Joe Brazil

Joseph Brazil (August 25, 1927 – August 6, 2008) was an American jazz saxophonist and educator. Local musicians and touring acts performed in his basement. He taught jazz at Garfield High School, co-founded the Black Music curriculum at the University of Washington, and founded the Black Academy of Music in Seattle. He appeared on the albums Om by John Coltrane and Ubiquity by Roy Ayers.

Biography

Detroit (1927–1961)

Joseph Brazil was born August 25, 1927 in Detroit, Michigan. In 1951 he purchased a home in Detroit where he lived with his brother and mother. He built a bar in the basement and installed a baby grand piano. Jam sessions took place in his basement, with musicians such as trumpeter Donald Byrd, saxophonists Sonny Red and Brazil, pianist Barry Harris, bassist Doug Watkins, and drummer Frank Gant.[1] Tapes of saxophonist John Coltrane practicing were made at his house.[2] A tape of a jam session was recorded in his basement on September 25, 1958 with trumpeter Donald Towns, saxophonists Coltrane, Joe Henderson, Brazil, Red, pianist Hugh Lawson, bassist Ernie Farrow, and drummer Roy Brooks.[2] Euphonium player Kiane Zawadi (Bernard McKinney) and saxophonist Kenneth Winfrey lived down the street and often played at his house.[3] Coltrane met drummer George Goldsmith in his basement and once asked Goldsmith to substitute for drummer Elvin Jones.[4] Pianist Alice Coltrane met her first husband John Coltrane in his basement.[5]

Seattle (1961–2008)

Brazil moved to Seattle to work as a tool maker at Boeing in 1961. In 1965 performed with John Coltrane at the Penthouse and recorded on flute with Coltrane in Lynnwood, Washington. The album was released as Om by Impulse! Records.[6]

He taught at Garfield High School's Magnet Program with bassist Chuck Metcalf in 1968.[7] He established the Black Academy of Music in 1967 with guitarist George Hurst. The faculty included trumpeter Floyd Standifer, saxophonist Jabo Ward, and bassist Milt Garred. The Black Student Union demanded that he be hired by the University of Washington School of Music.[8] He taught at the University of Washington from 1969 to 1976 but was denied tenure.[9]

References
  1. Bjorn, Lars; Gallert, Jim (2001). Before Motown: The History of Jazz in Detroit. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press. p. 136. ISBN 0-472-09765-2.
  2. DeVito, Chris; Yasuhiro Fujioka; Wolf Schmaler; David Wild (2008). Lewis Porter (ed.). The John Coltrane Reference. New York, New York: Routledge. pp. 517, 539. ISBN 978-0-415-97755-5.
  3. Svanoe, Anders (2007). "Bluesville: The Journey of Sonny Red". Annual Review of Jazz Studies. 13: 68. ISSN 0731-0641.
  4. Porter, Lewis (1999). John Coltrane: His Life and Music. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press. p. 180. ISBN 0-472-10161-7.
  5. Berkman, Franya (2010). Monument Eternal: The Music of Alice Coltrane. Middletown, Connecticut: Wesleyan University Press. p. 35. ISBN 978-0-8195-6924-0.
  6. de Barros, Paul (1993). Jackson Street After Hours: The Roots of Jazz in Seattle. Seattle, Washington: Sasquatch Books. p. 203. ISBN 0-912365-86-2.
  7. "Strictly Ad Lib". Down Beat. Vol. 35 no. 14. 11 July 1968. p. 43. A $25,000 program for teaching jazz, rock and folk music in the Seattle ghetto has been set up by the Seattle Public Schools for this summer. Bassist Chuck Metcalf is coordinator and has hired teachers ranging from 18-year-old John Hatfield, leader of the Blues Feedback, to 40-year-old tenor saxist Joe Brazil.
  8. Robinson, Marc. "The Early History of the UW Black Student Union". Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project. University of Washington. Retrieved 29 March 2012.
  9. Armbruster, Kurt (2011). Before Seattle Rocked: A City and its Music. Seattle, Washington: University of Washington Press. p. 264. ISBN 978-0-295-99113-9.

Sources
  • Armbuster, Kurt (2011). Before Seattle Rocked: A City and Its Music. Seattle, Washington: University of Washington Press. pp. 264–265. ISBN 978-0-295-99113-9
  • Berkman, Franya (2010). Monument Eternal: The Music of Alice Coltrane. Middletown, Connecticut. Wesleyan University Press. p. 35. ISBN 978-0-8195-6925-7.
  • Cole, Bill (1976). John Coltrane. New York, New York: Da Capo Press. p. 169, 180. ISBN 0-306-80530-8.
  • de Barros, Paul (1993). Jackson Street After Hours: The Roots of Jazz in Seattle. Seattle, Washington: Sasquatch Books. p. 203. ISBN 0-912365-92-7.
  • Kahn, Ashley (2002). A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album. Middlesex, England: Viking Penguin. p. 179. ISBN 0-670-03136-4.
  • Kahn, Ashley (2006). The House that Trane Built: The Story of Impulse Records. New York, New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. p. 184. ISBN 978-0-393-05879-6.
  • Porter, Lewis (January 28, 2000). John Coltrane: His Life and Music. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press. pp. 180, 265, 266. ISBN 978-0472086436.
  • Ratliff, Ben (2007). Coltrane: The Story of a Sound. New York, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. p. 102. ISBN 978-0-374-12606-3.
  • Robinson, Marc. "The Early History of the UW Black Student Union" Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project.
  • Simpkins, C. O. (1975). Coltrane: A Biography. Baltimore, Maryland: Black Classic Press. p. 194. ISBN 0933121-20-2.
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