Tina Brooks facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tina Brooks
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Photo by Francis Wolff
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Harold Floyd Brooks |
| Also known as | Tina Brooks |
| Born | June 7, 1932 Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States |
| Died | August 13, 1974 (aged 42) New York City, New York |
| Genres | Hard bop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer, bandleader |
| Instruments | Tenor saxophone |
| Years active | 1951–1961 |
| Labels | Blue Note |
| Associated acts | Freddie Hubbard Jackie McLean Freddie Redd Kenny Burrell Jimmy Smith |
Harold Floyd "Tina" Brooks (born June 7, 1932 – died August 13, 1974) was an American jazz musician. He was a talented tenor saxophonist and composer. He is best known for his work in a jazz style called hard bop.
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Early Life and Music
Harold Floyd Brooks was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina. He was the brother of another musician, David "Bubba" Brooks. People called him "Tina" (pronounced Teena) because it was a shorter version of his childhood nickname, "Teeny."
In 1944, Tina moved to New York with his family. He started playing the C-melody saxophone soon after. His first professional music job was in 1951 with a rhythm and blues pianist named Sonny Thompson. In 1955, Tina played with the famous vibraphonist Lionel Hampton. A trumpeter named "Little" Benny Harris helped Tina get his first chance to record his own music. Harris suggested Tina to Blue Note producer Alfred Lion in 1958.
Recording His Music
Tina Brooks is most famous for the music he recorded with the Blue Note label between 1958 and 1961. He recorded as a "sideman" (a musician who plays with a band but isn't the main leader) for many artists. These included Kenny Burrell, Freddie Hubbard, Jackie McLean, Freddie Redd, and Jimmy Smith.
Tina also recorded five of his own music sessions for Blue Note. The first session was in 1958. He played with trumpeter Lee Morgan and other great musicians like Sonny Clark and Art Blakey. However, this album, called Minor Move, was not released until more than 20 years later, after Tina had passed away.
Sadly, this happened with most of his own recordings. Three more of his albums – Street Singer, Back to the Tracks, and The Waiting Game – were also not released during his lifetime.
The only album of his own that came out while he was alive was True Blue. It was recorded in 1960 with Freddie Hubbard, Duke Jordan, Sam Jones, and Art Taylor. This album was released around the same time as Freddie Hubbard's first Blue Note album, Open Sesame, which also featured Tina Brooks.
Tina Brooks stopped recording music after 1961.
Tina Brooks' Legacy
Even though many of his recordings weren't released for a long time, Tina Brooks' music is still important today. In 1985, Michael Cuscuna helped release a special collection of Tina's recordings as a leader.
Michael Cuscuna once wrote that Tina Brooks "was a unique, sensitive improviser." He also said that Tina could create "beautiful and complex" music with his saxophone. He praised Tina's "lyricism" and how his musical ideas flowed together.
David Rosenthal, in his book about hard bop jazz, wrote about Tina Brooks. He called Tina's song "Street Singer" a "hard-bop classic." He felt the song showed strong feelings like sadness and anger.
The official Blue Note website describes Tina Brooks as "one of the most brilliant, if underrated, tenor saxophonists in modern jazz." They say he had a "strong, smooth tone" and always had "amazing fresh ideas" when he played.
Discography
Here are some of the albums Tina Brooks recorded, mostly with Blue Note Records.
As the Main Artist
- 1958: Minor Move (released in 1980)
- 1960: True Blue (released in 1960)
- 1960: Street Singer with Jackie McLean (released in 1980)
- 1960: Back to the Tracks (released in 1998)
- 1961: The Waiting Game (released in 2002)
As a Sideman
- With Kenny Burrell: Blue Lights Volume 1 & 2 (1958), On View at the Five Spot Cafe (1959)
- With Freddie Hubbard: Open Sesame (1960)
- With Jackie McLean: Jackie's Bag (1961)
- With Freddie Redd: Shades of Redd (1960)
- With Jimmy Smith: House Party (1958), The Sermon! (1959)
See also
In Spanish: Tina Brooks para niños
