Monty Alexander facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Honourable Monty Alexander OJ CD
Alexander performing at Ronnie Scott's, London, in 2006
Background information
Birth name	Montgomery Bernard Alexander
Born	(1944-06-06) 6 June 1944 (age 81) Kingston, Jamaica
Genres	Jazz, reggae, hard bop, straight-ahead jazz
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	Piano, melodica, vocals
Years active	1958–present
Labels	Pacific Jazz, RCA, Verve, MPS, Motéma Music
Associated acts	Milt Jackson, Ray Brown

Montgomery Bernard "Monty" Alexander (born June 6, 1944) is a famous Jamaican American jazz pianist. He is known for his lively playing style. His music often includes sounds from the Caribbean.

Monty's playing has a bright, swinging feel. He uses many bebop jazz and blues melodies. He was inspired by great musicians like Louis Armstrong and Nat King Cole. Monty also sings and plays the melodica. He is famous for his surprising musical twists and exciting climaxes. He has recorded many well-known American and jazz songs. He also plays Jamaican songs from his home country. Monty lives in New York City and performs all over the world.

Biography

Monty Alexander was born in Kingston, Jamaica, on June 6, 1944. He found the piano when he was just four years old. He could pick out melodies by ear very easily. His mother sent him to classical music lessons when he was six. By age 14, he became very interested in jazz piano.

Monty started playing in clubs when he was young. He also played on recording sessions. He even led a dance orchestra called Monty and the Cyclones. They played many popular rock and pop songs from the 1960s. Seeing Louis Armstrong and Nat King Cole perform in Jamaica greatly impressed him.

In 1961, Monty and his family moved to Miami, Florida. He played in different nightclubs there. One night, Frank Sinatra and his friend Jilly Rizzo heard Monty play. They were so impressed that they invited him to New York City in 1962. Monty became the house pianist at Jilly Rizzo's club, "Jilly's." There, he played with Frank Sinatra. He also met and became friends with famous musicians like bassist Ray Brown and vibist Milt Jackson. He even became friends with Miles Davis.

Monty recorded his first album in Los Angeles in 1964. It was called Alexander the Great. He was only 20 years old at the time. This album was full of energy and very upbeat.

He recorded with Milt Jackson in 1969. He also played with Ernest Ranglin in 1974. Monty toured Europe often and recorded many albums there. He mostly played with his classic trio for MPS Records. Around 1976, he also toured with steelpan player Othello Molineaux.

In the mid-1970s, Monty formed a group. It included John Clayton on bass and Jeff Hamilton on drums. This group became very popular in Europe. Their most famous recording is Montreux Alexander. They recorded it at the Montreux Jazz Festival in July 1976.

Monty has also played with many singers. These include Ernestine Anderson and Mary Stallings. He has also performed with other important jazz leaders. Some of these are Dizzy Gillespie and Benny Golson.

In the 1990s, Monty formed a reggae band. All the musicians in the band were Jamaican. He has released several reggae albums. These include Yard Movement (1996) and Stir It Up (1999). Stir It Up was a collection of Bob Marley songs. He also made Monty Meets Sly & Robbie (2000). In 2004, he worked with Ernest Ranglin again on the album Rocksteady.

Personal life

Monty Alexander married American jazz guitarist Emily Remler in 1981. They later divorced. Monty now lives in Manhattan. He is married to Italian jazz singer Caterina Zapponi.

Awards and honours

• Musgrave Medal, Institute of Jamaica, 2000.
• Best Live Performance Album, Independent Music Awards, for Harlem-Kingston Express, 2012.
• Grammy-nominated in 2011 for his CD, Harlem-Kingston Express.
• 2014 Soul Train Award-nominated for Harlem-Kingston Express, Vol. 2: The River Rolls On.
• In 2017, he received the Order of Griffin-Distinguished Alumnus Award. This was from the Jamaica College Old Boys Association of New York.
• In January 2023, Monty Alexander was given the Order of Jamaica (OJ).

Discography

As leader

As sideman

Monty Alexander has played with many other great musicians. Here are some of them:

• With Ernest Ranglin
  • Ranglypso (MPS, 1974)
  • Below the Bassline (Island, 1996)
• With Milt Jackson
  • That's the Way It Is (Impulse!, 1969)
  • Soul Fusion (Pablo, 1977)
• With Ray Brown
  • Live at the Concord Jazz Festival (Concord, 1979)
  • Ray Brown, Monty Alexander, & Russell Malone (Telarc, 2002)
• With Tony Bennett
  • A Swingin' Christmas (Featuring The Count Basie Big Band) (Columbia, 2008)
• With others
  • Quincy Jones (Smackwater Jack, 1971)
  • Dizzy Gillespie (Dizzy Gillespie Montreux Jam, 1977)
  • Natalie Cole (Unforgettable: With Love, 1991)
  • The Skatalites (Hi-Bop Ska!, 1994)

Filmography

• Al Di Meola, Stanley Clarke, Jean-Luc Ponty – Live at Montreux (1994)
• New Morning – The Paris Concert (2008)

See also

• List of jazz pianists