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Roy Hargrove: Straight Ahead and Flying High |
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Written by Andrea Canter, Contributing Editor
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Saturday, 08 May 2004 |
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Page 1 of 2 
After Wynton Marsalis, Roy Hargrove is probably the best known trumpeter on the planet today. And at only 34, his output as a recording artist (9 sessions as leader) is almost as remarkable as his chops. His most recent project, RH Factor, created a lot of buzz by merging R&B and hip-hop mainstream with jazz, but his past and current efforts are decidedly more Dizzy than Ice-T. As noted by Christopher Jones following a recent Hargrove Quintet performance at Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley in Seattle, this is “straightforward, no-nonsense modern jazz…with integrity and conviction.”
Inspired by gospel, R&B and funk while growing up in Waco, Texas, Hargrove was a trumpet prodigy, already working with Frank Morgan before he finished high school. Later he dropped his studies at Berklee in Boston to concentrate on his career as leader, sideman and major label recording artist. In addition to the funky RH Factor, he has explored Afro Cuban rhythms, pop, and above all, eclectic, straight ahead jazz, most recently in the highly acclaimed company of Herbie Hancock and Michael Brecker.
Photograph courtesy of Howard Gitelson
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