Draft:Clarence Becton
Clarence Becton (* December 16, 1933 in Fitler, Mississippi, † June 24, 2022 in Amsterdam)[1][2] was an American drummer of modern jazz
Life & work
[edit]Becton grew up in Buffalo from the age of twelve, where he played the drums from the age of nineteen and worked with Pete Johnson, Don Menza, Don Ellis and Wade Legge, among others. At the Royal Arms Club he accompanied traveling soloists such as Coleman Hawkins, Clark Terry, and Jon Hendricks, with whom he then toured North America. In 1969 he moved to Munich, where he worked in the Domicile Jazz Club. He played with Pony Poindexter, Benny Bailey, Slide Hampton, Lucky Thompson, Dusko Goykovich and Mal Waldron, with whom he also recorded the first ECM album Free at Last. In 1970 he returned to the States, where he worked with Thelonious Monk, Bobby Hutcherson, Ernestine Anderson, Woody Shaw, Joe Henderson, Michael White, and others. In 1979 he went on an international tour with Earl Hines, after which he played in New York City with Joe Albany, Jon Hendricks, Pepper Adams, Arthur Rhames, Marilyn Crispell, and Slide Hampton. In 1981 he moved to Europe, where he performed with Benny Bailey, Charles Green, Wilbur Little, Keshavan Maslak, Horace Parlan and the quintet of Dusko Goykovich and Joe Haider. He settled in Amsterdam and taught at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague. Since 1982 he has worked with Rachel Gould (The Dancer, More of Me), Arnold Clos, Deborah Brown, Joe Malinga, Curtis Clark, Mola Sylla, Victor Kaihatu and Gylan Kain. He toured Europe several times with Burton Greene and Tjitze Vogel; he also toured with Abdullah Ibrahim. In the Netherlands he suggested building a foldable drum kit that he could transport on a bicycle.[3]
Selected discography
[edit]- Mal Waldron Free At Last (ECM 1969, mit Isla Eckinger)
- Dusko Goykovich As Simple As It Is – Live at the Domicile Munich (MPS 1970, with Ferdinand Povel, Larry Vuckovich, Isla Eckinger)
- Michael White Father Music, Mother Dance (Impulse! 1974)
- Lebombo Nabakitsi (BVHaast 1995, with Sean Bergin et al.)
- Benny Bailey I Thought about You (Laika 1996, with Frank Wunsch, Fritz Krisse, and Wayne Bartlett)
Weblinks
[edit]- Clarence Becton at allaboutjazz.com
- Interview with Clarence Becton: Straight Ahead Into Freedom
- Clarence Becton at [4]