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Randy Weston was born April 6, 1926, in the Bedford Stuyvesant district of Brooklyn, N.Y. He started playing piano at an early age at the insistence of his father. |
His father's interest in jazz and fascination with African culture would remain a strong influence on Weston throughout his life.
Weston recalls the Brooklyn of his youth as a hotbed of live jazz. His father owned a small restaurant in the neighborhood and jazz musicians such as Miles Davis, Duke Jordan, Eddie Heyward, Max Roach and Cecil Payne frequently hung out there.
Weston's first big influence was Coleman Hawkins and he went to hear "Hawk" whenever the musician made a stop in New York. It was during one of these shows where Weston first heard the music of Thelonious Monk. The two became friends and Monk served as a mentor, teacher, and lasting musical influence for the young pianist.
After a three-year tour of military service beginning in 1945, Weston retuned to Brooklyn. He worked briefly at his father's restaurant before taking up with such band leaders as George Hall, Art Blakey, Bull Moose Jackson and Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson. He also performed with Kenny Dorham and his neighborhood friend Cecil Payne during this time. In 1954, Weston recorded his first album and became a mainstay at Brooklyn clubs like Birdland and Cafe Bohemia.
As Weston developed his musical style, his deepening interest in the music and culture of Africa began to inhabit his music; he wrote and recorded several pieces based on African themes. In 1967, the State Department asked Randy Weston and a small band to be a part of a musical tour to Africa. The group visited 18 African countries during the tour. Weston found himself particularly fascinated by the ceremonial Gnawa music of Morocco. He decided to settle in Rabat, Morocco for a time and later moved to Tangier, where he ran a jazz club and continued to immerse himself in local music traditions.
Throughout the '80s and '90s Weston continued to perform and record. His collaborations with his longtime friend, trombonist and arranger Melba Liston also continued until her death in 1999. Weston's discography includes more than 50 titles and his compositions have been recorded by such heavies as Max Roach, Abbey Lincoln, Dexter Gordon, Jimmy Heath, Lionel Hampton and Cannonball Adderly.
In 2001 Weston was inducted to that exclusive group of jazz musicians, the NEA Jazz Masters.
Check out this week's Piano Jazz Shorts: the Piano Jazz podcast.
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Set List for Randy Weston on Piano Jazz:Night In M'Bari (Weston)
Blue Moses (Weston)
Hi-Fly (Weston)
Prelude to a Kiss (Ellington, Mills, Gordon)
Pam's Waltz (Weston)
Little Niles (Weston)
C-Jam Blues (Ellington)
Weston recalls the Brooklyn of his youth as a hotbed of live jazz. His father owned a small restaurant in the neighborhood and jazz musicians such as Miles Davis, Duke Jordan, Eddie Heyward, Max Roach and Cecil Payne frequently hung out there.
Weston's first big influence was Coleman Hawkins and he went to hear "Hawk" whenever the musician made a stop in New York. It was during one of these shows where Weston first heard the music of Thelonious Monk. The two became friends and Monk served as a mentor, teacher, and lasting musical influence for the young pianist.
After a three-year tour of military service beginning in 1945, Weston retuned to Brooklyn. He worked briefly at his father's restaurant before taking up with such band leaders as George Hall, Art Blakey, Bull Moose Jackson and Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson. He also performed with Kenny Dorham and his neighborhood friend Cecil Payne during this time. In 1954, Weston recorded his first album and became a mainstay at Brooklyn clubs like Birdland and Cafe Bohemia.
As Weston developed his musical style, his deepening interest in the music and culture of Africa began to inhabit his music; he wrote and recorded several pieces based on African themes. In 1967, the State Department asked Randy Weston and a small band to be a part of a musical tour to Africa. The group visited 18 African countries during the tour. Weston found himself particularly fascinated by the ceremonial Gnawa music of Morocco. He decided to settle in Rabat, Morocco for a time and later moved to Tangier, where he ran a jazz club and continued to immerse himself in local music traditions.
Throughout the '80s and '90s Weston continued to perform and record. His collaborations with his longtime friend, trombonist and arranger Melba Liston also continued until her death in 1999. Weston's discography includes more than 50 titles and his compositions have been recorded by such heavies as Max Roach, Abbey Lincoln, Dexter Gordon, Jimmy Heath, Lionel Hampton and Cannonball Adderly.
In 2001 Weston was inducted to that exclusive group of jazz musicians, the NEA Jazz Masters.
Check out this week's Piano Jazz Shorts: the Piano Jazz podcast.
Subscribe!
Set List for Randy Weston on Piano Jazz: