Frank Wright (jazz musician)

Biography

Wright was born in Grenada, Mississippi, but he grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. He began to play tenor sax in his late teens, when his family moved to Cleveland, Ohio as part of the Great Migration out of the South. More than 1.5 million black Americans left the South before World War II to seek opportunities in the industrial cities of the North and Midwest. Another 5.5 million left during and after the war, up to 1970.

In Cleveland, Wright met Bobby Few and Albert Ayler, both of whom became friends and musical influences. Originally a bass player, Wright played in numerous local R&B bands before taking up the saxophone. He also toured with B. B. King and Bobby "Blue" Bland. Ayler's musical influence persuaded Wright to switch to saxophone; his style is often associated with Ayler's. In addition to tenor saxophone, he also played the soprano saxophone and bass clarinet. A pioneer of experimental music, Wright is a widely acclaimed artist among his colleagues in the free jazz movement.

As leader

As sideman

with Cecil Taylor

with Albert Ayler

with Sunny Murray

with Noah Howard

with Hans Dulfer

with Muhammad Ali

with Alan Silva and Bobby Few

with Georges Arvanitas

with Marvin Peterson

with Saheb Sarbib

with Peter Brötzmann

with Raphe Malik

with A. R. Penck