A supergroup is a musical group formed of members who are already successful as solo artists or as members of other successful groups. The term became popular in the late 1960s when members of already successful rock groups recorded albums together, after which they normally disbanded. Charity supergroups, in which prominent musicians perform or record together in support of a particular cause, have been common since the 1980s. The term is most common in the context of rock and pop music, but it has occasionally been applied to other musical genres. For example, opera stars the Three Tenors and hip hop duos Kids See Ghosts and Bad Meets Evil all have been called supergroups.
Anthony Tillmon Williams was an American jazz drummer. Williams first gained fame as a member of Miles Davis' "Second Great Quintet", and later pioneered jazz fusion with Davis' group and his own combo, the Tony Williams Lifetime. In 1970, music critic Robert Christgau described him as "probably the best drummer in the world." Williams was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame in 1997.
Miles in the Sky is a studio album by the jazz trumpeter and composer Miles Davis. It was released on July 22, 1968, through Columbia Records. It was the last full album recorded by Davis' "Second Great Quintet" and marked the beginning of his foray into jazz fusion, with Herbie Hancock playing electric piano and Ron Carter playing electric bass guitar on opening track "Stuff". Additionally, electric guitarist George Benson features on "Paraphernalia".
Cindy Blackman Santana, sometimes known as Cindy Blackman, is an American jazz and rock drummer. Blackman has recorded several jazz albums as a bandleader and has performed with Pharoah Sanders, Sonny Simmons, Ron Carter, Sam Rivers, Cassandra Wilson, Angela Bofill, Buckethead, Bill Laswell, Lenny Kravitz, Joe Henderson and Joss Stone.
Larry Young was an American jazz organist and occasional pianist. Young's early work was strongly influenced by the soul jazz of Jimmy Smith, but he later pioneered a more experimental, modal approach to the Hammond B-3.
Mulgrew Miller was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. As a child he played in churches and was influenced on piano by Ramsey Lewis and then Oscar Peterson. Aspects of their styles remained in his playing, but he added the greater harmonic freedom of McCoy Tyner and others in developing as a hard bop player and then in creating his own style, which influenced others from the 1980s on.
The Swing of Delight is a 1980 double album by Carlos Santana. It was released under his temporary Sanskrit name Devadip Carlos Santana, given to him by Sri Chinmoy. It peaked at #65 on the charts.
Mr. Hands is the twenty-fourth album by Herbie Hancock. Unlike the preceding album, Monster, which was conceptualized as a dance album, Mr. Hands is a collection of different musical styles with distinct groups. It features bass guitarist Jaco Pastorius on the track "4 A.M.," plus multiple guests including Bennie Maupin, Sheila E. and Ron Carter, plus an all-synthesizer track ("Textures") performed entirely by Hancock. "Shiftless Shuffle" was recorded by the members of the Headhunters quintet in 1973 during the sessions for the album Head Hunters. This album was the first on which Hancock used a computer, an Apple II. He continued his relationship with Apple Computer for many years.
The Tony Williams Lifetime was a jazz fusion group led by drummer Tony Williams. The band was pivotal in the development of fusion and featured various noteworthy jazz and rock musicians throughout its history, including guitarists John McLaughlin and Allan Holdsworth, keyboardists Larry Young and Alan Pasqua, and bassists Jack Bruce and Ron Carter.
Miles Davis & Gil Evans: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings is a box set of music by jazz musicians Miles Davis and Gil Evans originally released on CD in 1996 and remastered and re-released in 2004. It collects work from 1957 through 1968 at Columbia Records recording studios.
V.S.O.P. is a 1977 double live album by keyboardist Herbie Hancock, featuring acoustic jazz performances by the V.S.O.P. Quintet, along with jazz fusion/jazz-funk performances by the ‘Mwandishi’ band and The Headhunters.
Round Midnight is a soundtrack album by Herbie Hancock featuring music recorded for Bertrand Tavernier's film Round Midnight released in 1986 on Columbia Records. The album features performances by Hancock, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, bassist Ron Carter, drummer Tony Williams, vocalist Bobby McFerrin, tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon, bassist Pierre Michelot, drummer Billy Higgins, guitarist John McLaughlin, trumpeter/vocalist Chet Baker, vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, vocalist Lonette McKee, and pianist Cedar Walton, most of whom appear in the film. It won the Academy Award for Best Music, Original Score in 1986, beating Ennio Morricone's The Mission and Jerry Goldsmith's Hoosiers, among others. Additional music recorded during the making of the film was released under Dexter Gordon's name as The Other Side of Round Midnight (1986).
Asante is an album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner released on the Blue Note label. It was recorded in 1970 and features performances by Tyner with alto saxophonist Andrew White, guitarist Ted Dunbar, bassist Buster Williams, drummer Billy Hart, percussionist Mtume and vocalist "Songai" Sandra Smith appearing on two tracks.
Supertrios is a 1977 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his eleventh to be released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in April 1977 and features performances by Tyner with two rhythm sections: bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams on the first half of the album, and bassist Eddie Gómez and drummer Jack DeJohnette on the second.
Neo Geo is a 1987 album by Ryuichi Sakamoto. The term "neo geo", or "new world", is derived from Sakamoto himself as a way to describe worldwide musical diversity in regard to genre.
There Comes a Time is an album by the jazz composer, arranger, conductor and pianist Gil Evans, recorded in 1975 and performed by Evans with an orchestra featuring David Sanborn, Howard Johnson, Billy Harper and Ryo Kawasaki. The album was re-released with an altered tracklist on CD in 1988.
The Master Trio is an album by jazz pianist Tommy Flanagan, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams.
Ties of Love is an album by the pianist Buddy Montgomery, released by Landmark in 1987. The album, which was Montgomery's first in a decade, was recorded partly in New York with longtime producer Orrin Keepnews.
Turn It Over is the second album by the American jazz fusion group the Tony Williams Lifetime, released in 1970 via Polydor Records. It was rereleased by Verve Records in 1997, as part of Spectrum: The Anthology. Williams is again joined by guitarist John McLaughlin and organist Larry Young, along with former Cream member Jack Bruce on bass guitar.
Spectrum Road is the debut album by the American supergroup of the same name, featuring bassist and vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist Vernon Reid, keyboard player John Medeski, and drummer Cindy Blackman Santana. The group's sole release, it was recorded in February 2011 at Maggie's Farm in Pipersville, Pennsylvania, and was issued in 2012 by Palmetto Records. The album pays homage to the jazz fusion band The Tony Williams Lifetime, and is named after the song "Via the Spectrum Road" from the 1969 Lifetime recording Emergency!. Bruce served as a personal link to Lifetime, as he participated in the creation of their second album, Turn It Over (1970).
