Illinois Jacquet's Death

The saxophonist Illinois Jacquet died at the age of 81. Here is all you want to know, and more!

Biography - A Short Wiki

Tenor saxophonist who is recognized for his role in the song “Flying Home,” which featured the first R&B saxophone solo. He was also one of the few jazz artists to play the bassoon.

He was raised in a musical family; his father was a bandleader, his brother Russell played trumpet, and his other brother Linton was a drummer.

Quotes

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“The patterns of big-band music are smooth and classical. It’s got to be fresh. The brass section should crackle, like the sound of eggs being dropped into hot grease.” (Illinois Jacquet)

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“When I was 16 or 17 I heard the Count Basie band with Jo Jones and Lester Young and Herschel Evans and I couldn’t believe it. They were the greatest swing band. I really fell in love with that sound. Everybody danced!” (Illinois Jacquet)

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“People like to hear songs that they can dance to. Even if they’re sitting, they like being made to want to dance and move. By me being a dancer, I know how I’d dance at certain tempos. I was always good at it.” (Illinois Jacquet)

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“Hamp would ask me about tempos in the band: ‘Jacquet,’ he’d say, ‘knock off that tempo.’ A lot of jazz musicians didn’t prefer to play for dancers, which was their loss, really. But good jazz has always had that dance feel.” (Illinois Jacquet)

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“Their eagerness for the big-band music and their ability to grasp the essence of it made me realize that today’s generation has not been properly exposed to the big-band sound.” (Illinois Jacquet)