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Charles Lloyd

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Charles Lloyd was born in 1938 in Memphis and is an American jazz musician and composer. He plays mainly tenor saxophone and flute. In Memphis he grew up with blues, gospel and jazz, and as a teenager he played with blues artists such as Howlin' Wolf and B.B. King. In 1956 he left for Los Angeles to study music. In 1960 he became music director of Chico Hamilton's group, after which he played in Cannonball Adderley's sextet. In 1964 he signed with Columbia and began recording under his own name, with Discovery! and Of Course, Of Course.

Music and breakthrough

In 1966 he formed his quartet in New York with the pianist Keith Jarrett, the bassist Cecil McBee and the drummer Jack DeJohnette. Their live album Forest Flower, recorded at the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1966, was one of the most successful jazz records of those years. It also attracted rock fans and hippies. The quartet toured America and Europe and in 1967 even played in Estonia and Leningrad. Lloyd incorporated elements from other cultures into his music at an early stage.

Influence

In the 1970s he withdrew and played, among other things, with The Beach Boys, both in the studio and on tour. From 1981 he returned to jazz. From 1989 he recorded for ECM, beginning with Fish Out of Water. His sound is open and lyrical. Lloyd shows how jazz in the 1960s found an audience outside the jazz clubs, and how that world touched pop music.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Forest Flower and notice Lloyd's flute playing and Keith Jarrett's piano playing. Try to hear how the group grows from calm and open to a wild, rhythmic eruption.

Discography

Studio albums

Other work

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

See also

Categories: ArtistsModal jazzSpiritual jazzFusion and jazz rock