Eddie Harris – saxophonist, vocalist, pianist, trumpeter, composer, and instrument inventor, was one of the underrated heroes of jazz. Born in 1934 in Chicago, he started his musical life as a singer in a Baptist church. Although he had a million seller record with his version of the movie theme Exodus on the album “Exodus to Jazz”, he never really “cashed in” as a major touring artist on the scale merited by his talent. Another key record was “Swiss Movement”, recorded live at the Montreux Festival with pianist Les McCann. He revealed to me that the smash hit title tune from that record was totally improvised on stage – Eddie, being a more than competent pianist, played looking at Les’ hands and thereby followed and anticipated the chord changes!
Eddie’s band in the 60’s featuring electric piano, electric saxophone and electronic effects such as wah-wah and phase shifter was a prime source of what became known as “jazz rock” and “jazz fusion”. Eddie told me that he had shared a bill with Miles Davis’ (then acoustic) band for a week at the Village Gate and shortly afterwards Miles incorporated both electric piano and electronic effects into his concept, made famous worldwide with his “Bitches Brew” double album.
I toured Europe for one memorable week with Eddie and long-time Thelonious Monk bassist Larry Gales. Aside from sharing great stories about jazz artists (when Larry and Eddie got to talking in the van it was really deep “you are there” Jazz History time!), Eddie showed himself to be a warm and caring individual. He told me that John Coltrane often called him for help with the mysteries of Nicolas Slonimsky’s monumental music treatise, “A Thesaurus of Musical Scales and Patterns”. He said that Coltrane liked to practice saxophone with him because “he liked my time”. Ever curious about many musical styles, Eddie went to Paris to study at the National Conservatory. His command of the tenor sax was so unusual that some professors knocked on the door of the room where he was practicing to ask Eddie what fingering he used to be able to play 5 B flats on the horn. Eddie replied, “If you don’t know how to do that, then maybe I should be teaching here!”.
When we met for the first rehearsal, he asked me “what do you want to play?” I replied, “whatever you want, but we have to play Freedom Jazz Dance”. Eddie’s classic and eternally modern tune, covered by Miles on the “Miles Smiles” album and Miroslav Vitous on “Mountain in the Sky”, among countless other versions, is a ground-breaking study in intervallic composition – coupled with an infectious funk beat. I ended up recording the piece on a Japanese release with vocalists Norma Winstone and Mona Larsen, entitled “Freedom Jazz Dance”. I found out on the tour that not only could Eddie sing everything that he played on the sax, but that he could imitate many instruments with his voice – a technique used by Bobby McFerrin and Al Jarreau. In one of his vocal improvisations, he sang an entire drum solo, complete with low, medium, and high toms!
Modern guitar master John Scofield acknowledged Eddie’s mastery by calling him as featured sideman on his “Hand Jive” album. And he is one of the most widely sampled of jazzmen – by the likes of Jamiroquai and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Eddie was stylistically unclassifiable – recording funk, rhythm’n blues, bebop, bossa nova, latin jazz, avant garde, vocal numbers, and modern jazz. I will never forget him turning on the audiences with his humorous vocal tune “Eddie Who?” as well as the endless creative ideas that poured out of his sax night after night.
Eddie’s discography is wide – including over 70 titles as a leader. Standouts include: “The Electrifying Eddie Harris”, “Mean Greens”, “The Best of Eddie Harris”, “The Genius of Eddie Harris”, “Step Up with the Eddie Harris Quartet”, and co-leader sessions with Ellis Marsalis and John Klemmer. He patented numerous musical inventions that he created including the Varitone, which enabled the sax to play with a second octave doubling the line and a device which enabled the sax to sound like a 5-part sax section, as well as reed trumpets and saxophones, all of which he handcrafted at his home. Eddie revealed to me that he ghostwrote many Hollywood film scores that were credited to other composers. He also published seven books of his musical ideas and compositions. Always independent, always honest, always a trendsetter, Eddie Harris summed up his musical philosophy this way – “I’m not hung up on fads, for the simple reason that they stunt my growth”.