ROY HAYNES
Roy Owen Haynes was born March 13, 1925, in Boston, Massachusetts. Roy is eighty-seven years old and still performing today. He is an American jazz drummer and bandleader, and is among the most recorded drummers in jazz and has a career lasting more than 60 years. Haynes 's early interest in jazz developed in large part from the influence of his older brother, Douglas. A jazz record collector who worked as a roadie for Blanche Calloway in the 1930s, Douglas introduced Roy to the jazz world, playing records and supplying him with his first pair of drumsticks. Douglas even introduced the Roy to Jo Jones, who quickly became his primary drum influence. To this day, Haynes still references Jones 's drumming on the Count Basie record "The World is Mad" as a career defining listening experience.
Haynes performed in all of the school bands while at James P. Timilty Junior High School. Outside of school, Haynes briefly studied the drumming rudiments with Herbie Wright, James Reese Europe 's former drummer. Haynes was also mentored by Bobby Donaldson, a neighbor and prominent local drummer who had played with Andy Kirk, Benny Goodman and Curtis Fuller. As Haynes began his high school years, at the age of sixteen as a self-taught musician, he had already established a reputation as an up-and-coming drummer with an distinctive musical instinct and natural feel. Among his early gigs around the Boston area were stints with singer Mabel Robinson, trumpeter Frankie Newton, and altoist Pete Brown. There he started his professional career in 1944 playing with Sabby Lewis, and other lesser-known local groups. The following year he moved to N.Y., working at Harlem 's famous Savoy Ballroom with Luis Russell 's Orchestra, of which he was a member until 1947. Roy says that his big inspiration on the drums was the great Papa Joe Jones. He has also led his own groups, some performing under the name Hip Ensemble, his most recent recordings as a leader are
References: Novod, Eric. "Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians." Jazz. N.p.. Web. 10 Mar 2013. <http://www.jazz.com/encyclopedia/haynes-roy-owen>. Wilson, Jeremy. "Roy Haynes Biography." Jazz Biography. N.p.. Web. 10 Mar 2013. <http://www.jazzbiographies.com/Biography.aspx?ID=2426>.