Music
Wardell Gray
1921–1955
· jazz tenor saxophonist
Detroit-raised tenor saxophonist who bridged swing and bebop, famous for “The Chase” with Dexter Gordon and for “Twisted,” and who got his big break in Detroit with Earl Hines.
- Born
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma- Died
Las Vegas, Nevada
aged 34- Detroit years
- 1929–1946
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Wardell Gray was born in Oklahoma City and moved to Detroit with his family in 1929. In 1935 he enrolled at Northeastern High School and then transferred to Cass Technical High School, where Gerald Wilson was a classmate, but he left in 1936 without graduating. He started on clarinet, then switched to tenor saxophone after hearing Lester Young with Count Basie. His first jobs were with local dance bands, followed by stints in Flint and Grand Rapids. When Earl Hines's orchestra came through Detroit in late 1943, a young dancer persuaded Hines to hire him, the break that took him national. He settled in Los Angeles in 1946, where his recorded tenor duel with Dexter Gordon, “The Chase,” became a jazz landmark, and he went on to play with Benny Goodman and Count Basie. His tune “Twisted” later became a vocalese hit for Annie Ross. He died in Las Vegas in 1955, at 34, in unclear circumstances.
Highlights
- Attended Northeastern High School and Cass Tech in Detroit
- Hired by Earl Hines in Detroit in 1943
- “The Chase” (1947) with Dexter Gordon
- Composed “Twisted,” later a hit for Annie Ross
- Played with Benny Goodman and Count Basie
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
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 · 1935–1936
Cass Technical High School
He transferred here from Northeastern High School in 1935 and left in 1936; Gerald Wilson was a classmate.
Performed here · 1940s–1950s
Blue Bird Inn
Closed
West-side bebop club that lists him among its performers. Closed in the early 2000s; under restoration by the Detroit Sound Conservancy.