Denis Charles

Denis Alphonso Charles^[1] (December 4, 1933^[2] – March 26, 1998)^[3] was a jazz drummer.

Biography

Charles was born in St. Croix, Virgin Islands,^[2] and first played bongos at age seven with local ensembles in the Virgin Islands. In 1945, he moved to New York, and gigged frequently around town.^[2] In 1954, he began working with Cecil Taylor, and the pair collaborated until 1958.^[2] Following this he played with Steve Lacy, Gil Evans, and Jimmy Giuffre. He befriended Ed Blackwell, and the two influenced each other.

He recorded with Sonny Rollins on a calypso-tinged set, and then returned to time with Lacy, with whom he played until 1964.^[2] He worked with Archie Shepp and Don Cherry in 1967,^[2] but heroin addiction saw him leave the record industry until 1971.^[2] In the 1970s and 1980s, he played regularly on the New York jazz scene with Frank Lowe, David Murray, Charles Tyler, Billy Bang, and others,^[2] and also played funk, rock, and traditional Caribbean music. He released three discs as a leader between 1989 and 1992, and died of pneumonia in his sleep in New York in 1998.^[4]

Charles died four days after a five-week European tour with the Borgmann/Morris/Charles (BMC) Trio, with Wilber Morris and Thomas Borgmann. His last concert with this trio took place at the Berlin's Willy-Brandt-Haus. With the BMC Trio he recorded some albums in his last two years. A fifth CD was released after he died: The Last Concert - Dankeschön, Silkheart Records, 1999.

In 2002, Veronique Doumbe released a film documentary, Denis A. Charles: An Interrupted Conversation, about the life of Charles.^[5]

Discography

As leader or co-leader

• 1989: Queen Mary (Silkheart)
• 1991: Captain of the Deep (Eremite)
• 1992: A Scream for Charles Tyler (Adda)
• 1998: Drum Talk (Wobbly Rail) with Susie Ibarra

As sideman

With Cecil Taylor

• 1956: Jazz Advance (Transition)
• 1958: At Newport (Verve)
• 1959: Looking Ahead! (Contemporary)
• 1959: Love for Sale (United Artists)
• 1959: In Transition (Blue Note)
• 1960: The World of Cecil Taylor (Candid)
• 1960: Air (Candid)
• 1961: Cell Walk for Celeste (Candid)
• 1961: Jumpin' Punkins (Candid)
• 1961: New York City R&B (Candid) with Buell Neidlinger

With Steve Lacy

• 1958: Soprano Sax (Prestige)
• 1963: School Days
• 1979: Capers (hat Hut)
• 1982: The Flame (Soul Note)

With Gil Evans

• 1959: Great Jazz Standards (World Pacific)

With Sonny Rollins

• 1962: What's New? (RCA Victor)

With Archie Shepp

• 1967: The Magic of Ju-Ju (Impulse!)

With Peter Kuhn

• 1979: Livin' Right (Big City)
• 1981: The Kill (Soul Note)

With Billy Bang

• 1981: Rainbow Gladiator (Soul Note)
• 1982: Untitled Gift (Anima)
• 1982: Invitation (Soul Note)
• 1982: Bangception (hat MUSICS, 1983); reissued as Bangception, Willisau 1982 (HatOLOGY, 1998)
• 1988: Valve No. 10 (Soul Note)
• 1996: Spirits Gathering (CIMP)

With Jemeel Moondoc

• 1981: Konstanze's Delight (Soul Note)
• 1981: We Don't (Eremite, issued 2003)
• 1986: Nostalgia in Times Square (Soul Note)

With Wilber Morris and Charles Tyler

• 1981: Collective Improvisations (Bleu Regard, 1994)

With The Jazz Doctors (Rafael Garrett, Frank Lowe, Billy Bang)

• 1983: Intensive Care (Cadillac)

With Rob Brown

• 1990: Breath Rhyme (Silkheart)

With William Parker

• 1980: Through Acceptance of the Mystery Peace (Centering)
• 1995: In Order to Survive (Black Saint)

With John Blum (pianist)

• 1998: Astrogeny (Eremite, 2005)

With Raphe Malik

• 1999: ConSequences (Eremite)

With Sirone

• 2005: Live (Atavistic)

References

External links

• Audio Recordings of WCUW Jazz Festivals - Jazz History Database

This page was last edited on 16 October 2023, at 18:41