Dewey Redman

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Dewey Redman (born Walter Redman in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, May 17, 1931; d. Brooklyn, New York, September 2, 2006)[1] was an American free jazz saxophonist. Redman played mainly tenor saxophone, though he occasionally doubled on alto saxophone, played the Chinese suona (which he called a musette),^photo and on rare occasions played the clarinet.

Redman attended Prairie View A&M University in Texas. He was best known for his collaborations with Ornette Coleman, with whom he performed in his Fort Worth high school marching band. He later performed with Coleman from 1968 to 1972, appearing on the recording NEW YORK IS NOW, among others. He also played in Keith Jarrett's American Quartet (1971-1976), and was a member of the collective Old And New Dreams. The American Quartet's The Survivor's Suite was voted Jazz Album of the Year by Melody Maker in 1978.

He also performed and recorded as an accompanying musician with jazz musicians who performed in varying styles within the post-1950s jazz idiom, including Charlie Haden and Pat Metheny.

With a dozen recordings under his own name Redman established himself as one of the more prolific tenor players of his generation. Though generally associated with free jazz, Redman's melodic tenor playing always conveyed a deep understanding of blues and had strong ties to the post-bop mainstream. Redman's live shows were as likely to feature standards and ballads as the more atonal improvisations for which he was known.

Redman was the subject of an award-winning documentary film Dewey Time (dir. Daniel Berman, 2001).

On February 19 and 21, 2004, Redman played tenor saxophone as a special guest with Jazz at Lincoln Center, in a concert entitled "The Music of Ornette Coleman."^{audio link}

Redman died of liver failure in Brooklyn, New York on September 2, 2006. He is survived by his wife, Lidija Pedevska-Redman, as well as two sons: Joshua Redman (also a jazz tenor saxophonist, with whom he recorded two albums) and Tarik.