Coleman Hawkins - Music Biography, Credits and Discography - AllMusic

Coleman Hawkins - Music Biography, Credits and Discography : AllMusic
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Coleman Hawkins
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by Scott Yanow
biography [-]
Coleman Hawkins was the first important tenor saxophonist and he remains one of the greatest of all time. A consistently modern improviser whose knowledge of chords and harmonies was encyclopedic, Hawkins had a 40-year prime (1925-1965) during which he could hold his own with any competitor. Coleman Hawkins started piano lessons when he was five, switched to cello at age seven, and two years later began on tenor. At a time when the saxophone was considered a novelty instrument, used in vaudeville and as a poor substitute for the trombone in marching bands, Hawkins sought to develop his own sound. A professional when he was 12, Hawkins was playing in a Kansas City theater pit band in 1921, when Mamie Smith hired him to play with her Jazz Hounds. Hawkins was with the blues singer until June 1923, making many records in a background role and he was occasionally heard on instrumentals. After leaving Smith, he freelanced around New York, played briefly with Wilbur Sweatman, and in August 1923 made his first recordings with Fletcher Henderson. When Henderson formed a permanent orchestra in January 1924, Hawkins was his star tenor. Although (due largely to lack of competition) Coleman Hawkins was the top tenor in jazz in 1924, his staccato runs and use of slap-tonguing sound quite dated today. However, after Louis Armstrong joined Henderson later in the year, Hawkins learned from the cornetist's relaxed legato style and advanced quickly. By 1925, Hawkins was truly a major soloist, and the following year his solo on "Stampede" became influential. Hawk (who doubled in early years on clarinet and bass sax) would be with Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra up to 1934, and during this time he was the obvious pacesetter among tenors; Bud Freeman was about the only tenor who did not sound like a close relative of the hard-toned Hawkins. In addition to his solos with Henderson, Hawkins backed some blues singers, recorded with McKinney's Cotton Pickers, and, with Red McKenzie in 1929, he cut his first classic ballad statement on "One Hour." By 1934, Coleman Hawkins had tired of the struggling Fletcher Henderson Orchestra and he moved to Europe, spending five years (1934-1939) overseas. He played at first with Jack Hylton's Orchestra in England, and then freelanced throughout the continent. His most famous recording from this period was a 1937 date with Benny Carter, Alix Combille, Andre Ekyan, Django Reinhardt, and Stephane Grappelli that resulted in classic renditions of "Crazy Rhythm" and "Honeysuckle Rose." With World War II coming close, Hawkins returned to the U.S. in 1939. Although Lester Young had emerged with a totally new style on tenor, Hawkins showed that he was still a dominant force by winning a few heated jam sessions. His recording of "Body and Soul" that year became his most famous record. In 1940, he led a big band that failed to catch on, so Hawkins broke it up and became a fixture on 52nd Street. Some of his finest recordings were cut during the first half of the 1940s, including a stunning quartet version of "The Man I Love." Although he was already a 20-year veteran, Hawkins encouraged the younger bop-oriented musicians and did not need to adjust his harmonically advanced style in order to play with them. He used Thelonious Monk in his 1944 quartet; led the first official bop record session (which included Dizzy Gillespie and Don Byas); had Oscar Pettiford, Miles Davis, and Max Roach as sidemen early in their careers; toured in California with a sextet featuring Howard McGhee; and in 1946, utilized J.J. Johnson and Fats Navarro on record dates. Hawkins toured with Jazz at the Philharmonic several times during 1946-1950, visited Europe on a few occasions, and in 1948 recorded the first unaccompanied saxophone solo, "Picasso." By the early '50s, the Lester Young-influenced Four Brothers sound had become a much greater influence on young tenors than Hawkins' style, and he was considered by some to be out of fashion. However, Hawkins kept on working and occasionally recording, and by the mid-'50s was experiencing a renaissance. The up-and-coming Sonny Rollins considered Hawkins his main influence, Hawk started teaming up regularly with Roy Eldridge in an exciting quintet (their appearance at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival was notable), and he proved to still be in his prime. Coleman Hawkins appeared in a wide variety of settings, from Red Allen's heated Dixieland band at the Metropole and leading a bop date
GENRES STYLES
Jazz Bop Early Jazz Mainstream Jazz Swing Post-Bop Jazz Instrument Saxophone Jazz Big Band
ACTIVE BORN
1920s - 1960s November 21, 1904 in St. Joseph, MO May 19, 1969 in New York, NY Coleman Randolph Hawkins The Chocolate Dandies Ramblers
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photo gallery
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/coleman-hawkins-mn0000776363[27/2/2013 6:18:54 ]
featuring Idrees Sulieman and J.J. Johnson, to guest appearances on records that included Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, and (in the early '60s) Max Roach and Eric Dolphy. During the first half of the 1960s, Coleman Hawkins had an opportunity to record with Duke Ellington, collaborated on one somewhat eccentric session with Sonny Rollins, and even did a bossa nova album. By 1965, Hawkins was even showing the influence of John Coltrane in his explorative flights and seemed ageless. Unfortunately, 1965 was Coleman Hawkins' last good year. Whether it was senility or frustration, Hawkins began to lose interest in life. He practically quit eating, increased his drinking, and quickly wasted away. Other than a surprisingly effective appearance with Jazz at the Philharmonic in early 1969, very little of Hawkins' work during his final three and a half years (a period during which he largely stopped recording) is up to the level one would expect from the great master. However, there are dozens of superb Coleman Hawkins recordings currently available and, as Eddie Jefferson said in his vocalese version of "Body and Soul," "he was the king of the saxophone."
artist moods
- Cerebral - Sophisticated - Confident - Laid-Back/Mellow - Passionate Refined Rollicking Soothing Warm Gritty Literate Amiable/GoodNatured - Restrained - Boisterous - Exuberant - Elegant - Bittersweet - Freewheeling - Lush - Plaintive Reflective Sensual Stylish Yearning Fun Playful Energetic Reserved Romantic
COLLAPSE
discography
Year
list
Title
condensed
Label
MAIN ALBUMS
COMPILATIONS
SINGLES & EPS
DVDS & VIDEOS
Editors' Rating
Average User Rating
1944
Tenor Sax Stylings
Brunswick
No User Ratings
- Earthy
1951
Favorites
Phoenix Jazz
No User Ratings
artist themes
- Celebration - Dinner Ambiance - Freedom - Reflection - The Creative Side - Late Night - Reminiscing - Drinking - Hanging Out - Sunday Afternoon - Introspection - Relaxation
1951
Coleman Hawkins Favorites
Advance Music
No User Ratings
1952
Disorder at the Border
Spotlite
No User Ratings
1952
The King of the Tenor Sax
Commodore Records
No User Ratings
1954
The Hawk Returns
Savoy Jazz
No User Ratings
1954
The Tenor Sax Album
Savoy
No User Ratings
1954
Jazz Tones
Xanadu Records
No User Ratings
1954
The Bean
Emarcy
No User Ratings
1955
Accent on Tenor Sax
Fresh Sound
No User Ratings
1955
Cool Groove
Drive Archive
No User Ratings
1956
Coleman Hawkins: A Documentary The Big Sounds of
Riverside Records
No User Ratings
Coleman Hawkins - Music Biography, Credits and Discography : AllMusic 1956
Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster
Brunswick
No User Ratings
1956
The Hawk in Hi-Fi
RCA
No User Ratings
1956
The Hawk in Paris
RCA
(1)
1957
At Newport Live Coleman Hawkins Encounters Ben Webster The Genius of Coleman Hawkins Coleman Hawkins and Roy Eldridge at the Opera House Volume One: Warhorses
Verve
(1)
1957
Verve / Polygram
(1)
1957
Verve
No User Ratings
1957
No User Ratings
1957
Jass Records
No User Ratings
1957
The Gilded Hawk
EMI Music Distribution
No User Ratings
1957
The Hawk Flies High
Original Jazz Classics / Prestige Records
(1)
1957
Think Deep
Riverside Records
No User Ratings
1958
Blues Groove
No User Ratings
1958
Meets the Big Sax Section
Savoy Jazz / Savoy
No User Ratings
1958
High Standards
Jass Records
No User Ratings
1958
Bean Bags
Koch Jazz / Koch Jazz

(2)
1958
Soul
Original Jazz Classics
No User Ratings
1958
All Stars at Newport
No User Ratings
1958
Coleman Hawkins and Confreres Coleman Hawkins and His Friends at a Famous Jazz Party The High and Mighty Hawk At the Bayou Club
Verve
(1)
1958
Enigma
No User Ratings
1958
Ais / Poll Winners Records
No User Ratings
1959
Honeysuckle Rose
No User Ratings
1959
At the Bayou Club, Vol. 2
Honeysuckle Rose
No User Ratings
1959
Stasch
Swingville
No User Ratings
1959
Hawk Eyes

(1)
1959
With the Red Garland Trio
Swingville/OJC
(1)
1959
Just You, Just Me
Stash
No User Ratings
1959
Rare Live Performance
Jazz Anthology
No User Ratings
195?
High Standards and Warhorses
Jass Records
No User Ratings
1960
All Stars
Swingville
No User Ratings
1960
Coleman Hawkins All Stars At Ease with Coleman Hawkins
Fantasy
No User Ratings
1960
No User Ratings
1960
Night Hawk
OJC
No User Ratings
1960
Bean Stalkin'
Pablo
No User Ratings
1960
European Concert
Unique Records
No User Ratings
1961
The Hawk Relaxes
No User Ratings
1961
Jam Session in Swingville
Prestige Records
No User Ratings
1961
Jazz Reunion
No User Ratings
1961
The Hawk Blows at Midnight
Decca
No User Ratings
1961
Things Ain't What They Used to Be
Swingville
No User Ratings
1962
Good Old Broadway
JVC Compact Discs
No User Ratings
1962
No Strings
Mood
No User Ratings
1962
Hawkins! Eldridge! Hodges! Alive! At the Village Gate!
Verve
No User Ratings
1962
Plays Make Someone Happy
No User Ratings
1962
Duke Ellington Meets Coleman Hawkins
Verve
(14)
1962
On the Bean
Continental
No User Ratings
1962
Back in Bean's Bag
Sony Music Distribution
No User Ratings
1962
Alive!
Verve
No User Ratings
1962
Centerpiece
Phoenix
No User Ratings
1962
In Concert with Roy Eldridge Jazz Version of No Strings
Band Stand - (import)
No User Ratings
1962
No User Ratings
1962
Jazz at the Metropole
Philips
No User Ratings
1963
The Hawk and the Hunter
Mira Recordings
No User Ratings
1963
Hawk Talk
Tradition/Rykodisc / Tradition
No User Ratings
1963
Hawkins! Alive! at the Village Gate
No User Ratings
1963
Today and Now
Impulse! / GRP
(1)
1963
Blowin' Up a Breeze
Spotlite
No User Ratings
1963
Desafinado: Bossa Nova and Jazz Samba Sonny Meets Hawk!
Impulse! / GRP
(3)
1963
Tombstone
(10)
1964
Essen Jazz Festival All Stars
Fantasy
No User Ratings
1964
Lover Man
France's Concert
No User Ratings
1965
Meditations
No User Ratings
1965
Rifftide
Pumpkin Records
No User Ratings
1966
Coleman Hawkins and the Trumpet Kings
Emarcy
No User Ratings
1966
Wrapped Tight
GRP / Impulse!
No User Ratings
1966
Supreme
Enja
No User Ratings
1966
Sirius
Pablo
No User Ratings
1999
For the Ears
Vanguard
No User Ratings
Coleman Hawkins - The Evolution
No User Ratings
Soundfields
Voice & Sound Amplification Personal Hearing Devices
www.soundfields.co.uk
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Coleman Hawkins - Music Biography, Credits and Discography - AllMusic

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