Frank Wright
Biography
Wright never made much of a name for himself outside the innermost circle of free jazz musicians and fans, yet he was influential in his own subversive way. Unlike Ornette Coleman, Albert Ayler, or Cecil Taylor -- peers and contemporaries who were the same age or only slightly older -- Wright never recorded even a single record under his own name for a major label; he was "underground" his entire career. Ayler's scalding abstract expressionism was the prime influence on Wright, who transformed it with his own personality and passed it on. Echoes of Wright's playing can be heard in the work of such younger saxophonists as Glenn Spearman, Sabir Mateen, Charles Gayle, and Thomas Borgmann.
Wright played electric bass as a young man, performing in R&B bands in Memphis and Cleveland -- Albert Ayler's hometown. It was there that he met Ayler, who inspired him to take up the tenor saxophone. Wright moved to New York in the early '60s and established himself on the burgeoning free jazz scene, playing with such musicians as organist Larry Young, saxophonist Noah Howard, and drummer Sunny Murray. Wright also played briefly with John Coltrane and Cecil Taylor. He led his first record date in 1965, Frank Wright Trio for the ESP label; his band included bassist Henry Grimes and drummer Tom Price.
Selected Discography
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