Dave Brubeck (1920 – 2012)
Dave Brubeck, one of the most celebrated and revered artists in American music, passed away today from heart failure. The Dave Brubeck Quartet defined the ‘cool jazz’ movement that came out of the West Coast in the 1950’s. Brubeck’s popularity was so big that he became only the 2nd jazz artist to make the cover of Time Magazine (Louis Armstrong was the first). Inspired by the Eurasion folk music that while on a U.S. State Department sponsored tour, Brubeck began to experiment and incorporate odd time signatures into the band’s sound. It resulted in Time Out, an album, that along with Miles Davis’ Kind Of Blue (both released in 1959), changed the face of jazz. The title track, written by long time band member Paul Desmond, became a Top 40 hit and the album sold over a million copies. The Dave Brubeck Quartet also recording a landmark live album at Carnegie Hall in 1963.
After disbanding the quartet, Brubeck went on to compose several orchestral pieces and score soundtracks for television. He also maintained a close relationship with DBQ saxophonist Paul Desmond, performing with him numerous times until Desmond passed away in 1977 from lung cancer.
Through the years, Brubeck received some of the highest honors that can betowed upon a musician. He received The Benjamin Franklin Award for Public Diplomacy from long time fan, Secretary Of State Condoleezzsa Rice. Kennedy Center Honoree in 2009. Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner in 1996. 1994 National Medal Of Arts honoree. Inducted into the DownBeat Hall Of Fame in 1995. Honorary degrees, Doctorates and Fellows from the The University Of Notre Dame, University of Firbourg and Westiminster Choir College. BBC Jazz Lifetime Achievement Award honoree in 2007.
Brubeck influence extends beyond the jazz world. Artists ranging from Billy Joel to Soundgarden cite Brubeck as a direct or indirect influence. Prog rockers The Nice (who re-fashioned Brubeck’s ‘Blue Rondo A La Turk’ as ‘Rondo’), Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer consider Dave Brubeck a musical godfather.
Donald Fagen nailed it when he calls Dave Brubeck ‘an artist, a pioneer’ on his 1982 hit ‘New Frontier’.
Dave Brubeck was 91.
