Herbie Mann • Sunbelt

Herbie Mann played a wide variety of music throughout his career. He became quite popular in the 1960s, but in the '70s became so immersed in pop and various types of world music that he seemed lost to jazz. However, Mann never lost his ability to improvise creatively as his later recordings attest.

Herbie Mann began on clarinet when he was nine but was soon also playing flute and tenor. After serving in the Army, he was with Mat Mathews' Quintet (1953-1954) and then started working and recording as a leader. During 1954-1958 Mann stuck mostly to playing bop, sometimes collaborating with such players as Phil Woods, Buddy Collette, Sam Most, Bobby Jaspar, and Charlie Rouse. He doubled on cool-toned tenor and was one of the few jazz musicians in the '50s who recorded on bass clarinet; he also recorded a full album in 1957 (for Savoy) of unaccompanied flute.

After spending time playing and writing music for television, Mann formed his Afro-Jazz Sextet, in 1959, a group using several percussionists, vibes (either Johnny Rae, Hagood Hardy, or Dave Pike) and the leader's flute. He toured Africa (1960) and Brazil (1961), had a hit with "Comin' Home Baby," and recorded with Bill Evans. The most popular jazz flutist during the era, Mann explored bossa nova (even recording in Brazil in 1962), incorporated music from many cultures (plus current pop tunes) into his repertoire, and had among his sidemen such top young musicians as Willie Bobo, Chick Corea (1965), Attila Zoller, and Roy Ayers; at the 1972 Newport Festival his sextet included David Newman and Sonny Sharrock. By then Mann had been a producer at Embroyo (a subsidiary of Atlantic) for three years and was frequently stretching his music outside of jazz. As the '70s advanced, Mann became much more involved in rock, pop, reggae, and even disco. After leaving Atlantic at the end of the '70s, Mann had his own label for awhile and gradually came back to jazz. He recorded for Chesky, made a record with Dave Valentin, and in the '90s founded the Kokopelli label on which before breaking away in 1996, he was free to pursue his wide range of musical interests. Through the years, he recorded as a leader for Bethlehem, Prestige, Epic, Riverside, Savoy, Mode, New Jazz, Chesky, Kokopelli, and most significantly Atlantic. He passed away on July 1, 2003, following an extended battle with prostate cancer. His last record was 2004's posthumously released Beyond Brooklyn for Telarc. ~ Scott Yanow

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Herbie Mann tocó una gran variedad de música a lo largo de su carrera. Llegó a ser muy popular en los años 60, pero en los 70 se sumergió tanto en el pop y en varios tipos de música del mundo que parecía perdido en el jazz. Sin embargo, Mann nunca perdió su capacidad de improvisación creativa, como atestiguan sus últimas grabaciones.

Herbie Mann empezó a tocar el clarinete a los nueve años, pero pronto tocó también la flauta y el tenor. Tras servir en el ejército, formó parte del Quinteto de Mat Mathews (1953-1954) y luego comenzó a trabajar y grabar como líder. Entre 1954 y 1958 Mann se dedicó principalmente a tocar bop, colaborando a veces con músicos como Phil Woods, Buddy Collette, Sam Most, Bobby Jaspar y Charlie Rouse. Hizo doblete con el tenor de tono frío y fue uno de los pocos músicos de jazz de los años 50 que grabó con clarinete bajo; también grabó un álbum completo en 1957 (para Savoy) de flauta sin acompañamiento.

Después de pasar un tiempo tocando y escribiendo música para la televisión, Mann formó su Afro-Jazz Sextet, en 1959, un grupo que utilizaba varios percusionistas, vibras (ya sea Johnny Rae, Hagood Hardy o Dave Pike) y la flauta del líder. Realizó una gira por África (1960) y Brasil (1961), tuvo un éxito con "Comin' Home Baby" y grabó con Bill Evans. El flautista de jazz más popular de la época, Mann exploró la bossa nova (incluso grabó en Brasil en 1962), incorporó a su repertorio música de muchas culturas (además de melodías pop actuales) y tuvo entre sus acompañantes a jóvenes músicos de primera fila como Willie Bobo, Chick Corea (1965), Attila Zoller y Roy Ayers; en el Festival de Newport de 1972 su sexteto incluía a David Newman y Sonny Sharrock. Para entonces, Mann llevaba tres años como productor en Embroyo (una filial de Atlantic) y ampliaba con frecuencia su música fuera del jazz. A medida que avanzaban los años 70, Mann se involucró mucho más en el rock, el pop, el reggae e incluso la música disco. Tras dejar Atlantic a finales de los 70, Mann tuvo su propio sello durante un tiempo y volvió gradualmente al jazz. Grabó para Chesky, grabó un disco con Dave Valentin y, en los años 90, fundó el sello Kokopelli, en el que, antes de desvincularse en 1996, tuvo libertad para dedicarse a su amplia gama de intereses musicales. A lo largo de los años, grabó como líder para Bethlehem, Prestige, Epic, Riverside, Savoy, Mode, New Jazz, Chesky, Kokopelli y, sobre todo, Atlantic. Falleció el 1 de julio de 2003, tras una larga batalla contra el cáncer de próstata. Su último disco fue el póstumo Beyond Brooklyn, publicado en 2004 para Telarc. ~ Scott Yanow

Personnel Includes:
Herbie Mann - Flutes,Tenor Saxophone,Whistler,Producer
Claudio Roditi - Trumpet,Valve Trombone
Jeff Mironov - Guitar
Richard Tee - Acoustic & Electric Piano
Amaury Tristao - Acoustic Guitar
Barry Rogers - Trombone
Dom Salvador - Electric Piano
Frank Gravis - Bass
Roy Ayers - Vibes
Steve Jordan ,Leroy Clouden ,Steve Gadd & Portinho - Drums
Rafael Cruz - Percussion
The Girls of Bahia - Voices
Cengiz Yaltkaya - Assistant Producer


Tracks:
Side One
A1. Watermelon Man
A2. The Closer I Get To You
A3. What Would You Do?

Side Two
B1. Killian
B2. Dona Palmeira (Madame Palm Tree)
B3. Let's Stay Together
B4. Sunbelt — Mulher Rendeira (Weaver Woman)

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