Music
Joe Henderson
1937–2001 · jazz tenor saxophonist, composer
Ohio-born tenor saxophone giant of Blue Note and Verve who came of age in Detroit's 1950s jazz scene and studied at Wayne State University.
- Born
Lima, Ohio- Died
San Francisco, California
aged 64- Detroit years
- mid-1950s–1960
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Joe Henderson grew up in Lima, Ohio, and came to Detroit as a young man, drawn by one of the country's richest jazz scenes. By 18 he was sitting in at jam sessions with New York stars passing through the city. He took flute and bass classes at Wayne State University, and he sharpened his saxophone playing and composing with the renowned teacher Larry Teal at the Teal School of Music. He had transcribed and memorized so many Lester Young solos that his Wayne State professors assumed he had perfect pitch. After Army service he moved to New York in 1962 and became one of Blue Note's key tenor players, recording Page One and playing with Horace Silver. Decades later, a run of acclaimed Verve albums in the 1990s, beginning with a Billy Strayhorn tribute, brought him Grammy Awards and wide recognition.
Highlights
- Active on Detroit's jazz scene by age 18
- Studied flute and bass at Wayne State University
- Page One (1963) introduced “Recorda Me”
- Blue Note mainstay of the 1960s
- Grammy Awards for his 1990s Verve albums
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · late 1950s
Wayne State University
Detroit's public research university in Midtown, where he took flute and bass classes.