I’m not familiar with his later work. Seems worth exploring.

It most definitely is worth exploring. His last quartet, with pianist Danilo Perez, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Brian Blade had an impressive telepathic quality. The manner in which they played is last compositions was nothing short of amazing. This final book of work can be said to be among Shorter's best work.

 

It turns out I bought "Without A Net" some time ago and forgot about it. I'm listening to it right now. It's terrific.

 

I'm in complete agreement with SanAntone. Wayne Shorter leaves us an immeasurably rich legacy of jazz composition and performance. His technical prowess on his two instruments was on par with those of John Coltrane and Charlie Parker. This is a sad day. RIP, Mr. Shorter.

 

I like Weather Report. Wayne and Joe wrote a lot of great material for the band. I think I have most of Wayne's Blue Note albums. The ones I enjoy the most are The All Seeing Eye, Speak No Evil, Super Nova, and Odyssey of Iska.

 

I’m not familiar with his later work.

I think you should check out also High life, from the nineties. It's one of my absolute favorite albums of that decade. It could really be offputting if you're a bit like me, because it has that sleek arrangements made by Marcus Miller that being into the second quintet/Bitches brew sound too really weren't my thing at all (some critic said that it was an album where Shorter was doing Kenny G. music, which is one of the dumbest pieces of criticism I've ever heard, but I know that he said it because of that sound), but the compositions are amazing and at the end I started to appreciate even the sound.

Anyway we have lost a true giant, and what was without a doubt my favorite living musician, and one of my favorite musicians and composers ever.

 

Here's his open letter with Herbie hancock posted a few years ago.....some wise words for the next generation of artists.

Remembering Wayne Shorter (1933-2023)

 

Both Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock have been long term practitioners of Nichiren Shōshū Buddhism, the primary component of which is the Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo chanting. Judging from my reading of it, this letter reflects their overall philosophy, informed as it is by their Buddhist beliefs and practices.

Well done.

 

Also the greatest sax solo ever played on FM rock radio

 

Ah, so sad to hear about the passing of Wayne. He was brilliant. So much good output. Was one of those guys who really adapted to each position he found himself in. Bet Miles loved that about him. Hope there is one heck of a jam session going on in heaven right now. Miles, Wayne, Joe, Chick. Crap, this SUCKS.

 

Very sad to hear this. RIP to one of the greatest musicians of the 20th century.

It's rather serendipitous that I've recently been revisiting the discography of Miles Davis and I just finished listening to the box set of the complete recordings of the second great quintet with Shorter. I also had plans to explore Shorter's discgraphy after I finished with Davis. I had just started by listening to his The Young Lions album (with trumpeter Lee Morgan) last night. Other than that album and Shorter's work with Davis I've only heard Speak No Evil and Juju, both of which are excellent. I guess there's no better way to honor his memory than a thorough exploration of his music, and I'm looking forward to it.

One thing I love about Shorter is how he excelled at every aspect of jazz. As a composer I would only definitively rank him behind Duke, Monk, and Mingus, and think he's on par with Miles and Coltrane. As an improvisor I loved how versatile he was. He could be as fiery as Coltrane, as cool as Prez, as lyrical as Getz, as abstract as Ornette, as motivic as Rollins, and had a melodic and aesthetic sensibility that melded perfectly with Miles Davis (as good as Coltrane was with Miles, you could hear the tension in their diametrically opposed styles on their last tour). Yet, despite all these influences he was also always extremely distinctive as well, perhaps in part because of how interestingly he mixed those influences.

 

As a composer I would only definitively rank him behind Duke, Monk, and Mingus, and think he's on par with Miles and Coltrane.

I think that as a composer he was inferior to nobody in the jazz field, and my opinion even superior to Mingus, who often relied too much on the blues ( think the strenght of Mingues was especially as a arranger/orchestrator). And as a composer he was way superior than Miles or Coltrane, even if both have some great stuff, and Coltrane clearly was an influence on him, but he brought the writing to the next level.

 

I will enjoy the following, from my collection, in memory of

a true master.

 

Shorter was a great icon and force in Jazz Music. I prefer his earlier works over the later material and was not a fan of WeatherReport as Phil noted. However, Wayne was a creator and innovator and will have a lasting impact on Jazz Music. Here's Wayne with the great Art Blakey and trumpet phenom Lee Morgan with one of his trademark edgy solos. RIP brother. You lived the life . . .
Viajero

 

I have most of his Blue Note recordings, loved his work with Miles, but especially his early Weather Report compositions. Will be playing some of this as the snow buries us tonight in northern NY, as I'm sure will Vermont Public Radio's Friday Night Jazz.

 

I saw that Wayne died yesterday. The thing about being one of the few living jazz legends is the way that they keep getting fewer.

If you dont play jazz, I can assure you that Wayne Shorter wrote tunes that were very complex in their harmonic progression, but the voice leading is always sublime. Funny enough since they played together in that great quintet with Herbie, Ron Carter and Tony Williams, but to me, only Miles Davis tunes have that same quality.

here is one of my favorites. Its called "Pinocchio"

 

Both "Pinocchio" and "Nefertiti" are two of my favorite Wayne tunes - in fact Nefertiti is about my favorite Miles record. But he wrote so many great tunes, it is silly to pick two out the hundreds.

His 60s Blue Note stuff (and before that the Messengers esp with Lee Morgan), and of course his time with the Miles quintet, is the core music, IMO. But his late period had him delving more into composing, and stretching somewhat more than with his earlier things which seemed more about creating very sophisticated platforms for soloing. Alegria is a supreme achievement.

For me, during the Weather Report period his stuff sort of got lost in the glare of Zawinul and Pastorius. And then his 80s fusion period, for me is the least interesting. I know there are some great tunes in both those periods, but I was never a huge fan of fusion in general.

Bottomline - Wayne Shorter was one among a handful of the very greatest jazz musicians.

 

I dont understand all the luke warm reaction to Weather Report. Maybe its my age, but I was a huge fan of Weather Report. "Heavy Weather" is still one of my favorite records

I always thought it was pretty cool that Joe Zawinul was playing with Cannonball Adderley when he was still fresh off the boat in America and didnt really speak that much English. Landing a gig like the Cannonball Adderley sextet when you are newly immigrated and haven't got the language down yet is pretty amazing.

But Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul really made Weather Report what it was. The band was always Wayne, Joe, a bass player, a drummer, and a percussionist. The band had a number of members over the years, but it was Wayne and Joe that made Weather Report one of the defining fusion bands of the 1970s

just to remind us....this is "Birdland" from Heavy Weather. I believe its Jacco and Alex Acuna on this track

 

I dont understand all the luke warm reaction to Weather Report. Maybe its my age, but I was a huge fan of Weather Report. "Heavy Weather" is still one of my favorite records

I always thought it was pretty cool that Joe Zawinul was playing with Cannonball Adderley when he was still fresh off the boat in America and didnt really speak that much English. Landing a gig like the Cannonball Adderley sextet when you are newly immigrated and haven't got the language down yet is pretty amazing.

But Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul really made Weather Report what it was. The band was always Wayne, Joe, a bass player, a drummer, and a percussionist. The band had a number of members over the years, but it was Wayne and Joe that made Weather Report one of the defining fusion bands of the 1970s

just to remind us....this is "Birdland" from Heavy Weather. I believe its Jacco and Alex Acuna on this track

it has to be said that I feel that Shorter as a composer did much better things outside Weather report... I'm tempted to say in all his other works, being his solo albums before and after WR or his collaborations with Miles Davis, Art Blakey or Lee Morgan (the pieces on The procrastinator are gems that sound as something taken from Nefertiti by the way). Shorter was certainly an important part of the band, but I feel it was more the band of Zawinul and later even of Pastorius as San Antone said.

 

I listen to this one today:

The first lines of the back sleeve blurb, which was written by Wayne Shorter, say: "This recording is going to be really important. With the mixture of people -- male and female, varying ethnicities and backgrounds -- sometimes we did things that sound larger than the four of us, with more of an orchestral approach. The record we made in honoring Geri Allen also honors the people's death from the 'damnpemic' to Ukraine. And if there are things going on in the recording that can be heard by people to the extent that it can turn some thoughts around about life and culture, then the more people who hear it may recognize that we are all different -- and the same."

In closing, Shorter writes: "This record ... doesn't exist in a vacuum by itself, just to be sold in a record store. We are trying to crack the ceiling in some way. All the music has something to do with becoming more human, not becoming a great musician."

If we can remember Wayne Shorter through those words, and this music, and his music over a life span of several decades of greatness, then Wayne will have truly achieved that goal he aimed for -- of becoming more human. We know that he was already, and had been for quite some while, "a great musician."

To truly honor his memory, and his spirit, we must all seek to become "more human", for none of us exists in a vacuum, either. And though we are all different, we are also, as Wayne observes, the same.

And so I listen to this one today: Live at the Detroit Jazz Festival, recorded on the Carhartt Amphitheater Stage in 2017 and featuring Wayne Shorter on saxophones, Terri Lyne Carrington on drums, Leo Genovese on piano & keyboards, and Esperanza Spalding on bass & vocals. Candid CCD30302, released 2022.

We're listening; and we hear you, Wayne. We hear you.

 

I will speak no evil of Wayne Shorter at this time. Great album.

 

I much prefer the early Weather Report, especially the second album, I Sing the Body Electric, to their later material. Heavy Weather marks the beginning of the end for me.

Here is one of my favorite WR tracks, from their second record - Unknown Soldier

 

I much prefer the early Weather Report, especially the second album, I Sing the Body Electric, to their later material. Heavy Weather marks the beginning of the end for me.

That is pretty much my feelings. The first four albums are my favorites, along with the mostly live 8:30 (1979). 1980s Weather Report albums were pretty boring, as were some of Shorter's solo albums (Phantom Navigator & Joy Ryder) in the 80s. Following those, he returned to form for the rest of his career. A remarkable 60 year career with only a small number of duds.

 

I feel like Wayne is more at home on the first two albums but WR as a band really solidified their identity on Sweetnighter. I can understand jazz fans preferring the earlier material while rock fans latched onto the catchier melodies and funk grooves of the later albums. Speaking of grooves, the live recording of Blacket Market from 8:30 is one of the greatest things I've ever heard. Jaco's groove and the way he drives the band is phenomenal. I don't bother to listen to the studio recording.

 

Jaco got a lot of his funk stuff from Rocco Prestia (Tower of Power).

 

I think it's worth noting that we can thank Wayne Shorter for introducing the general public to the great Brazilian singer-songwriter Milton Nascimento through their 1975 collaboration Native Dancer. It's a beautiful work.

 

Re: Tower of Power. That tune sounds a lot like some of the stuff on Jaco's debut. He claimed he never listened to rock music growing up. Just jazz and R&B.

 

He worked with Wayne Cochran and the C.C.Riders - and gigged around Florida playing a variety of styles. So, I think he was trying to create his own mythology. But Tower of Power is not "rock" as much s R&B/funk.

That fast staccato style was going around in the early '70s, kind of beginning with Stevie Wonder's Superstition. I knew a bunch of bass players doing it, includng myself. Jaco just did it with more finesse than everybody, and then of course went way beyond that into creating a personal style unmatched by any other electric bassist.

 

That's what I meant. TOP is R&B.

 

"He worked with Wayne Cochran and the C.C.Riders - and gigged around Florida playing a variety of styles. So, I think he was trying to create his own mythology. But Tower of Power is not "rock" as much s R&B/funk. " San Antone

Hi, San Antone,
Ten stars for remembering the great Wayne Cochran. And, Tower of Power along with Blood, Sweat, and Tears were, in my opinion, the two greatest Jazz/Rock bands ever. As a side note, I played tenor sax/flute from '66 to '76 in a number of Jazz/Rock bands and we did many tunes from the above bands. However, here's a rare video from Wayne--the Blue-eyed soul brother. Sorry for the thread drift but I couldn't help myself.
Viajero
P.S. These bands featured many Jazz players that couldn't get "straight-ahead" Jazz gigs and in all three cases above . . . the musicianship was outstanding. V

 

 

Excellent video. Adam Neely is one of the best music educators on YouTube.

 

Excellent video, Norman, for the musicians among us. The takeaway for me as an arranger of Jazz standards is that form and function are flexible in Jazz Music and some of the best compositions we have in the literature today utilize this approach. Good composers of Jazz follow their ears and create progressions and resolutions in a non-formulaic manner. This is the meat and potatoes of creative Jazz compositions. And, the space given to the musician for both harmonic/melodic improvisation and freedom of time was clearly seen when Wayne didn't follow his own writing in "Infant Eyes" playing the last 1/4 note in the phrase with an accented 1/16th.
Finally, I mentioned earlier that I preferred Wayne's earlier work over the later work and that still is the case. However, a musician's/composer's life is a search for identity and Truth and Wayne certainly accomplished that goal.
Viajero