DIZZY REECE

Alphonso Son "Dizzy" Reece (* 5 January 1931 in Kingston (Jamaica) ) is a jazz - trumpet of hard bop. Dizzy Reece is the son of a silent movie pianist. He first played tenor and baritone saxophone and changed to the trumpet at the age of fourteen. At the age of sixteen he was a professional musician, went to London in 1948 and played there with Victor Feldman and Tubby Hayes ; There was a series of albums and EPs for the label Tempo . He worked in Europe in the 1950s, most of the time in Paris , but also in Holland, Spain and Germany, where he also played with the Beromünster Entertainment Orchestra . In Paris he played with Don Byas , Kenny Clarke , Frank Foster and Thad Jones, In 1959 he went to New York . Reece recorded a number of albums for the Blue Note label and had his own formation with Art Taylor . Dizzy Reece is still active as a musician; Throughout his career he has recorded with Dexter Gordon , Victor Feldman , Tubby Hayes , the Paris Reunion Band , the Clifford Jordan Big Band, Ted Curson , Duke Jordan , John Gilmore and Philly Joe Jones .

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One of only a few non-Americans to record for Blue Note in the 50s, Jamaican-born Alphonso “Dizzy” Reece was a professional musician by the time he was 16 but his career rapidly took off after a move to Europe, where he truly entered the ranks of the best jazz trumpeters in history. His admirers included Miles Davis, and fellow trumpeter Donald Byrd guested on the Jamaican’s Blue Note debut, Blues In Trinity. Reece also worked with Hank Mobley and Dexter Gordon, though he remains a cult figure.