RIP Ahmad Jamal

[chewy-chew-chew-bean-benitez]

RIP 

[gmonahan]

The grand master of spaces. What a great touch he had. RIP.

[Pim]

Rip. A true original he was. 

[GA Russell]

RIP.  I saw him south of Atlanta ca. 1990, and he was great!

Ahmad Jamal dies at 92 - Search (bing.com)

[Justin V]

I caught him live twice when he was touring in support of Blue Moon and both times were memorable.  I had always hoped to see him perform again.  Thank you for the music, Mr. Jamal, and rest in peace.

Edited April 18, 2023 by Justin V

[Al in NYC]

Ahmad Jamal was always extremely popular in Detroit when I coming up there.  He would play Baker's Keyboard Lounge a couple of times a year it seemed.  I think I saw him with my parents at least 3 or 4 times there in the '70s.  Always in the company, if I remember correctly, of Detroit drummer Frank Gant, who my folks knew a little bit through Pepper Adams and Don Byrd.  His clean, spacious, melodic playing and interaction with the drummer and bassist always fascinated me.  Almost like using the piano as another percussion instrument at times, and using a variation in dynamics to create drama and entertain audiences.  In a lot of ways the antithesis of the Bud Powell derived school that so many local pianists were deep into.  I know he took a lot of criticism from a lot of quarters for being lightweight, nothing more than an embellisher who played standards cute. But to me, like a very different pianist, Thelonious Monk, Jamal had found a different and compelling way to use a piano as a jazz instrument. 

I also saw him much later, in the 2000 and 2010s in both New York and Detroit, with the master drummer Idris Muhammad.  By then his playing had changed a bit and he was stretching out a lot more at times, and at other times barely playing at all, but the basic dynamic principle remained.  Those shows were even more compelling in some ways.  But always engaging and entertaining.

I was just talking to one of my relatives about Ahmad Jamal's death and he asked me a question for which I had no answer.  Did Ahmad Jamal ever appear on anyone else's session as a sideman?  Or even record with any lead horn players on a session outside of an orchestral type context?   I don't think so, but I can't seem to find any definitive discographical evidence.

[John L]

7 minutes ago, Al in NYC said:

 

I was just talking to one of my relatives about Ahmad Jamal's death and he asked me a question for which I had no answer.  Did Ahmad Jamal ever appear on anyone else's session as a sideman?  Or even record with any lead horn players on a session outside of an orchestral type context?   I don't think so, but I can't seem to find any definitive discographical evidence.

Good question.   I can't think of any sideman appearances.   He did make some recordings with George Coleman, Donald Byrd, and Stanley Turrentine in France in the 1990s.  

[T.D.]

I looked on discogs,

https://www.discogs.com/artist/164253-Ahmad-Jamal?type=Credits&subtype=Instruments-Performance&filter_anv=0&page=1

There was an album with Yusef Lateef as co-leaders

and an album where he backed Shirley Horn on a couple of tracks

 

 

[mjzee]

Not a horn, but he did make this interesting date with Gary Burton: