Charlie Haden

Charles Edward Haden (born August 6, 1937, Shenandoah, Iowa) is an American jazz musician. He is a double bassist, probably best known for his long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. Haden is also known for his signature lyrical bass lines.

Early life
Haden was born in Shenandoah, Iowa, and raised in a musical family, which often performed together on the radio playing country music and American folk songs. Haden made his professional debut as a singer when he was two years old, and continued singing with his family until he contracted a mild form of polio when he was 15. The polio damaged his throat muscles and vocal cords, and as a result, Haden was unable to control his pitch while singing. A few years before contracting polio, Haden had become interested in jazz, and began playing his older brother's double bass. Eventually he set his sights on Los Angeles, and to save money for the trip took a job as house bassist for ABC-TV's Ozark Jubilee in Springfield, Missouri.

Early period
Haden moved to Los Angeles in 1957. His first recordings were made that year with Paul Bley. He began recording with Ornette Coleman shortly after, including the important The Shape of Jazz to Come. Haden's folk-influenced style complemented the microtonal, Texas blues elements of Coleman. Haden would enter Keith Jarrett's trio and his 'American Quartet' from 1967 to 1976 with Paul Motian and Dewey Redman. He also played in the collective Old and New Dreams.

He went on to lead the Liberation Music Orchestra in the 1970s. Largely arranged by Carla Bley, their music was very experimental, exploring the realms of free jazz and political music at the same time; the first album focused specifically on the Spanish Civil War. The LMO has had a shifting membership comprising a "who's who" of jazz instrumentalists. Through Bley's arranging, they have concentrated on a wide palette of brass instruments, including tuba, French horn, and trombone, in addition to the more standard trumpet and reed section. The LMO's 1982 album The Ballad of the Fallen commented again on the Spanish Civil War as well as the political instability and United States involvement in Latin America. In 1990, the orchestra returned with Dream Keeper, a more heterogeneous album which drew on American gospel music and South African music to comment on politics in Latin America and apartheid in South Africa. The album featured choral contributions from the Oakland Youth Chorus.

In 1971, while on tour with the Ornette Coleman Quartet in Portugal (at the time under a fascist dictatorship), Haden decided to dedicate a performance of his "Song for Che" to the anticolonialist revolutionaries in the Portuguese colonies of Mozambique, Angola, and Guinea-Bissau. The following day, he was detained at Lisbon Airport, jailed, and interrogated by the DGS (the Portuguese secret police). He was promptly released the same day after the intervention of the American cultural attaché, though he was later interviewed by the FBI in the United States about his choice of dedication.

Later period
Thematic exploration of genres not typically considered to be jazz standards became one of the signature approaches of the Charlie Haden Quartet West. Started in 1987, the Quartet consists of Ernie Watts on sax, Alan Broadbent on piano, and Larance Marable on drums. Quartet West's albums feature lush, romantic arrangements by Broadbent, often with strings, of music from the 1930s and 1940s, often music associated with films of that period.

Haden has also performed and recorded in a number of duos with pianists including Hank Jones (with whom he recorded Steal Away, and Come Sunday, both collections of American folk and gospel tunes), Kenny Barron, and Denny Zeitlin. He has also recorded two albums of Latin music with the Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Nocturne and Land of the Sun.

A brief collaboration with Joe Henderson and Al Foster, players not normally associated with Haden or his immediate circle, showcased Haden's playing in a more hard-driving jazz context.

In 1989, Haden was featured at the Montreal Jazz Festival, and performed in concert every night of the festival, with different combos and bands. Each of these events was recorded, and most have been released in the series The Montreal Tapes.

In late 1996, he collaborated with Pat Metheny on the album Beyond the Missouri Sky (Short Stories), exploring the music that influenced them in their childhood experiences in Missouri with what they call "contemporary impressionistic Americana". Haden was awarded his first Grammy award for the album, for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance.

Haden reconvened the Liberation Music Orchestra in 2005, with largely new members, for the album Not In Our Name, released on Verve Records. The album dealt primarily with the contemporary political situation in the United States. Haden's 2008 release, Rambling Boy, features several members of his immediate family, along with Béla Fleck, Pat Metheny, Elvis Costello, and others. The album, released on 23 September 2008, hearkens back to his days of playing Americana and bluegrass music with his parents on their radio show. A concert tour with Quartet West (with a new drummer) took place in the late summer of that year.

In 2012, Haden was a recipient of the NEA Jazz Masters Award.

Family
His son Josh Haden is a bass guitarist and singer. He recorded with 1980s punk band Trecherous Jaywalkers (who recorded for SST Records), and is presently a member of Spain. His triplet daughters, Petra, Tanya and Rachel Haden, are all musicians. Petra and Rachel were in that dog.; Petra was a member of progressive folk group The Decemberists, Rachel played in the rock band The Rentals, and Tanya is married to actor Jack Black.

As leader



 * As Long as There's Music with Hampton Hawes (Artists House, 1976 [1978])
 * Closeness (Horizon, 1976) with Ornette Coleman, Keith Jarrett, Alice Coltrane & Paul Motian
 * The Golden Number (Horizon, 1977)
 * Gitane with Christian Escoude (All Life, 1978)
 * Magico with Jan Garbarek and Egberto Gismonti (ECM, 1979)
 * Folk Songs with Jan Garbarek and Egberto Gismonti (ECM, 1979)
 * Time Remembers One Time Once with Denny Zeitlin (ECM, 1981)
 * Etudes with Geri Allen and Paul Motian (Soul Note, 1987)
 * Silence with Chet Baker, Enrico Pieranunzi and Billy Higgins (Soul Note, 1987)
 * First Song with Enrico Pieranunzi and Billy Higgins (Soul Note, 1990 [1992])
 * In Montreal with Egberto Gismonti (ECM, 1989 [2001])
 * Dialogues with Carlos Paredes (Antilles, 1990)
 * Steal Away with Hank Jones (Verve, 1995)
 * Night and the City with Kenny Barron (Verve, 1996)
 * Beyond the Missouri Sky (Short Stories) with Pat Metheny (Verve, 1997)
 * None But the Lonely Heart with Chris Anderson (Naim, 1997)
 * Nocturne with Gonzalo Rubalcaba (Verve, 2001)
 * American Dreams with Michael Brecker (Verve, 2002)
 * Land of the Sun with Gonzalo Rubalcaba (Verve, 2004)
 * Nightfall with John Taylor (Naim, 2004)
 * Heartplay with Antonio Forcione (Naim, 2006)
 * Rambling Boy (Decca, 2008)

The Montreal Tapes
 * The Montreal Tapes: Tribute to Joe Henderson (Verve, 1989 [2004])
 * The Montreal Tapes: with Geri Allen and Paul Motian (Verve 1989 [1997])
 * The Montreal Tapes: with Don Cherry and Ed Blackwell (Verve, 1989 [1994])
 * The Montreal Tapes: with Gonzalo Rubalcaba and Paul Motian (Verve 1989 [1997])
 * The Montreal Tapes: with Paul Bley and Paul Motian (Verve, 1989 [1994])
 * The Montreal Tapes: Liberation Music Orchestra (Verve, 1989 [1997])

With the Liberation Music Orchestra
 * Liberation Music Orchestra (Impulse!, 1969)
 * The Ballad of the Fallen (ECM, 1982)
 * Dream Keeper (Blue Note, 1990)
 * Not in Our Name (Verve, 2005)

With Old and New Dreams
 * Old and New Dreams (Black Saint, 1976)
 * Old and New Dreams (ECM, 1979)
 * Playing (ECM, 1980)
 * A Tribute to Blackwell (Black Saint, 1987)

With Quartet West
 * Quartet West (Verve, 1986)
 * In Angel City (Verve, 1988)
 * The Private Collection (Naim, 1987-88 [2007])
 * Haunted Heart (Verve, 1991)
 * Always Say Goodbye (Verve, 1993)
 * Now Is the Hour (Verve, 1996)
 * The Art of the Song (Verve, 1999)
 * Sophisticated Ladies (EmArcy, 2010)

As sideman
With Geri Allen With Ray Anderson With Ginger Baker With Gato Barbieri With Kenny Barron With Beck With Carla Bley With Paul Bley With Jane Ira Bloom With Dusan Bogdanovich With Charles Brackeen With Michael Brecker With Gavin Bryars With Ruth Cameron With Don Cherry With Ornette Coleman With Alice Coltrane With John Coltrane With James Cotton With Robert Downey Jr. With Dizzy Gillespie With Tom Harrell With Joe Henderson With Fred Hersch With Mark Isham With Keith Jarrett With Rickie Lee Jones '''With Lee Konitz With David Liebman With Abbey Lincoln With Joe Lovano With Michael Mantler With Harvey Mason With John McLaughlin With Helen Merrill With Pat Metheny With Mingus Dynasty With Paul Motian With Bheki Mseleku With Yoko Ono With Joe Pass With Art Pepper With Enrico Pieranunzi With Dewey Redman With Joshua Redman With Gonzalo Rubalcaba With Roswell Rudd With Pee Wee Russell and Henry "Red" Allen With Dino Saluzzi With David Sanborn With John Scofield With Archie Shepp With Alan Shorter With Wadada Leo Smith With Ringo Starr With Masahiko Togashi With Denny Zeitlin
 * In the Year of the Dragon (JMT, 1989)
 * Segments (DIW, 1989)
 * Live at the Village Vanguard (DIW, 1990)
 * Every One of Us (Gramavision, 1992)
 * Going Back Home (Atlantic, 1994)
 * Falling off the Roof (Atlantic, 1996)
 * The Third World (Flying Dutchman, 1969)
 * Wanton Spirit with Roy Haynes (1994)
 * Odelay (DGC, 1994)
 * Escalator Over The Hill (JCOA, 1971)
 * Musique Mecanique (Watt, 1978)
 * Live at the Hillcrest Club (Inner City, 1958)
 * Memoirs (Soul Note, 1990)
 * Mighty Lights (Enja, 1982)
 * Early to Rise (Palo Alto, 1983)
 * Rhythm X (Strata East, 1968)
 * Michael Brecker (Impulse!, 1987)
 * Don't Try This at Home (Impulse!, 1988)
 * Nearness of You: The Ballad Book (Verve, 2000)
 * Farewell to Philosophy (Point, 1995)
 * First Songs (Polygram, 1997)
 * Road House (Verve, 1999)
 * Brown Rice (EMI, 1975)
 * Art Deco (A&M, 1988)
 * The Shape of Jazz to Come (Atlantic, 1959)
 * Change of the Century (Atlantic, 1959)
 * This Is Our Music (Atlantic, 1960)
 * The Art of the Improvisers (Atlantic, 1959-60 [1970])
 * To Whom Who Keeps a Record (Atlantic, 1959-60 [1975])
 * Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation (Atlantic, 1961)
 * Friends and Neighbors: Live at Prince Street (Flying Dutchman, 1970)
 * Science Fiction (Columbia, 1971)
 * Broken Shadows (Columbia, 1971)
 * Soapsuds, Soapsuds (Artists House, 1971)
 * Journey in Satchidananda (Impulse!, 1971) - on one track, "Isis and Osiris"
 * John Coltrane: Infinity (Impulse!, 1972)
 * Eternity (Warner Bros., 1975)
 * Translinear Light (Impulse!, 2004)
 * ''The Avant-Garde with Don Cherry (Atlantic, 1960)
 * Deep in the Blues (Verve, 1995)
 * The Futurist (Sony, 2004)
 * Rhythmstick (1990)
 * Form (Contemporary, 1990)
 * The Elements (Milestone, 1973)
 * An Evening with Joe Henderson (Red, 1987)
 * The Standard Joe (Red, 1991)
 * Sarabande (Sunnyside, 1986)
 * Songs My Children Taught Me (Windham Hill, 1991)
 * Life Between The Exit Signs (Votrex, 1967)
 * Somewhere Before (Atlantic, 1968)
 * The Mourning of a Star (Atlantic, 1971)
 * El Juicio (The Judgement) (Atlantic, 1971)
 * Birth (Atlantic, 1971)
 * Expectations (Columbia, 1971)
 * Fort Yawuh (Impulse!, 1973)
 * Treasure Island (Impulse!, 1974)
 * Death and the Flower (Impulse!, 1974)
 * Backhand (Impulse!, 1974)
 * Arbour Zena (ECM, 1975)
 * Mysteries (Impulse!, 1975)
 * Shades (Impulse!, 1976)
 * The Survivors' Suite (ECM, 1977)
 * Byablue (Impulse!, 1977)
 * Bop-Be (Impulse!, 1977)
 * Eyes of the Heart (ECM, 1979)
 * Jasmine (ECM, 2010)
 * Pop Pop (Geffen, 1991)
 * Alone Together (Blue Note, 1996) with Brad Meldhau
 * Another Shade of Blue (Blue Note, 1997)
 * Live at Birdland (ECM, 2011) with Brad Mehldau & Paul Motian
 * Sweet Hands (Horizon, 1975)
 * The World Is Falling Down (Verve, 1990)
 * You Gotta Pay the Band (Verve, 1991)
 * A Turtle's Dream (Verve, 1994)
 * Universal Language (Blue Note, 1992)
 * The Jazz Composer's Orchestra (JCOA, 1968)
 * With All My Heart (RCA, 2004)
 * My Goal's Beyond (1970)
 * You and the Night and the Music (1998)
 * 80/81 (ECM, 1980)
 * Rejoicing (ECM, 1983)
 * Song X with Ornette Coleman (Geffen, 1985)
 * Secret Story (Geffen, 1992)
 * Chair in the Sky (Elektra, 1980)
 * Conception Vessel (ECM, 1972)
 * On Broadway Volume 1 (JMT, 1988)
 * On Broadway Volume 2 (JMT, 1989)
 * On Broadway Volume 3 (JMT, 1991)
 * Star Seeding (Polygram, 1995)
 * Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band (1970)
 * 12-string Guitar Movie Themes (World Pacific, 1964)
 * Living Legend (Contemporary, 1975)
 * So In Love (Artists House, 1979)
 * Art 'N' Zoot with Zoot Sims (Pablo, 1981)
 * Fellini Jazz (Cam Jazz, 2003)
 * Special Encounter (Cam Jazz, 2005)
 * Soundsigns (Galaxy, 1978)
 * Wish (Warner Bros., 1993)
 * Discovery - Live at Montreux (Blue Note, 1990)
 * The Blessing (Blue Note, 1991)
 * Suite 4 Y 20 (Blue Note, 1992)
 * Imagine (Blue Note, 1994)
 * Everywhere (Impulse!, 1966)
 * The College Concert (Impulse!, 1966)
 * Once Upon a Time - Far Away in the South (ECM, 1985)
 * Another Hand (Elektra, 1991)
 * Time on My Hands (Blue Note, 1989)
 * Grace Under Pressure (Blue Note, 1991)
 *  Mama Too Tight (Impulse!, 1967)
 * Orgasm (Verve, 1968)
 * Divine Love (ECM, 1978)
 * Ringo Rama (2003)
 * Session In Paris (Take One, 1979)
 * Carnival (Columbia, 1964)
 * Live at the Trident (Columbia, 1965)
 * Zeitgeist (Columbia, 1967)
 * Tidal Wave (Quicksilver, 1983)