Wayne Shorter, a legendary jazz saxophonist, died at the age of 89 in Los Angeles.
Shorter was a well-known jazz player in the late 1950s and is credited with influencing much of jazz music in the twentieth century.
Miles Davis, Carlos Santana, and Herbie Hancock were among the legends with whom the 12-time Grammy winner performed.
According to his spokesperson, he died on Thursday with his family by his side.
The flood of social media tributes revealed a recurring theme: gone, but not forgotten.
He was a member of the Jazz Messengers with Blakey, Lee Morgan, and Freddie Hubbard in the 1950s before becoming the group’s musical director.
Nonetheless, after multiple failed attempts by Miles Davis to include him in Davis’ First Great Quintet, he was plucked away in 1964. He shared the stage with renowned pianist Herbie Hancock.
Beginning in 1959, Shorter released solo albums, including the critically acclaimed Speak No Evil, Night Dreamer, and JuJu.
When he was recording solo records, he had more creative freedom. He began fusing jazz with rock and Latin music, resulting in the sounds popularized by his next band, Weather Report.
Shorter’s Heavy Weather album, which featured funk and R&B sounds, was certified platinum and charted in the top 30 in the United States in 1977. He also appeared on the Rolling Stones’ album Brides to Babylon that year.
He reconnected with Davis, Hubbard, and Hancock after Davis’ death to form the Second Great Quartet, and they later collaborated on the Grammy-winning album A Tribute to Miles.
Wayne Shorter, who was born in Newark, New Jersey in 1933, began playing the clarinet at the age of 15. Soon after, he changed from alto to soprano on the saxophone and went on to study music at a university before joining the US Army for two years.
Shorter received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015, in addition to his dozen Grammy wins.
