Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.
Jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, who played with legends such as
John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, McCoy Tyner, Art Blakey and Herbie
Hancock, died today (Dec. 29) in Sherman Oaks, Calif.
Hubbard, who had suffered a heart attack on Nov. 26, was 70.
Born in Indianapolis, the artist moved to New York in 1958 and
quickly began playing and recording with Coleman, Coltrane and Eric
Dolphy. In 1961, he released "Ready for Freddie," the first of many
collaborations with saxophonist Wayne Shorter.
Hubbard's "hard bop" stylings can be heard on some of the landmark
free jazz albums of the 1960s, including Coleman's "Free Jazz" and
Coltrane's "Ascension." In the 1970s, he recorded more
commercial-leaning albums for CTI Records, and maintained an active
presence in the studio and onstage throughout the 1980s.
Hubbard was bestowed with the National Endowment for the Arts' Jazz
Masters Award in 2006.
According to a spokesperson, a New York memorial is being planned.