Bobby Few

Bobby Few
Bobby Few and unknown musician in 2007
Background information
Born	(1935-10-21) October 21, 1935 Cleveland, Ohio
Genres	Jazz
Instrument(s)	Piano, vocals

Bobby Few (born October 21, 1935) is an American jazz pianist and vocalist.

Few was raised in Shaker Heights, a neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, and studied classical piano. He knew avant-garde jazz saxophonist Albert Ayler as a youth, and the pair studied jazz and played together in high school. Few led a trio in New York from 1958 to 1964, while working with a diverse range of musicians, including singer Brook Benton, and saxophonists Jackie McLean and Ayler. Few played on several of Ayler's recordings, as well as with Alan Silva, Archie Shepp, Sunny Murray, Steve Lacy, Noah Howard, Booker Ervin, and Kali Fasteau. From 2001 he toured with American saxophonist Avram Fefer, with whom he has recorded four critically acclaimed CDs. Few has been based in Europe since 1969, making regular trips back to the United States. He played with saxophonist Charles Gayle in 2011. Few is interviewed in a 2008 documentary, later released on DVD, on drummer Sunny Murray - "Sunny's Time Now".

Some of Few's various playing styles were described by Kevin Whitehead: "He can play delicate single-note melodies, roll out lush romantic chords, rap out explicitly Monkish close-interval clanks - though he's a busier pianist than Monk - or roil around in classic free style, using a sustain pedal to shape the density of his sound".

Discography

Years in brackets refer to dates of recording.

As leader or co-leader

• More or Less Few (Center of the World, 1973)
• Solos and Duets (Sun, 1975) with Alan Silva and Frank Wright
• Solos and Duets Vol 2 (Sun, 1975) with Alan Silva and Frank Wright
• Few Comin' Thru (Sun, 1977)
• Continental Jazz Express (Vogue, 1979)
• Diom Futa (Free Lance, 1979) with Cheikh Tidiane Fall and Jo Maka
• Rhapsody in Few (Black Lion, 1983)
• Mysteries (Miss You Jazz, 1992)
• Expatriate Kin (CIMP, 1997) with Kali Fasteau and Noah Howard
• Few and Far Between (Boxholder, 2000) with Avram Fefer and Wilber Morris
• Continental Jazz Express (Boxholder, 2000)
• Let It Rain (2002)
• Kindred Spirits (Boxholder, 2004) with Avram Fefer
• Heavenly Places (Boxholder, 2004) with Avram Fefer
• Lights and Shadows (Boxholder, 2004)
• Sanctuary (CIMP, 2005) with Avram Fefer
• True Wind (Hello World!, 2007) with Sonny Simmons

As sideman

With Albert Ayler

• Music is the Healing Force of the Universe (Impulse!, 1969)
• The Last Album (Impulse!, 1969)

With Hans Dulfer

• El Saxofón (Catfish, 1970)

With Mike Ellis

• What Else is New? (Alfa, 1985)

With Booker Ervin

• The In Between (Blue Note, 1968)

With Zusaan Kali Fasteau

• Sensual Hearing (Flying Note, 1994-95)
• Comraderie (Flying Note, 1997)
• Making Waves (Flying Note, 2004)

With Ricky Ford

• Songs for My Mother (Jazz Friends Production, 2001)

With Noah Howard

• Space Dimension (America, 1969)
• Red Star (Mercury, 1977)
• Traffic (Frame, 1980)
• In Concert (Cadence, 1997)
• Live at the Unity Temple (Ayler, 1997)

With Talib Kibwe

• Egyptian Oasis (Cryonic, 1986)

With Steve Lacy

• Ballets (hat ART, 1981)
• Songs (hat ART, 1981) with Brion Gysin
• The Flame (Soul Note, 1982)
• Blinks (hat ART, 1983)
• Lift the Bandstand (1983) DVD
• Prospectus (hat ART, 1983)
• The Condor (Soul Note, 1985)
• The Gleam (Silkheart, 1986)
• Momentum (RCA Novus, 1987)
• The Door (RCA Novus, 1988)
• Anthem (RCA Novus, 1989)
• Itinerary (hat ART, 1990)
• Live At Sweet Basil (RCA Novus, 1991)
• Associates (Felmay, 1992)
• Clangs (hat ART, 1992)
• Vespers (Soul Note, 1993)
• Findings (CMAP, 1994)

With David Murray

• Flowers Around Cleveland (Bleu Regard, 1995)

With Sunny Murray

• Aigu-Grave (Marge, 1979)

With Archie Shepp

• Pitchin Can (America, 1970)
• Coral Rock (America, 1970)

With Alan Silva

• Treasure Box (Eremite, 2001)

With Marzette Watts

• The Marzette Watts Ensemble (Savoy, 1968)

With Joe Lee Wilson

• Secrets From The Sun (Sun, 1977)

With Frank Wright

• One for John (BYG, 1969)
• Church Number Nine (Calumet, 1970)
• Uhuru Na Omoja (Emarcy, 1970)
• Center of the World (Center of the World, 1972)
• For Example - Workshop Freie Musik 1969 - 1978 (FMP, 1972)
• Last Polka in Nancy? (Center of the World, 1973)
• Unity (ESP-Disk, 1974)

Other links

• AllMusic biography
• All About Jazz