1960s he also led his own trio with

Jimmy Garrison James Emory Garrison (March 3, 1934 – April 7, 1976) was an American jazz double bassist. He is best remembered for his association with John Coltrane from 1961 to 1967. Career Garrison was born in Miami, Florida, and moved when he was 1 ...

and G. T. Hogan. After studying at

The Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

with Hall Overton in the late 1960s, Bishop taught music theory at colleges in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in the 1970s. At some point prior to moving from New York to Los Angeles, Bishop met and married the former Valerie Isabel Paul. They then moved to Los Angeles. According Jay Blotcher, Valerie Bishop's son from a previous relationship, after divorcing Walter Bishop in the mid-1970s, Valerie Bishop worked as an assistant for Ike and

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

in California. Valerie Bishop was cited by Tina Turner in Turner's memoir ''

I, Tina ''I, Tina: My Life Story'' is a 1986 autobiography by Tina Turner, co-written by MTV news correspondent and music critic Kurt Loder. It was published by William Morrow and Company, and was reissued by Dey Street Books in 2010. Content The bo ...

'' as the person who inspired Turner to pursue Buddhism. In the 1980s, Bishop taught at the

University of Hartford The University of Hartford (UHart) is a private university in West Hartford, Connecticut, United States. Its main campus extends into neighboring Hartford and Bloomfield. It enrolled approximately 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students as ...

. By this time, he made frequent appearances at clubs and festivals in New York. He also wrote a book, ''A Study in Fourths'', about jazz

improvisation Improvisation, often shortened to improv, is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. The origin of the word itself is in the Latin "improvisus", which literally means un-foreseen. Improvis ...

based on cycles of fourths and fifths. His debut recording as a leader was in the 1960s. He continued performing into the 1990s. Bishop died of a heart attack at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Manhattan on January 24, 1998. He was survived by his wife, Keiko; his mother, and two sisters.

Playing style

Bishop was influenced at an early stage by

Bud Powell Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell (September 27, 1924 – July 31, 1966) was an American jazz pianist and composer. A pioneer in the development of bebop and its associated contributions to jazz theory,Grove Powell's application of complex phrasing to ...

. Later, Bishop was "known for holding back on the beat, a device that added tension to the music."

Discography

As leader

Compilation

*1965 '' The Walter Bishop Jr. Trio / 1965'' (

Prestige Prestige may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films *Prestige (film), ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnett: woman travels to French Indochina to meet up with husband *The Prestige (film), ''The Prestige'' (fi ...

), compiles ''A Pair of "Naturals"'' and ''Summertime''

As sideman

With

Gene Ammons Eugene "Jug" Ammons (April 14, 1925 – August 6, 1974), also known as "The Boss", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. The son of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons, Gene Ammons is remembered for his accessible music, steeped in soul and R ...

*'' Up Tight!'' (Prestige, 1961) *'' Boss Soul!'' (Prestige, 1961) With

Shorty Baker Harold "Shorty" Baker (May 26, 1914 in St. Louis, Missouri, US – November 8, 1966) was an American jazz trumpeter. Baker began on drums, but switched to trumpet during his teens. He started his career on riverboats and played with Don Redman ...

and

Doc Cheatham Adolphus Anthony Cheatham, better known as Doc Cheatham (June 13, 1905 – June 2, 1997), was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and bandleader. He is also the grandfather of musician Theo Croker. Early life Doc Cheatham was born in Nashvi ...

*''Shorty & Doc'' (Swingville, 1961) With

*''Blakey (album), Blakey'' (EmArcy, 1954) *''Art Blakey Big Band'' (Bethlehem, 1957) With Rocky Boyd *''Ease It'' (Jazztime, 1961) With

*''Dig (Miles Davis album), Dig'' (Prestige, 1951) *''Collectors' Items'' (Prestige, 1956) With Kenny Dorham *''Kenny Dorham Quintet (album), Kenny Dorham Quintet'' (Debut, 1953) *''Inta Somethin''' (Pacific Jazz, 1961) With Curtis Fuller *''Boss of the Soul-Stream Trombone'' (Warwick, 1960) *''The Magnificent Trombone of Curtis Fuller'' (Epic, 1961) *''Fire and Filigree'' (Bee Hive, 1978) With John Handy *''Jazz (John Handy album), Jazz'' (Roulette, 1962) With Bill Hardman *''Focus (Bill Hardman album), Focus'' (Muse, 1980 [1984]) *''Politely (album), Politely'' (Muse, 1981 [1982]) With

*''Meet Milt Jackson'' (Savoy, 1949) With Makanda Ken McIntyre, Ken McIntyre *''Looking Ahead (Ken McIntyre album), Looking Ahead'' (New Jazz, 1960) With Jackie McLean *''Swing, Swang, Swingin''' (Blue Note, 1959) *''Capuchin Swing'' (Blue Note, 1961) With Blue Mitchell *''Blue Mitchell (album), Blue Mitchell'' (Mainstream, 1971) *''Vital Blue'' (Mainstream, 1971) With

*''Mobley's 2nd Message'' (Prestige, 1956) With

*''Swedish Schnapps'' (Verve 1951) side 2 *''Fiesta (Charlie Parker album), Fiesta'' (Verve 1952) *''Charlie Parker Plays Cole Porter'' (Verve, 1954) *''One Night in Birdland'' (Columbia, 1950 [1977]) *''Live at Rockland Palace'' (Parker Records, 1952 [1983]) With

*''The New Oscar Pettiford Sextet'' (Debut, 1953) With Dizzy Reece *''Soundin' Off'' (Blue Note, 1960) With Charlie Rouse *''Takin' Care of Business (album), Takin' Care of Business'' (Jazzland, 1960) With Archie Shepp *''On Green Dolphin Street (Archie Shepp album), On Green Dolphin Street'' (Denon, 1978) With Sonny Stitt *''Broadway Soul'' (Colpix, 1965) With Harold Vick *''Commitment (Harold Vick album), Commitment'' (Muse, 1967 [1974]) With

Zoot Sims etc. *''The Brothers (album), The Brothers'' (Prestige, 1949)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bishop, Walter Jr. 1927 births 1998 deaths African-American jazz pianists Bebop pianists Jazz musicians from California Jazz musicians from New York (state) Juilliard School alumni University of Hartford Hartt School faculty Black Jazz Records artists Muse Records artists Xanadu Records artists DIW Records artists Prestige Records artists American jazz pianists American male jazz pianists 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians Black Lion Records artists 20th-century African-American musicians