Frank Strozier

Frank Strozier, a powerful and dynamic player on the otherwise softer instruments of alto saxophone and flute, was born in 1937 and came of age in Memphis the 1950's among an influential group of young musicians who combined the soulful Southern rhythms with the intricacies and sophistication of bebop to create a style and sound that has a lasting impact in the development of modern jazz.

Strozier made his first mark with the “MJT + 3" group. He also played with Memphis buddies such as Booker Little, George Coleman, and Harold Mabern, among others in the New York area. Frank was in the Roy Haynes group for a time. In the mid-60's he moved to California, working with people like Shelley Manne and Oliver Nelson. He briefly was in the famous Miles Davis organization.

Strozier returned to be a prominent player on the New York jazz scene in the 1970's and early 1980's. But thereafter he retired from music and became a science teacher in Yonkers, still occasionally sighted the piano in the Westchester area.

The radio show will present a retrospective of his various recordings, which will impress you with his power, lyricism, and personal voice, a strong musician who should be wider known.

originally broadcast June 2, 2013