Blue notes
The history of jazz is littered with the corpses of those who died young, usually for reasons associated with the lifestyle.
We have good reason, then, to celebrate those who survive to a ripe old age and keep working more or less until they drop. One such was Hank Jones, who died last Sunday at the age of 91.
He was the third of 10 children, and two younger brothers who died before him each made a profound contribution to music. Trumpeter Thad Jones, who wrote the standard A Child is Born, made his mark mostly as a band leader and influential composer and arranger. He died in 1986 aged only 63.
Elvin Jones, who made it to 76 when he died in 2004, was one of the most important drummers in jazz, noted particularly for his work with John Coltrane. Elvin became more settled in his later years, though early on he lived 'the jazz life' to the full, what with a heroin addiction and jail for drug charges.
Hank Jones, by contrast, never smoked or drank and lived a life of irreproachable professionalism, although he did have a reputation for inflexibility over the terms of contracts and a definite sense of his own financial worth.
He had all of Elvin's passion for music, although he expressed it in a gentler, more contemplative way. Where Elvin turned his accompanist's role into that of a full-time soloist, Jones' talents as a soloist were often obscured by his excellence as an accompanist.
His most famous performance in that capacity was not a jazz record. It was Jones who played behind Marilyn Monroe when she sang Happy Birthday to US president John F. Kennedy in 1962. By his tactfully rendered account they rehearsed for eight hours, and he considered Monroe a good singer. Unfortunately, on the night she was drunk and off key.
Years as a pianist at CBS meant not all the 1,000-plus recordings on which Jones is estimated to have performed were worthy of his talents, but the economy and intelligence of his playing became ever more refined with the passing years. Some of his best work was recorded within the past five years, with a group led by saxophonist Joe Lovano on the albums I'm All for You and Joyous Encounter - a fortuitous late-career partnership.
The latter album includes tributes to his brothers in the form of fine interpretations of Thad's A Child is Born and Coltrane's Crescent. Jones and Lovano, with bassist George Mraz and drummer Paul Motian, laid down some of the finest small-group jazz recorded so far this century. RIP. Take Three The Essential Hank Jones albums: The Talented Touch (1958, Okra-Tone) A classic Jones-led, small-group recording on which he, bassist Milt Hinton, drummer Osie Johnson and guitarist Barry Galbraith show a near flawless empathy. Now reissued bundled with 1960s songs from Porgy and Bess.
Upon Reflection: The Music of Thad Jones (1993, Verve) Jones saved some of his best playing for the autumn of his years, and this tribute to brother Thad, also featuring Elvin, found him at the very peak of his powers. I'm All for You (2004, Blue Note) Lovano led this beautifully paced collection of ballads, but playing with Jones, Mraz and Motian he was only the first among equals. All the elegance and depth of the late-career playing of a pianist who said: 'I am the sum total of everything that I have experienced musically.'
