Music / Press & broadcasting
Wendell Harrison
born 1942 · jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, label founder, educator
Detroit saxophonist and clarinetist who co-founded Tribe, the 1970s Black-consciousness jazz label and magazine, and later the Rebirth education organization.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 83- Detroit years
- 1942–1960, 1971–
- Field
- Music, Press & broadcasting
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Harrison began clarinet at seven, studied jazz with pianist Barry Harris, and switched to tenor saxophone at Northwestern High School, playing his first paid job at fourteen and later backing Marvin Gaye in Choker Campbell's band. He moved to New York in 1960, worked with Grant Green, Big Maybelle and Sun Ra, and toured and recorded with Hank Crawford. After recovering from addiction in California, he came home in 1971 to teach at Metro Arts, a youth arts complex, where he met trombonist Phil Ranelin and pianist Harold McKinney. With Ranelin he founded Tribe, a record label and artists' collective that joined Marcus Belgrave, Kenny Cox, Charles Moore and others, and with his wife Patricia he published Tribe magazine until 1977. In 1978 he and McKinney created Rebirth, Inc., a nonprofit for jazz education, and he launched the WenHa label. Later he championed the clarinet with his Mama's Licking Stick ensemble and played with techno artist Carl Craig.
Highlights
- Co-founded the Tribe label and collective in Detroit (1971–1972)
- Published Tribe magazine until 1977
- Co-founded Rebirth, Inc. with Harold McKinney in 1978
- Named a Jazz Master by Arts Midwest in the early 1990s
- Leader of the clarinet ensemble Mama's Licking Stick
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 · 1950s
Northwestern High School (now Detroit Collegiate Preparatory Academy at Northwestern)
West-side high school where Harrison switched from clarinet to tenor saxophone.