Two-time Grammy-winning drummer John DeJohnette died at 83 this Sunday. DeJohnette’s works include working with Miles Davis on his landmark album “Bitches Brew” along with Sunny Rollins, Charles Lloyd, Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, and Joe Henderson.
Jack DeJohnette, the renowned jazz drummer who played in Miles Davis’ electric period band, passed this Sunday at the age of 83.
His personal assistant confirmed he died of congestive heart failure. “He was very comfortable and at peace,” his assistant said. According to his assistant, he was surrounded by his wife, family, and friends at the time of death. “He was an NEA Jazz Master, and his legacy will go on for generations,” his assistant added.
Jack started learning the piano at a tender age of just 4 years in Chicago, where he was born. He shifted to drums when he was 18. But that relatively late start didn’t stop him from creating a legacy. Be it when he got inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall Of Fame in 2007 or when he bagged two Grammys out of all eight he had been nominated for.
DeJohnette and Miles Davis’s “electric period”
After performing in groups led by saxophonists Jackie McLean, Stan Getz, and Joe Henderson, including a stint with Bill Evans’ trio, 1969 saw DeJohnette replace Tony Williams as the drummer in Miles Davis’ band.
Miles was ready to enter his “electric period” during this time. The band had Wayne Shorter on the saxophone, Chick Corea on keyboards, and Dave Holland on bass. They were called the “Lost Quintet” as though they played a now-iconic run of shows in Europe, but they did not have any studio albums together.
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More projects awaited DeJohnette up next as Davis explored jazz-rock sounds, with his drums being a part of the ensemble. This gave birth to the iconic 1970 album “Bitches Brew”. Davis’s jazz-funk LP “On The Corner” marked DeJohnette’s final recording with him.
“He was a big boxing fan, and he saw drums in jazz as having similar aspects.” – Jack DeJohnette on Davis
“It was great to play with Miles, because Miles loved the drums,” DeJohnette explained to Jazz.com in 2009. “Everything came from the drums. He liked boxing, he was a big boxing fan, and he saw drums in jazz as having similar aspects.”
After his tenure with Davis, DeJohnette worked with several Seventies groups, including Freddie Hubbard and Sonny Rollins. 1969’s “The DeJohnette Complex” was when he started working as a bandleader.
In 1990, Jack and Herbie Hancock, along with guitarist Pat Metheny and bassist Dave Holland, formed a quartet that toured across the 50-states. They released the live album Parallel Realities.
Jack DeJohnette also won two Grammys during his lifetime. This includes one in the New Age Album category for “Peace Time“ (2009) and another for Jazz Instrumental Album “Skyline” (2022). He was named a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master in 2012.
