Drummer Archibald Alexander Alleyne, a much-loved and highly respected veteran of Canada’s jazz community, passed away on June 8 at age 82, following a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. ArchiegrewupintheKensingtonMarketareaofTorontoatatimewhenitwaslargelypopulatedbyEasternEuropeanJewishimmigrantsandAfricanCanadians.Aprimarilyself-taughtmusician,hiselegantyetdrivingswingandmelodicismledtocomparisonswithfirst-generationbebopdrummerslikeKennyClarkeandMaxRoach. Duringthe1950s,whensegregationandracialdiscriminationstillimpactedmanymusicvenues,hewasamongthefirstblackmusicianstobreakthoughthe“colourline.”HesoonbecameafixtureatTorontoclubsliketheColonialandtheTownTavern,frequentlybackingvisitingstarssuchasLesterYoung,BillieHoliday,BenWebster,Harry“Sweets”Edison,StanGetz,Eddie“Lockjaw”Davis,andTeddyWilson. Alleynetemporarilyretiredfromplayingin1968followingamajorautomobileaccident,butmadeacomebackintheearly1980s,amongotherthingsco-leadingaquartetwithvibraphonistFrankWrightandtouringextensivelywithpianistOliverJones.Later,in2000,heandthelatesaxophonistDougieRichardsonformedthehardbopcomboKollage,whichhadanumberofincarnationsandservedasanurturinggroundforyoungermusicians. Atirelesssocialactivist,AlleynespearheadedsuccessfuleffortstopushtheCanadaCouncilfortheArtstomakerecordinggrantsavailabletojazzmusicians,andtheTorontoJazzFestivaltofeaturemoreblackartists.Later,heestablishedtheArchieAlleyneScholarshipFundtoassistpromisingyoungperformers.In2012hewasnamedanOfficeroftheOrderofCanada. A memoir, Colour Me Jazz: The Archie Alleyne Story, co-written with Sheldon Taylor, was due to be launched this month, but has […]

The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra’s legacy dates back to the mid-1960s, when it was first created as the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra. Trumpeter Jones was an alumnus of the Count Basie Orchestra, and this new unit allowed him to expand upon the legacies of Basie and Duke Ellington, and to showcase his formidable gifts as a […]

Since the early 2000s I have had the privilege of knowing and sometimes performing with legendary vocalist Sheila Jordan. Born in Detroit in 1928, Sheila started singing in clubs at a young age, eventually falling under the spell of the musicians at the forefront of the bebop revolution, especially Charlie Parker, whose pianist, Duke Jordan, […]