In 1994, I was at an event with my parents at Weaver High School in Hartford, CT, and met Jackie McLean for the first time. He insisted on teaching me how to properly eat conch and other “Island foods.” I agreed. I also had no idea who he was, no clue as to his profession, and certainly no inkling that he was a master of the alto sax.
McLean played with the greats – Monk, Davis, Parker, Rollins, etc. – and though suffered greatly with addiction to heroin, shared his love and dedication to jazz through two important outlets. Both played a roll in leading to our meeting. He taught at The Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford (now home to the Jackie McLean Institute of jazz). With his wife Dolly, he also founded the Artists Collective Inc. in the city, an organization dedicated to preserving the arts and culture of the African Diaspora and offering education in music theater and visual arts.
It was through the Artists Collective, and more aptly my parents involvement with the organization, that I became familiar with Mr. McLean. Through my high school years I’d watch him perform at University of Hartford, often with a star studded cast ranging from Roy Hargrove to Bobby Hutcherson. He also brought Roy Haynes to the city, as well as youngsters like Ravi Coltrane. Later in his life he’d play most frequently at the Iridium Room in New York, the band lead primarily by son Rene. The memory of those nights are some of my best in jazz. Sitting with Dolly and hearing stories of Jackie’s Harlem years between the sets were really special moments.
I’m remembering those times with Jackie today because I’ve just had a chat with my grandfather who recalled his own moments with McLean. For each of the men in the family who spent time with McLean (my mother’s father, my father, and myself), the memories are the same and the very notion that we were able to interact so frequently with such a remarkable musician continually excites.
I’ll leave this entry with A Fickle Sonance recorded in 1961 with Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, Sonny Clark on piano, Butch Warren on bass, and Billy Higgins hitting the drums.
