Lennie Niehaus R.I.P.

[ghost of miles]

A member of the Jazz West Coast listserv is reporting that Lennie Niehaus has passed away at the age of 91.

[sidewinder]

Sorry to hear this, that is very sad. Good long and productive life though. I have good memories of seeing him leading an octet of his own arrangements though. Great times - May he RIP.

Edited June 1, 2020 by sidewinder

[clifford_thornton]

Bummer. 91 is a heck of a run indeed.

[BillF]

Wow! A bit of a giant in his way.

Recall Claxton's photos of a cool Niehaus which I first saw in 1961. And still listening to his octets, quintets, etc, not to mention "Bird".

[J.A.W.]

Sad news.

[Peter Friedman]

I am sorry to hear that sad news. Two recollections I have of Lennie Niehaus. I was a Freshman at Michigan State University when the Stan Kenton Band came to Lansing,MI for a one nighter.I made sure I was there right in front. Lennie was in the band along with Charlie Mariano, Bill Perkins, Sam Noto, Mel Lewis and others I don't recall.

Much more recently (?), I saw Lennie at a Ken Poston jazz event in Los Angeles. Not sure what year, but it had to be roughly 15 years ago.

Always loved Lennie's small group recordings on Contemporary , and his one on Mercury. His 2 Fresh Sound records from 1989 and 1997 were good, but not at the level of the earlier ones on Contemporary

[jazzcorner]

In memoriam Lennie Niehaus

Edited June 1, 2020 by jazzcorner

[sgcim]

Sad news to hear. All his arrangements were solid. Eastwood used him to compose most of his soundtracks. RIP..

[Bluesnik]

20 hours ago, sgcim said:

Eastwood used him to compose most of his soundtracks.

I read somewhere some time ago that they had met in the Army.

[BillF]

29 minutes ago, Bluesnik said:

I read somewhere some time ago that they had met in the Army.

Yes indeed. Read today's Jazzwax for a comprehensive account of Niehaus' contributions to the music.

https://www.jazzwax.com/

[sgcim]

48 minutes ago, Bluesnik said:

I read somewhere some time ago that they had met in the Army.

That's interesting; I thought they had just met during Eastwood's research for the "Bird" film.

[mikeweil]

I knew his name, but the first of his music I heard was in a movie, Under The Volcano, and I was impressed. I should get some more of his recordings. R.I.P.

[Patrick]

Thanks for posting the jazzwax link. That was an interesting (and thorough) read. I have and enjoy two of his Contemporary sides, Vol. 1: The Quintets and Zounds!

[Bluesnik]

23 hours ago, BillF said:

Read today's Jazzwax for a comprehensive account of Niehaus' contributions to the music.

Thanks for the link. And I already know about Jazzwax. It's usually full of interesting information. Plus I have read a couple of Mark Myers books. I particularly remember Why jazz happened, which analyzes possible inluences on the development of whole branches of jazz. Thus, for example, claiming that the wide network of Californian freeways and the wide landscapes possibly gave birth to West Coast Jazz. A genre I like a lot, though it has often been maligned.

[gmonahan]

On 6/2/2020 at 11:36 AM, BillF said:

Yes indeed. Read today's Jazzwax for a comprehensive account of Niehaus' contributions to the music.

https://www.jazzwax.com/

Thanks from me also for that link. I really enjoyed reading the interview. It was astonishing what he could remember!

 

 

 

gregmo

[JSngry]

Condolences to his brother Arr.