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Jimmy Heath, aka Little Bird, Takes Soul And Sonic Flight
RIP
October 25, 1926 — January 19, 2020
by Henry Cherry
When saxophonist Jimmy Heath died at 93 from undisclosed causes on Sunday, January 19, 2020, he left younger brother Albert as the last of the Heath brothers, a remarkable trio of musicians who worked collectively and individually to help craft the pillars of jazz music. With Albert on drums, Percy on bass and middle brother Jimmy, nicknamed Little Bird because of the early influence of Charlie Parker on his playing, on saxophone, the Heaths played on hundreds of recordings with legends and under known greats of the musical idiom. Without the Heaths musical input, jazz would not be what it is today.
As a member of a Dizzy Gillespie’s big band or out on his own, Heath was a giant individual talent. His 1961 solo release title track, “The Quota” sheds the best light onto Heath’s ability as a leader, arranger and player. The song skates and shimmies and repositions itself several times with an ease that covers the intricacies of the its structure. You don’t realize how dense the music is until the song ends. That’s the genius of Jimmy Heath in a single 5-minute burst. As he worked at music throughout school, he broadened his skills across the alto, baritone and tenor saxophone, his main instrument was the tenor…
