Duke Pearson

Duke Pearson was an accomplished, lyrical, and logical -- if rather cautious -- pianist who played a big part in shaping the <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Blue+Note%22">Blue Note</a> label's hard bop direction in the 1960s as a producer. He will probably be best remembered for writing several attractive, catchy pieces, the most memorable being the moody "Cristo Redentor" for <a href="spotify:artist:3ZUZYvTkSr7kJQyAXVpqaL">Donald Byrd</a>, "Sweet Honey Bee" for himself and <a href="spotify:artist:38C3okxv3fyyOIQUVPCdGX">Lee Morgan</a>, and "Jeannine," which has become a much-covered jazz standard. Pearson was introduced to brass instruments and the piano as a youth, and his abilities on the latter inspired his uncle, an <a href="spotify:artist:4F7Q5NV6h5TSwCainz8S5A">Ellington</a> admirer, to give him his nickname. Dental problems forced Pearson to abandon the brass family, so he worked as a pianist in Atlanta and elsewhere in Georgia and Florida before moving to New York in 1959. There, he joined <a href="spotify:artist:3ZUZYvTkSr7kJQyAXVpqaL">Donald Byrd</a>'s band and <a href="spotify:artist:2ZFVQjoQGBbNZ0quLUteyp">the Art Farmer-Benny Golson Sextet</a>, and served as <a href="spotify:artist:2JfVCMa3FlvQRlLT5uH9zb">Nancy Wilson</a>'s accompanist. In 1963, he arranged four numbers for jazz septet and eight-voice choir on <a href="spotify:artist:3ZUZYvTkSr7kJQyAXVpqaL">Byrd</a>'s innovative A New Perspective album; one of the tunes was "Cristo Redentor," which became a jazz hit. From 1963 to 1970, Pearson was in charge of several recording sessions for <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Blue+Note%22">Blue Note</a>, while also recording most of his albums as a leader. He also led a big band from 1967 to 1970 and again in 1972, hiring players like <a href="spotify:artist:7fSCq6nVoFiyBqFD8fQFWR">Pepper Adams</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5olDKSsFhhmwh8UCWwKtpq">Chick Corea</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5RLIxfpEdvcT9xqfOhclYL">Lew Tabackin</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:3Rsba5XTDhxUyjK4sn1wBj">Randy Brecker</a>, and Garnett Brown. Pearson continued to accompany vocalists in the 1970s, such as <a href="spotify:artist:2E3nXyfocf7qfHAIFNbBuj">Carmen McRae</a>, but he spent a good deal of the latter half of the decade fighting the ravages of multiple sclerosis. ~ Richard S. Ginell, Rovi