Jazz pioneer Lou Donaldson's obituary

American saxophonist and bandleader Lou Donaldson is one of the most sampled musicians. Obituaries of recently deceased jazz pioneers.

Stefan Künzli / ch media

What did Dr. Eminem do? Dre, A Tribe Called Quest, US3, De La Soul, Run DMC, Cypress Hill and Madonna together? They all borrowed from Lew Donaldson and plundered parts of his catalog that spanned over seventy years. The saxophonist is one of the most sampled artists. This is no coincidence. “Everything I Play Is Funky” is the title of a 1970 album, which could be understood as a programmatic content of the musician's life's work.

Charlie Parker, the founder of modern BeBop jazz, was his great role model. Lou Donaldson was born on November 1, 1926, in Badin, North Carolina, just six years younger. But Donaldson soon developed his own playing style, which was bluesier, more direct, and simpler than Parker's. «Playing jazz without the blues is like boiling potatoes without salt. You have something, but no taste. The blues is at the heart of everything I do,” he once said.

What would Charlie Parker sound like?

What would Charlie Parker have sounded like if he hadn't died in 1955? Lew Donaldson at least had a hint of it, because when Parker died, the young saxophonist really took off. In 1952, he was discovered and signed by the legendary Blue Note record label.

Lou Donaldson was also one of the jazz musicians who transformed BeBop into the more bluesy style of Hard Bop in the mid-1950s. Donaldson was also one of the first musicians to incorporate the conga drum into his music. Along with conga player Ray Barretto, aspiring young guitarist George Benson, and Lonnie Smith, who played Hammond organ, he formed the group in 20 The 1960s created a crisp, catchy and genre-defining sound: soul or jazz funk. It was a precursor to what would become funk. “Alligator Bogaloo” became his most successful album and a milestone in soul jazz.

The alto saxophonist was one of the most popular jazz musicians of his time, releasing albums every year. The works of this stage were warmly received and experienced a hip-hop renaissance in the first half of the 1990s. He also performed jazz classics such as Ellington's “Caravan” in stylish funk attire, as well as performed by James Brown and Curtis Mayfield.

A stretch of highway is named after him

In 2012, Lou Donaldson won the NEA Jazz Masters Scholarship, the highest honor for American jazz musicians. Two years ago, a 5-mile stretch of North Carolina Highway 740 was renamed Lou Donaldson Boulevard. In front of older musicians. Generally speaking, saxophonists perform well into old age.

For Lew Donaldson, the term “artist of the century” took on an entirely different meaning. But he didn't quite complete the century. (aargauerzeitung.ch)

A plane flying from Florida to restive Haiti was shot at as it landed. American Spirit Airlines announced Monday that a flight attendant suffered minor injuries.