Born: 1936 Primary Instrument: Drums
Muhammad Ali (born Raymond Patterson, 1936) is a free jazz drummer.
Ali was born and grew up in Philadelphia. He, along with his father and brothers, converted to Islam. He recorded with Albert Ayler in 1969 on the sessions released as Music is the Healing Force of the Universe and The Last Album. He moved to Europe in 1969 along with Frank Wright, Noah Howard, and Bobby Few. His brother is the better known Rashied Ali.
The Jazz Discography states that Ali participated in 26 recording sessions from 1967 to 1983.
In October 2006, Ali played a concert to celebrate John Coltrane's 80th birthday in Philadelphia with his brother, pianist Dave Burrell and bassist Reggie Workman. He is also playing with Noah Howard in the summer of 2008.
Ali spent six weeks teaching Haaz Sleiman to play drums for his part as a drummer in The Visitor, and spent some time teaching Richard Jenkins drums for his lead role in the same film.
