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Balancing a career in psychiatry with his love of forward-thinking post-bop and fusion, trumpeter
Eddie Henderson has cut a distinctive path in modern jazz. Mentored by
Miles Davis in his teens,
Henderson emerged as an original member of
Herbie Hancock's
Mwandishi band in the 1970s, appearing on the landmark jazz-funk album
Sextant. From there, he embarked on a solo career, issuing several of his own cross-pollinated funk and disco-infused albums for Capricorn, Blue Note, and Capitol Records. These albums, and especially his breakthrough U.K. hit "Prance On" from 1978's
Mahal, were influential touchstones for later hip-hop, electronic, and acid jazz musicians. A licensed psychiatrist with a degree from Howard University,
Henderson often split his time playing jazz and working in medicine. From the late '80s onward, he has remained a vital presence on the New York City jazz scene, releasing a bevy of well-regarded acoustic jazz albums like 2010's For All We Know and working as a member of the hard bop supergroup
the Cookers.
Born
Edward Jackson Henderson in New York City in 1940,
Henderson grew up in a family steeped in the jazz tradition. His mother was a professional dancer at the Cotton Club, while his father was a member of the legendary
Charioteers vocal group. Encouraged to play music, he first picked up the trumpet around age nine, and famously received an early lesson from
Louis Armstrong, whom his mother knew from her days in Harlem. During his teens,
Henderson moved to San Francisco with his family, where he continued to progress as a musician. A driven, highly disciplined student while in high school, he balanced his music practice, with studying, playing sports, and participating in competitive figure skating. It was during these years that he first met his longtime idol
Miles Davis, who stayed at his parent's house when playing in the Bay Area. From the late '50s on,
Davis was a heavy influence on the trumpeter's approach to jazz. It was also through
Davis that
Henderson first met future boss and bandmate
Herbie Hancock.
After a stint in the Air Force,
Henderson enrolled for medical school, earning his undergraduate degree at the University of California, and later finishing his medical studies at Howard University where he graduated in 1968. During his time at Howard, he would often spend the weekends driving from Washington, D.C. to New York to study with
Freddie Hubbard and
Lee Morgan. After earning his M.D., he then returned to the Bay Area where he served out a psychiatric residency and played jazz in his off-hours. While there, he was asked to join
Herbie Hancock's innovative funk and fusion-based
Mwandishi ensemble for a week-long run of shows in San Francisco. This led to a full-time appointment, and from 1970 to 1973,
Henderson toured and recorded with the group, appearing on the influential 1973 album
Sextant.
As a leader,
Henderson debuted with two well-regarded albums on the independent Capricorn Records label, 1973's Realization and Inside Out. Produced by
Skip Drinkwater, whom
Henderson met via his work with guitarist
Norman Connors, these albums essentially featured the
Mwandishi band with
Hancock on electric keyboards,
Bennie Maupin on reeds,
Patrick Gleeson on synthesizers,
Buster Williams on bass, and
Billy Hart on drums. There were also contributions from drummers
Lenny White and
Eric Gravatt, as well as future-
Headhunters percussionist
Bill Summers. Both albums showcased a funky, avant-garde, electric fusion style similar to
Henderson's previous work with
Hancock. More
Drinkwater-produced albums followed on Blue Note, including the psychedelia-dipped
Sunburst with
George Duke and 1976's
Heritage, which featured a young
Patrice Rushen on keyboards, sax, and flute.
Around this time,
Henderson signed with Capitol Records and released three albums beginning with 1977's
Drinkwater-produced
Comin' Through. These productions built upon his previous efforts, but found him moving in even more of a cross-over direction with a less spacy, more dance-oriented approach to jazz-funk. In 1978, he scored a U.K. hit with the disco-infused "Prance On," off
Mahal. His Capitol era culminated in 1979's equally disco- and soul-leaning Runnin' to Your Love. Although somewhat dismissed as "commercial" in the decades following the fusion era of jazz,
Henderson's electric recordings enjoyed great popularity with hip-hop and electronic musicians, and are often cited (along with
Miles Davis' and
Herbie Hancock's work) as influential on the development of trip-hop and acid jazz.
Moving to New York full-time in 1985,
Henderson's solo recordings slowed somewhat as he worked increasingly as a physician. Nonetheless, he stayed active, appearing on albums with
Billy Hart,
Leon Thomas,
Gary Bartz, and others. With 1989's Phantoms, he returned to regular recording with a series of albums that found him embracing an acoustic hard bop sound. He presence continued to grow throughout the '90s with harmonically nuanced, hard-swinging albums like 1994's Inspiration, 1995's Dark Shadows, and 1999's
Reemergence. These albums still found
Henderson indebted to
Davis, but displaying his own brand aggressive, post-bop lyricism. It was an approach that only deepened as he entered his sixties, delivering such albums as 2004's Time and Spaces, 2006's Precious Moment, and 2010's For All We Know.
Along with his own work in the 2000s,
Henderson also played with the
Mingus Big Band,
Benny Golson, and others. He worked regularly with
Billy Harper, eventually joining the saxophonist in the all-star ensemble
the Cookers alongside longtime associates drummer
Billy Hart, pianist
George Cables, and bassist
Cecil McBee, as well as trumpeter
David Weiss and saxophonist
Donald Harrison. A regular at New York's Smoke nightclub,
Henderson has released several albums for their in-house label, starting with 2015's
Collective Portrait. That same year, he celebrated his work with
Hancock on 2016's Infinite Spirit: Revisiting Music of the Mwandishi Band. In 2018, he delivered his second Smoke Sessions date with
Be Cool, featuring
Cookers bandmate
Harrison, pianist
Kenny Barron, bassist
Essiet Essiet, and drummer
Mike Clark. ~ Matt Collar