Laurindo Almeida, Guitar, 1917, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Ironically, Laurindo was not as well known in his native Brazil as he was in U.S., He was equally accomplished in jazz and classical music, performing and recording in both. It was while performing jazz in a night club in Rio de Janeiro that he was heard by Stan Kenton, who invited him to come to the U.S. and join his orchestra. He became a featured and popular soloist in Kenton's band for several years at the end of the 1940s. After leaving Kenton, and settling in California, he worked for 25 years in film and television studios. He did remain active in jazz, however, and led several groups of his own. Around 1960 Almeida, along with Bud Shank, recorded several beautiful Bosa Nova albums about ten years before bosa became popular in this country . In the late '60s he also accompanied his wife, the singer Deltra Eamon, in recitals, and continued to perform as a jazz soloist and with various classical orchestras. In 1974 he formed a wonderful group, The L.A. Four, with Shank, Shelly Manne, and Chuck Flores. Later, he performed in a duo with Shank and in a trio with Larry Coryell and the classical guitarest Sharon Isbin. Almeida has published several instruction manuels for both, jazz and classical guitar. In the U.S. and Europe, Almeida was considered one of the finest guitarists ever to have played. Laurindo Almeida died in 1987.
Clifford Jordan, Saxophone, 1931, Chicago, Ill
Clifford firat studied the piano, and switched to the tenor sax when he was about fourteen. His classmates in high school included future stars Johnny Griffin, John Gilmore, and Richard Davis, all of whom became prominent in jazz. After working in and around Chicago with Max Roach, Sonny Stitt, and various rhythm-and-blues groups, he made his move to New York in 1957 where he again performing with Roach and then with Horace Silver with whom he remained until 1959. He later spent about a year on the West Coast before returning to New York to work with J.J. Johnson. During the early '60s he co-led a swinging and successful quintet with Kenny Durham. During the '60s Jordan performed with Charles Mingus, and toured extensively in Europe and Asia. In 1972 he play-acted the part of Lester Young in "Lady Day, a Musical Tragedy" at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Clifford is also a respected teacher. Lester Young and Sonny Rollins were probably the greatest influence on Jordan's playing. Although, some of his performances owe a debt to John Coltrane and Eddie Harris. Nevertheless, his playing is highly individual, combining great control and a beautiful full tone.
Horace Silver, Piano, Norwalk, Conn. 1928
In addition to performing on piano, Horace is one of the most prolific composers in jazz. At an early age he was influenced and encouraged by his father who was a musician. In high school he studied the reed instruments, but was also greatly influenced by the blues singers of the day, such as Memphis Slim. At this time he also became a huge fan of Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk. In the eathenrly '50s Horace spent a 14 months with Stan Getz, and then moved to New York where he worked with people like Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young and Art Blakey. In 1952, after recording with Lou Donaldson, Silver began a 28 year association with Blue Note Records leading groups of his own. Silver's music was a leading force in modern jazz on several counts. He was one of the first important pioneer of the style known as Hard Bop, and the (at that time) unique instrumentation of his group, (trumpet, tenor sax, piano, bass, and drums) served as a model for countless small jazz groups from the mid '50s on. Musicians such as Donald Byrd, Art Farmer, Blue Mitchell, Woody Shaw, and Benny Golson later led similar groups of their own. He is a prolific composer, and almost always records his own materiaal. Several of his compositions, including "The Preacher", "Doodlin", "Opus deFunk", Nica's Dream", Sister Sadie", and "Song For My Father" are just a few of his hits that have become jazz standards. His quintet continued to tour regularly into the 1980s. Today Horace does not perform on a regular basis, but he still continues writing.
