Tyrone Washington (musician) facts for kids

Tyrone Washington, born in 1944, is an American musician who plays the tenor saxophone in jazz music. He is known for his unique sound and for mixing different styles in his music.

About Tyrone Washington

His Early Life

Tyrone Washington was born in Newark, New Jersey. His parents were Robert Benjamin Washington and Eunice Washington. His mother worked as a teacher and supervisor at a community center. He was one of three children in his family.

From a young age, he was good friends with trumpet player Woody Shaw. He studied music for a short time at Howard University. After that, he joined a jazz group led by Horace Silver. This group played a style of jazz called hard bop.

His Music Career

Before making his own albums, Tyrone Washington played on other musicians' records. He played on Horace Silver's album The Jody Grind. He also recorded a soul jazz album with organ player Larry Young.

His first album as a band leader was Natural Essence in 1967. This album was released by Blue Note and is one of his most famous works. After Natural Essence, he released two more albums: Roots and Do Right.

The album Roots showed many different musical influences. It included sounds from soul jazz and also free jazz. Hubert Eaves III played the piano on this album.

His last album as a leader was Do Right. On this album, he played with Hubert Eaves III, guitarist Billy Nichols, and drummer Idris Muhammad. René McLean, who is the son of famous alto saxophone player Jackie McLean, also played on Do Right. This album had a strong funk music influence.

Tyrone Washington stopped recording music after 1974. He chose to leave his music career for religious reasons. In 2022, he was still alive and had changed his name to Mohammad Bilal Abdullah. He became a religious leader.

His Music Albums

As the Leader

• 1967: Natural Essence with Woody Shaw, James Spaulding, Kenny Barron, Reggie Workman, Joe Chambers (Blue Note)
• 1968: Unreleased Session with Herbie Hancock, Herbie Lewis, Jack DeJohnette (Blue Note)
• 1973: Roots with Stafford James, Clifford Barbaro Barconadhi, Hubert Eaves III (Perception)
• 1974: Do Right with Hubert Eaves III, Billy Nichols, René McLean, Idris Muhammad (Blue Labor)

Playing with Others

With Stanley Cowell

• Brilliant Circles (Freedom, 1969)

With Roswell Rudd

• Blown Bone (Philips, 1976)

With Horace Silver

• The Jody Grind (Blue Note, 1966)

With Heiner Stadler

• Brains on Fire (Labor, 1973)

With Larry Young

• Contrasts (Blue Note, 1967)