On July 18, 1939, Saxophonist Coleman Hawkins recorded the jazz classic “Body and Soul”. Born in Saint Joseph, Missouri, Coleman Randolph Hawkins- nicknamed “Hawk” and sometimes “Bean”- went to school in Chicago and Kansas. Coleman began playing the saxophone at the tender age of nine.
He played with several bands including the Jazz Hounds and Henderson Orchestra. While in London, Coleman played for Jack Hylton’s band and also worked with other great musicians in Paris, 1937. As a soloist musician he toured Europe in 1939.
Coleman influenced the Bepob musical movement of the 1940s. He was a prominent jazz musician that many others saw as an original. Miles Davis once said, “When I heard Hawk, I learned to play ballads”.
The Song of the Hawk is a biography that chronicled Hawkins life and contributions he made as a big time jazz musician.
To enjoy Hawkins’ music click here
