Vernice "Bunky" Green (born April 23, 1935) is 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 m ...

alto saxophonist The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B teno ...

and educator.

Biography

Green was raised in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

, Wisconsin, where he played the alto saxophone, mainly at a local club called "The Brass Rail". Green's first break came when he was hired in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

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 ...

as a replacement for

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 ...

in the 1950s. His brief stint with the

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

player and composer made a deep impression. Mingus' sparing use of notation and his belief that there was no such thing as a wrong note had a lasting influence on Green's own style. Green moved to

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, where he performed with players such as

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 ...

Louie Bellson Louie Bellson (born Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, July 6, 1924 – February 14, 2009), often seen in sources as Louis Bellson, although he himself preferred the spelling Louie, was an American jazz drummer. He was a composer, ...

, Andrew Hill, Yusef Lateef, 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 ...

. Originally strongly influenced by

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

, Green spent a period reassessing his style and studying, emerging with a highly distinctive sound that has deeply influenced a number of younger saxophonists, including

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

and

Greg Osby Greg Osby (born August 3, 1960) is an American saxophonist and composer. Biography Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Osby studied at Howard University, then at the Berklee College of Music. He moved to New York City in 1982, where he played with J ...

. Green gradually withdrew from the public eye to develop a career as a jazz educator. He taught at Chicago State University from 1972–1989, and in the 1990s took up the directorship of the jazz studies program at the

University of North Florida The University of North Florida (UNF) is a public research university in Jacksonville, Florida. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Sc ...

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

, where he taught and acted as chair of Jazz Studies until his retirement in 2011. He has also served a term as the president of the

International Association for Jazz Education International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE), formerly a not-for-profit corporation based in Manhattan, Kansas, was a volunteer-run organization that, among other things, allocated student scholarships through its approved festivals program ...

and been elected to the Jazz Education Hall of Fame. Green recorded several albums during the 1960s, including ''Step High'' (featuring Wynton Kelly and

Jimmy Cobb Wilbur James "Jimmy" Cobb (January 20, 1929May 24, 2020) was an American jazz drummer. He was part of Miles Davis's First Great Sextet. At the time of his death, he had been the band's last surviving member for nearly thirty years. He was ...

), ''Playing for Keeps'', and ''

Soul in the Night ''Soul in the Night'' is an album by saxophonists Sonny Stitt and Bunky Green recorded in Chicago in 1966 and released on the Cadet label.

'' (which paired Green with

). In addition to a handful of records as a leader on the Vanguard label during the 1970s, he also recorded several albums with

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such widely celebrate ...

, including '' Summit Meeting'' and ''

Time Capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ...

''. His 1989 session on the Delos label, '' Healing the Pain'', commemorates the death of his parents and was awarded the coveted 5-star rating from ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Ch ...

'' magazine. Green's studio album, '' Another Place'' (which features the rhythm section of Jason Moran, Lonnie Plaxico, and Nasheet Waits), also received a 5-star review from ''Down Beat''. In July 2008, his recording ''The Salzau Quartet Live at Jazz Baltica'' was released.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

* '' My Babe'' ( Vee-Jay, 1965) – recorded in 1960 * '' Testifyin' Time'' (

Argo In Greek mythology the ''Argo'' (; in Greek: ) was a ship built with the help of the gods that Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcos to Colchis to retrieve the Golden Fleece. The ship has gone on to be used as a motif in a variety of ...

, 1965) * '' Playin' for Keeps'' (

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 ...

, 1966) * ''

Soul in the Night ''Soul in the Night'' is an album by saxophonists Sonny Stitt and Bunky Green recorded in Chicago in 1966 and released on the Cadet label.

'' with

(Cadet, 1966) * '' The Latinization of Bunky Green'' (Cadet, 1967) – recorded in 1966 * '' Transformations'' (

Vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives f ...

, 1977) – recorded in 1976 * '' Summit Meeting'' with

, James Moody,

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948–51), Duk ...

, and Roland Prince (Vanguard, 1977) * '' Visions'' (Vanguard, 1978) * ''

Places We've Never Been ''Places We've Never Been'' is an album by saxophonist Bunky Green recorded in New York and released by the Vanguard label in 1979.Lyles, RBunky Green discographyaccessed August 6, 2019 Reception AllMusic reviewer Scott Yanow stated: "The strong ...

'' (Vanguard, 1979) * ''Discover Jazz – Live! at the 1982 NAJE Convention'' with

Willie Thomas William Henry Thomas (22 March 1866 – 11 October 1921) was a Welsh international rugby union player who played club rugby for Llanelli and London Welsh. He was capped eleven times for Wales and captained the team on two occasions. In 1888, ...

(Mark, 1982) * ''In Love Again'' with Willie Thomas (Mark, 1987) * '' Healing the Pain'' (

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 ...

, 1990) * '' Another Place'' ( Label Bleu, 2006) * ''The Salzau Quartet Live at Jazz Baltica'' (Traumton, 2008) *'' Apex'' with Rudresh Mahanthappa ( Pi, 2010)

As sideman

With Fontella Bass * "You'll Miss Me (When I'm Gone)" / "Don't Jump" with Bobby McClure (Checker, 1965) * "Safe and Sound" (Checker, 1966) * "Recovery" / "Leave It in the Hands of Love" (Checker, 1966) * "I Can't Rest" / "Surrender" (Checker, 1966) * '' The New Look'' (Checker, 1966) With others *

Eddie Harris Eddie Harris (October 20, 1934 – November 5, 1996) was an American jazz musician, best known for playing tenor saxophone and for introducing the electrically amplified saxophone. He was also fluent on the electric piano and organ. His best-k ...

, ''Lost Album Plus the Better Half'' (Vee-Jay, 1995) – recorded in 1962 *

, ''

'' (Vanguard, 1977) *

Herb Lance Herbert J. Lance (June 12, 1925 – November 7, 2006) was an American jazz, blues and gospel singer, songwriter, record producer, recording studio owner and radio DJ. As well as recording several hits himself in the late 1940s, he co-wrote R ...

, ''The Comeback'' (Chess, 1966) *

Ben Sidran Ben Hirsh Sidran (born August 14, 1943) is an American jazz and rock keyboardist, producer, label owner, and music writer. Early in his career he was a member of the Steve Miller Band and is the father of Grammy-nominated musician, composer an ...

, '' Don't Let Go'' (Blue Thumb, 1974) *

Travis Shook Travis Shook (born March 10, 1969) is a jazz pianist who made his eponymous Columbia Records debut in a quartet that included Tony Williams and Bunky Green. He was born in Oroville, California. He received much critical acclaim for this first ...

, ''Travis Shook'' (Columbia, 1993) * The Soulful Strings, '' Groovin' with the Soulful Strings'' (Cadet, 1967) *

Billy Stewart William Larry Stewart II (March 24, 1937 – January 17, 1970) was an American rhythm and blues singer and pianist who was popular during the 1960s. Biography Stewart was 12 years old when he began singing with his younger brothers Johnny, James ...

, ''Summertime'' (Chess, 1966) *

, ''Having Fun'' (Delos, 1990)

External links

References

Faculty listings U. of N. Florida, Bunky Green
{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Bunky 1935 births American jazz alto saxophonists American male saxophonists Living people University of North Florida faculty American jazz educators 21st-century American saxophonists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Label Bleu artists Vanguard Records artists Cadet Records artists Musicians from Milwaukee