Jimmy Heath , younger brother of Percy Heath and older brother of Albert "Tootie" Heath comes on 25 October 1926 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to the world and is therefore 3 years younger than his brother Percy. Growing up, he does like his older brother Percy already in Philadelphia and get not only something of the vibrant jazz scene in Philly something, but also the first musical steps of his brother, who begins in this time to play the violin. About Jimmy's childhood, however, is not so much known about how his big brother, of the career of both looking at a higher level of fame enjoyed by most of his involvement in the Modern Jazz Quartet. What is clear however is clear is that Jimmy Heath at the beginning was not a tenor sax player really, but he, like his role model Charlie Parker played the alto saxophone. Thus he was often "Little Bird" because his style of play already really very close to the Parkers arrived and was marked by the same approach to virtuosity.
to play in the first big band in Philadelphia, where he starts from 1947, are even a few jazz musicians who later are among the largest in the history of this music. They include names such as the tenor saxophonist John Coltrane (at that time, however, also a saxophonist), Benny Golson and Nelson Boyd. Even Charlie Parker himself, and drummer Max Roach often appear in the local scene in Philadelphia.
Together with his brother Percy, who has since been changed to bass, he was drawn in 1947, then dazzling in the jazz city of New York City, where they were the trumpeter Howard McGhee, a place in his band anbietet.Die working with the talented trumpeter Percy does not only open but also Jimmy Heath, the doors to the jazz world and to many exciting deals with many jazz greats. Said Jimmy has been playing two years later with Dizzy Gillespie's big band and played in 1948 at the age of 21 years in Europe in the first International Festival in Paris (again with his brother Percy Heath).
the early fifties, is then an important change for Jimmy Heath. Like other alto saxophonist, (eg John Coltrane ) Jimmy moves to the tenor saxophone, the instrument that has become by the presence of Coleman Hawkins to the instrument in jazz. The switch to other saxophone, however, may also have had many other reasons. call for all-clear would be Charlie Parker - the Master of the alto saxophone. As good as he never was surpassed on his instrument, and even in the largest Drug and alcohol intoxication was "Bird" can not be beat and so did many alto saxophonist in the fight against the living legend already ascended to a simple musical personality. Often the change had also something to do with the fact that one job in the big bands and groups got the alto saxophone at the time was still far more common than the tenor saxophone and it was in most bands have often an alto saxophonist.
But for Jimmy Heath followed in the fifties some personal problems. To his drug addiction that drew him like many other musicians in the pit, Heath lost much ground, lived only from the needle and from shot to shot. So he missed in that time, partly important arrangements with Miles Davis, who wanted to have in his quintet, but Jimmy could not accept because he was not allowed to leave Philadelphia because it was known to the police that he was a junkie and he therefore could not leave this room.
Back in 1959 - clean this time, for he had made the withdrawal of the drug - he takes the contact to the jazz world again (in between he once played not for a while and wrote for other musicians as the trumpeter Chet Baker or drummer Art Blakey ). The following is first a einjahrlange work with trumpeter Miles Davis, saxophonist John Coltrane where Heath heir, who had left the band shortly before. Das erste mal in seiner Karriere bekommt er viel mit Modern Jazz zu tun bekommt. Davis’ Aufnahme „Kind Of Blue“ ist noch frisch in den Köpfen der Leuten und der Wegweiser in eine neue Epoche des Jazz und auch wenn sich Jimmy am Anfang etwas schwer tut, so lernt er mit der Zeit auf die spärlich wenigen Akkorde zu improvisieren und lernt bei Davis viel dazu.
Auch mit Trompeter Kenny Dorham und dem Pianisten Bill Evans spielt Heath nun erfolgreich zusammen und in dieser Zeit fängt auch seine Zeit beim Plattenlabel Riverside an, für das er viele erfolgreiche Jazzplatten produziert und einspielt. In den Sechzigern steht er auch viel with vibraphonist Milt Jackson, best known from the Modern Jazz Quartet, his brother Percy, and trumpeter Art Farmer on stage.
Even then, turns out that Jimmy Heath has a great talent for composing and arranging. More than 125 compositions he has written to date, including many important jazz standards such as "CTA", "Without You - No Me," a reference to his close ties to Dizzy Gillespie, "Trane Connections", in homage to John Coltrane or "Ginger Bread Boy", a piece that Heath has dedicated his son Mtume. Even his older brother Percy Heath immortalized Jimmy Heath in einer seiner Kompositionen, sie trägt den Namen „Big P“.
Mit seinen beiden Brüdern Percy und Albert „Tootie“ formatiert Jimmy dann im Jahre 1975 die Jazzgruppe „The Heath Brothers“ , in der er der führende Kopf der Gruppe ist, da er durch sein großes Talent des Arrangierens und Komponierens zusammen mit seinem älteren Bruder Percy ein perfektes Team bildet, dass durch den Drummer Albert „Tootie“, der bei vielen anderen Jazzgrößen einiges gelernt hatte und schon längst zum Olymp der Jazzmusiker aufgestiegen war, perfekt vervollständigt wurde. So folgten 7 Jahre, in denen Jimmy vor allem mit seinen beiden Brüdern auf der Bühne and in the recording studio was.
In 2003 Heath was then with the American Jazz Masters Fellowship award for lifetime achievement, an honor he shares with others, Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie and Dave Brubeck.
Even today, the now 80-year-old Jimmy Heath lives in New York City and remains active as an arranger and composer, as well as a musician. Many young musicians Jimmy Heath has passed his knowledge to date and he is not afraid today to face new challenges. After the death of his brother Percy Heath in 2005, now the most important musical representative of the family and the Heath Brothers. Heath is also the representative of bebop saxophone and since it is increasingly rare today, biologically, to be playing with a musician from the founding generation of bebop Jimmy Heath is still a very popular jazz musician.
More about the Heath Brothers: Here
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