Flowers for Jackie McLean

Jackie McLean, one of the greatest alto players in all of jazz, died yesterday. I'm not too surprised, because I'd been reading rumors of ill-health for quite some time. But I was still shocked to discover the news this morning.

No one had a tone like his--he had a unique sound even in his earlier work in the fifties. But his run of albums on Blue Note in the sixties is some of the most timeless music from that era. Three of my very favorite records are his Let Freedom Ring, One Step Beyond, and Destination... Out! Here he embraced the freedoms of Ornette Coleman, while still retaining his mastery of Charlie Parker's idiom Between the technique he had been honing by playing bop at the highest level for so many years, and his willingness to "step beyond" and take inspiration from the younger revolutionaries who were changing jazz at that time, he was able to make music different from anyone else's, and greater than most.

He wrote the liner notes to Let Freedom Ring, and in them he presents a short, incisive history of his musical life up to that point (1962), generously crediting so many others for their teachings and inspiration, right up to the people changing jazz at that time. He ends by saying, "The new breed has inspired me all over again. The search is on. Let freedom ring." Jackie was himself a great inspiration, even to a non-musician like me. I never even saw him, but I miss him.

He famously once said that we should "give them their flowers while they're still here." Meaning that we shouldn't wait until our heroes die to give them the recognition they deserve. Well, even if it's too late for that now, I still want to say: Thank you, Jackie McLean!