[msb-alumni] R&B and Jazz Singer Al Jarreau dies at 76
- From: Steve <pipeguy920@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <msb-alumni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 12 Feb 2017 22:04:05 -0500
BlankAl Jarreau, Singer Who Spanned Jazz, Pop and R&B Worlds, Dies at 76
By MARGALIT FOXFEB Feb 12 2017
Al Jarreau in 1986: “I try to be receptive and to be listening, and to not be
afraid to try something new.” Credit David Corio
Al Jarreau, a versatile vocalist who sold millions of records and won a string
of Grammys for his work in pop and R&B as well as his first love, jazz, died on
Sunday in Los Angeles. He was 76.
His death was announced by his manager, Joe Gordon, who said that Mr. Jarreau
had been hospitalized for exhaustion two weeks ago. On the advice of his
doctors, he had canceled his tour dates and retired from touring.
Mr. Jarreau did not begin a full-time musical career until he was nearly 30,
but
within a few years he had begun attracting notice for a vocal style that was
both instantly appealing and highly unusual. Critics were particularly taken by
his improvisational dexterity, in particular his virtuosic ability to produce
an
array of vocalizations ranging from delicious nonsense to clicks and growls to
quasi-instrumental sounds.
Although he made his initial mark in the jazz world, Mr. Jarreau’s style, and
his audience, crossed stylistic barriers. His music incorporated elements of
pop, soul, gospel, Latin and other genres. It was a mark of his eclecticism
that
he won six Grammys across three different categories: jazz, pop and R&B. He was
also among the performers on a Grammy-winning children’s album, "In Harmony: A
Sesame Street Record."
If Mr. Jarreau’s highly accessible, intensely personal style defied easy
classification, that very accessibility — and, perhaps, the mere fact of his
considerable commercial success — left some jazz purists skeptical.
Photo
Mr. Jarreau performing last year at the 50th Montreux Jazz Festival in
Switzerland. Credit Anthony Anex/European Pressphoto Agency
Reviewing a concert by Mr. Jarreau at the Savoy in New York in 1981, Stephen
Holden of The New York Times encapsulated what many saw as both the pros and
the
cons of Mr. Jarreau’s singular style:
"Al Jarreau may be the most technically gifted singer working in jazz-fusion
today," Mr. Holden wrote. Of the evening’s performance, however, he continued:
"Mr. Jarreau’s concert lacked the emotional range of great jazz. He is such a
prodigious talent that the absence of even the slightest blues inflections kept
his music from cutting deeply."
But critics’ reservations never deterred Mr. Jarreau, who prided himself, as he
told The Los Angeles Times in 1986, on his “jazz attitude,” which he defined as
"the idea of being open to each and every moment as a chance to create
something
different."
"I try to be receptive," he added, "and to be listening, and to not be afraid
to
try something new."
Alwin Lopez Jarreau was born in Milwaukee on March 12, 1940, into a musical
family. His father, a minister, was a fine singer; his mother played the piano
in church. Young Al began singing at 4, harmonizing with his siblings. As a
youth he sang in church, as well as with street-corner harmony groups and local
jazz bands.
Mr. Jarreau earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Ripon College in
Wisconsin in 1962, and a master’s in vocational rehabilitation from the
University of Iowa in 1964. Afterward he moved to San Francisco, where he
worked
as a rehabilitation counselor for people with disabilities.
But Mr. Jarreau found he could not resist the pull of jazz and before long was
singing in local nightclubs. By the late ’60s, he had quit his day job and
embarked on a nightclub career, first on the West Coast and eventually in New
York.
He reached a national audience with the album "We Got By," released by Warner
Bros. in 1975 to critical praise and commercial success.
Though advertised as his debut, it was actually his second album. A decade
earlier, Mr. Jarreau had quietly recorded an album, later released on the
Bainbridge label under the title "1965." Though Mr. Jarreau took legal action,
without success, to block its belated release in 1982, it is esteemed by jazz
connoisseurs today.
Appearances on “Saturday Night Live” and other television shows raised his
profile, as did extensive touring. In 1981 he had his biggest hit with the song
"We’re in This Love Together," which reached No. 15 on the Billboard pop
singles
chart.
Al Jarreau - We're In This Love Together (Official Video) Video by RHINO
He won his first Grammy in 1978, for best jazz vocal performance, for his album
"Look to the Rainbow."
He won his last in 2007, for best traditional R&B vocal performance; the award
was shared by Mr. Jarreau, George Benson and Jill Scott for their collaborative
performance "God Bless the Child."
In between, in 1982, Mr. Jarreau earned a Grammy for best pop vocal performance
by a male artist for the title track of his album “Breakin’ Away.” That year,
he
also received the Grammy for best jazz vocal performance by a male artist, for
his version of Dave Brubeck’s "Blue Rondo à la Turk," from the same album.
His other Grammys came in 1979 for the album "All Fly Home" (in the jazz
category), and in 1993 for the album "Heaven and Earth" (in R&B). A seventh
Grammy came in 1981 for "In Harmony: A Sesame Street Record," a compilation
children’s album that featured a range of artists.
Among Mr. Jarreau’s best-known recordings was the theme song for the
long-running television series "Moonlighting," for which he wrote the lyrics to
Lee Holdridge’s music.
He appeared on Broadway as a replacement in the role of the Teen Angel in the
1994 revival of “Grease.”
Mr. Jarreau’s first marriage, to Phyllis Hall, ended in divorce. He is survived
by his wife, the former Susan Player; a son, Ryan; two brothers, Marshall and
Appie; and a sister, Rose Marie Freeman.
Mr. Jarreau canceled a number of concert dates in 2010 after experiencing heart
and breathing problems during a European tour. He was hospitalized for 11 days
but resumed his touring schedule after his release, and had continued to
perform
until recently.
Shortly after his 2010 hospitalization, he said in an interview that his health
problems had not been as serious as reports suggested, but joked that he
appreciated the attention they received in the media because it proved that he
was a celebrity. "I figured," he said, "Yeah, maybe I have arrived."
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