Oliver Nelson | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | Oliver Edward Nelson (1932-06-04)June 4, 1932 |
| Died | October 28, 1975(1975-10-28) (aged 43) Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
| Genres | Bebop,hard bop,post-bop,jazz fusion |
| Occupations | Musician, composer, arranger |
| Instruments | Soprano saxophone,alto saxophone,tenor saxophone, and clarinet |
| Labels | Verve Impulse! Prestige Argo Flying Dutchman |
Oliver Edward Nelson (June 4, 1932 – October 28, 1975) was an Americanjazz saxophonist, clarinetist, arranger, composer, and bandleader.[1][2] His 1961Impulse! albumThe Blues and the Abstract Truth (1961) is regarded as one of the most significant recordings of its era. The centerpiece of the album is the definitive version of Nelson's composition, "Stolen Moments". Other important recordings from the 1960s are the albumsMore Blues and the Abstract Truth (1964) andSound Pieces (1966), both also on Impulse!.[3]
Oliver Nelson was born into a musical family inSt. Louis,Missouri, United States.[2] His brother was a saxophonist who played withCootie Williams in the 1940s, and his sister sang and played piano. Nelson began learning to play the piano when he was six and started on the saxophone at the age of 11. Beginning in 1947, he played in "territory" bands in and around Saint Louis, before joining theLouis Jordan band, where he stayed from 1950 to 1951, playingalto saxophone and arranging charts for Jordan's band.[4][5]
In 1952, Nelson served in theUnited States Marines Corps playing woodwinds in the3rd Marine Division band in Japan and Korea. It was in Japan that Nelson attended a concert by theTokyo Philharmonic Orchestra and heardMaurice Ravel'sMa mère l'Oye andPaul Hindemith'sSymphony in E Flat. Nelson later recalled that this"'was the first time that I had heard really modern music for back in St. Louis I hadn't even known that Negroes were allowed to go to concerts. I realized everything didn't have to sound like Beethoven or Brahms ... . It was then that I decided to become a composer.'"[6]
Nelson returned to Missouri to study music composition and theory atWashington University in St. Louis andLincoln University, graduating with a master's degree in 1958.[2] He also studied with composersElliott Carter,[2]Robert Wykes andGeorge Tremblay.[4][7]
While back in his hometown of St. Louis, Nelson met and married Eileen Mitchell; the couple had a son, Oliver Nelson Jr., but soon divorced. After graduation, Nelson married St. Louis native Audrey McEwen, a union that lasted until his death and produced a son, Nyles.
After completing his degree Nelson moved to New York City, playing withErskine Hawkins andWild Bill Davis, and working as the house arranger for theApollo Theater inHarlem.[2] He also played on the West Coast briefly with theLouie Bellson big band in 1959, and in the same year began recording forPrestige Records as the leader of various small groups.[2] From 1960 to 1961, he briefly played withCount Basie andDuke Ellington,[2] and then joined theQuincy Jones big band playingtenor saxophone, both in the U.S. and on tour in Europe.[4]
After six albums as leader between 1959 and 1961 for thePrestige Records label, Nelson's big breakthrough came withThe Blues and the Abstract Truth, an album recorded forImpulse! also featuringEric Dolphy,Roy Haynes,Bill Evans, andFreddie Hubbard, which made his name as a composer and arranger.[2] Subsequently, he recorded a number of notable big-band albums includingAfro-American Sketches andFull Nelson.[4]
Nelson worked as an arranger on large ensemble albums forThelonious Monk,Cannonball Adderley,Sonny Rollins,Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis,Johnny Hodges,Wes Montgomery,Buddy Rich,Jimmy Smith,Billy Taylor,Stanley Turrentine,Irene Reid, andGene Ammons. The musicSonny Rollins wrote forAlfie (1966), a film made in Great Britain, was arranged by Nelson forAlfie of the same name. He also led all-star big bands in various live performances between 1966 and 1975. Nelson continued to perform as a soloist during this period, now focusing primarily on soprano saxophone.
In 1967, Nelson moved toLos Angeles to be near the television and movie industry and began composing background music for television and films, for which he became highly sought after.[8] Television projects includedIronside,Night Gallery,Columbo,The Six Million Dollar Man andLongstreet. Films scored by Nelson includeDeath of a Gunfighter (1969),Skullduggery (1970),Dial Hot Line (1970),Zig Zag (1970) andThe Alpha Caper (1973).[5] He also arrangedGato Barbieri's music forLast Tango in Paris (1972). Two years later, he recorded a further album in Britain forFlying Dutchman Records,Oliver Edward Nelson in London with Oily Rags, that featured contributions fromChas Hodges andDave Peacock, better known as cockney music hall duoChas & Dave. During this productive time he also arranged and produced albums for pop stars such asNancy Wilson,James Brown,The Temptations, andDiana Ross.
Along with his big-band appearances (inBerlin,Montreux, New York, and Los Angeles), he led a small group that includedJohn Klemmer,Ernie Watts, Freddie Hill, andFrank Strozier in aUnited States Department of State-sponsored tour of West Africa in 1969. Less well-known is the fact that Nelson composed several symphonic works[citation needed], and was also deeply involved in jazz education, returning to hisalma mater,Washington University, in the summer of 1969 to lead a five-week-long clinic that also featured such guest performers asPhil Woods,Mel Lewis,Thad Jones,Sir Roland Hanna, andRon Carter. Among the student participants at the Washington University Summer Jazz Institute were saxophonistsJulius Hemphill,Oliver Lake, andHamiet Bluiett, who later co-founded theWorld Saxophone Quartet withDavid Murray. Nelson's book of jazz practice exercises,Patterns for Improvisation, was published in 1966 and remains highly regarded to this day.
Nelson died of a heart attack on October 28, 1975, at the age of 43.[9] It is widely believed that Nelson's commitment to his work resulted in lengthy periods of stress which contributed to his premature death.[10][8]
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