Norris Turney

Norris Turney ( born September 8, 1921 in Wilmington (Ohio ); † January 17, 2001 in Kettering, Ohio ) was an American jazz musician ( alto and tenor saxophone, clarinet, flute too ).

Life and work

Turney began his musical career in the Midwestern United States in territory bands like the Jeter - Pillars Orchestra, played a short time with Tiny Bradshaw in Chicago and then moved to New York. 1945/46, he was a member of the orchestra of Billy Eckstine. Upon his return to Ohio, he played mostly with local bands. In 1967 he went on tour with Ray Charles. He became better known, as to 1973, he worked in 1969 with Duke Ellington and the first flute soloist at all in the orchestra, among other things, was be heard on the album Up In Duke's Workshop ( 1969), The Afro - Eurasian Eclipse ( 1971) and the New Orleans Suite ( 1972). In the following years he played with the Savoy Sultans, George wine Newport All-Stars and various theater orchestras.

Under his own name he had the opportunity to take pictures twice; 1978 in a studio session (I Let A Song ) with the Ellington musicians Booty Wood, Aaron Bell, Sam Woodyard and pianist Raymond Fol, who also appeared in Black & Blue. In 1993, the album Big Sweet N ' Blue ( Maple Shade Records) originated with a rhythm section of Larry Willis, Walter Booker and Jimmy Cobb. Turney also took with Nina Simone ( Sings the Blues, 1967), Paul Gonsalves / Ray Nance (Just A- sittin ' And A - rockin', 1970), Snooky Young, Roy Eldridge (1976 ), Alberta Hunter (Amtrak Blues, 1980), the American Jazz Orchestra ( Ellington Masterpieces, 1989), Phyllis Hyman, Randy Weston ( Tangiers, 1995) and Jodie Christian ( Frontline, 1996) on. He died in 2001 of kidney failure. As a saxophonist, he is heavily influenced by Johnny Hodges.