Jazz Legend Sam Rivers Passes
Thursday, January 12th, 2012Sam Rivers, a long-time musician (saxophone, flute, composition) band leader, and educator, died Monday night, Jan. 9, at the age of 88.
As a Boston resident growing up, I was turned on to the amazing Sam Rivers by my high-school buddy Daniel Peterson, also a sax player, who is now a player in Philadelphia going on 15 years or so. Rivers’ music is not the most easy-listening type you will hear, but it’s ultra-joyous, often beautiful and always stretches the boundaries of “jazz.”
His albums are well worth whatever price you find them for, especially his Mosaic box set.
Here is a good bio of Rivers, who will now get to play with Miles Davis and Andrew Hill once again; below is a video of one of his coolest recordings:
