Eddie Marshall, influential jazz drummer for more than four decades, has died. He passed away Wednesday, September 7, of a heart attack. Eddie was 73.
click all images (1)
Eddie Marshall was a very accomplished sideman who performed alongside a who's-who of jazz and R&B stars during his lengthy career. The list includes Freddie Hubbard, Jon Hendricks, Dexter Gordon, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Eddie Harris, Dionne Warwick, the Pointer Sisters and Bobby Hutcherson.
Born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts, Edidie took up drums as a teenager. He began gigging with local acts while in high school. His career took flight after moving in 1956 to New York City, where he joined ensembles led by saxophonist Charlie Mariano and pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi. In the 1960s, Eddie landed a spot in Dionne Warwick's touring band.
The drummer relocated to San Francisco in the late '60s, quickly becoming an essential ingredient in the Bay Area's musical mix. He was the house drummer at San Francisco's legendary Keystone Korner club in the '70s.
He also performed in the pioneering jazz-fusion act the Fourth Way and formed significant alliances with such gifted Bay Area figures as Bobby McFerrin and Hutcherson. The latter relationship produced some particularly acclaimed efforts, including 1976's 'Waiting' and 1978's 'Highway One' (both credited to Hutcherson).
His rich legacy of recordings and collaborations is a testament to the fact that countless band leaders found his talents invaluable.
Eddie Marshall also led a couple of his own recording sessions, most notably on 1999's 'Holy Mischief', and formed his own bands and ensembles. He also taught at the San Francisco School of the Arts and other institutions.
In 2000, he became the first recipient of SFJAZZ's Beacon Award, which honors those who have "helped to preserve a place for jazz in the San Francisco Bay Area."
Eddie Marshall, influential jazz drummer for more than four decades, has died. He passed away Wednesday, September 7, of a heart attack. Eddie was 73.
