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Tony Reedus
After high school graduation, he enrolled at Memphis State University in 1978. In addition to music studies, he worked in local clubs with saxophonist Herman Green and numerous other Memphis musicians. Also during this period Reedus performed with stellar New York musicians such as Milt Jackson, Slide Hampton and Frank Foster. During an appearance at Memphis' Blues Alley, Woody Shaw showed up, and was impressed enough to ask the drummer to audition for him in New York. After a successful tryout, Reedus left college in 1980 to join Shaw's group, which also featured Steve Turre, Mulgrew Miller and Stafford James. In 1981, he made his recording debut on Shaw's United, and proceeded to tour the world with the trumpeter's band. He remained with the group until it disbanded in 1983.
Since then, Reedus has shared the bandstand in the New York area and around the world with The Mercer Ellington Orchestra, Art Farmer, Bobby Hutcherson, Freddie Hubbard, Kenny Garrett, Mulgrew Miller, George Coleman, Benny Golson, Joe Lovano, Phineas Newborn, Jr. and many others. He has also recorded three CDs as a leader; Minor Thang released in July 1996, Incognito and The Far Side.
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Joe Magnarelli: Hoop Dreams
by C. Andrew Hovan
As Duke Ellington would often remind us, music comes in two varieties, that which is good and that which is bad. This suggests that genre and category are really of little concern and that overall quality is really the defining factor in considering the validity of any musical expression. Taking this axiom one step further, let me suggest that good music comes in assorted varieties. On one end of the spectrum you have music brimming with complex structures and technical ...
read moreJoe Magnarelli: Hoop Dreams
by David A. Orthmann
Over the past dozen years trumpeter Joe Magnarelli has gradually transformed a bebop-derived vocabulary into a highly personal style. Utilizing a full-bodied tone that never turns strident, Magnarelli invites the listener to focus on the substantive dimensions of his playing, rather than drawing attention to technique, velocity and influences. Beautifully crafted melodies spring from his horn in varying shapes and sizes. Sometimes he'll sustain a chain of thought for several measures; in other instances he'll parcel out a complete idea ...
read moreTony Reedus
by David A. Orthmann
Since he arrived in New York City in 1980 to take over the drum chair in Woody Shaw’s band, Tony Reedus has demonstrated the ability to shape the music of a variety of mainstream ensembles by executing variations in dynamics, touch, and degrees of activity. Treating the drum set as an instrument of kindred components, Reedus moves freely between the polarities of bold self-assertiveness and restrained support. He is capable of directing a band’s progress by employing hard, snapping accents, ...
read moreWalt Weiskopf: Anytown
by C. Andrew Hovan
Although popularity and critics polls speak much to the contrary, saxophonist and composer Walt Weiskopf is one of the most artistic and exceptional jazz musicians around. That he's gone as long as he has without receiving much notice by the jazz press or public at large is undeniably inexplicable. This fact is made even more confounding when one considers that the cerebral and explorative style he has pursued has made other men, such as Joe Lovano and Chris Potter, household ...
read moreDrummer Tony Reedus to be Honored at Memphis Celebration and Benefit
Source:
Michael Ricci
Drummer Anthony Tony" Reedus, will be honored posthumously in his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee during a special event hosted by Strictly Jazz Entertainment, LLC in conjunction with Sax on Sunday" on August 9 that will feature local artists and guest performances.
Tony Reedus (1959-2008), who was born and Raised in Memphis, broke onto the international jazz scene after being discovered by late trumpeter Woody Shaw in 1980 during one of Shaw's visits to the Memphis area. Reedus joined Shaw's group ...
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Tony Reedus, 49, Top Jazz Drummer
Source:
All About Jazz
A man with a big heart and a big beat, drummer Tony Reedus cared for other people the way he cared about making a band swing. He was true blue, he'd do anything for you," said pianist Mulgrew Miller, who knew Mr. Reedus as a youth in Memphis, where the drummer was born, and later employed him in his trio in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was supersensitive," said his wife, violinist Jenise Grice-Reedus. He'd see a person ...
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