Jazz88 is celebrating the life and music of double bassist, Charlie Haden, born August 6th, 1937 in Shenandoah, Iowa. Haden provided an essential element to Ornette Coleman’s groundbreaking quartets in the late fifties and early sixties. Coleman’s music departed from traditional rules of harmony and form, and Haden would adapt his basslines according to what Coleman improvised. In the late 60’s, Haden formed the Liberation Music Orchestra, featuring iconic avant-garde musicians like Don Cherry, Roswell Rudd, and Gato Barbieri, and arrangements by Carla Bley. He used his music to speak out against war and speak up for social justice.
In 1982, Haden was the founder of a jazz program at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, Santa Clarita. Later projects included his renowned Quartet West and critically-acclaimed recordings with Pat Metheny and Hank Jones. Haden died in 2014 at the age of 76. – Peter Solomon
More Posts for Show: The Morning Show
