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Don Alias

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Don Alias
Birth nameCharles Alias
Born(1939-12-25)December 25, 1939
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedMarch 28, 2006(2006-03-28) (aged 66)
New York, New York, U.S.
Genres
OccupationMusician
InstrumentPercussion
Years active1960s–2006
WebsiteOfficial website

Charles "Don" Alias[1] (December 25, 1939 – March 28, 2006)[2] was an American jazz percussionist.

Alias was best known for playing congas and other hand drums. He was, however, a capable drum kit performer: for example, Alias played drums on the song "Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" from trumpeter Miles Davis's album Bitches Brew (1969) when neither Lenny White nor Jack DeJohnette was able to play the marching band-inspired rhythm requested by Davis.[3] He also played drums and percussion on the Joni Mitchell live album Shadows and Light.

Alias performed on hundreds of recordings and was perhaps best known for his associations with Miles Davis and saxophonist David Sanborn, though he also performed and recorded with artists such as Weather Report, Joni Mitchell, Herbie Hancock, the Brecker Brothers, Jaco Pastorius, Pat Metheny, Nina Simone, and many others.

Early life

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Alias was born in New York City on December 25th, 1939. [4]

He studied piano and guitar as a boy but turned to percussion, using the rhythms he learned on New York's streets and one-on-one lessons with the percussionist Mongo Santamaria as a foundation.[4] At 16 years old, he was enrolled as a conga player for the Eartha Kitt Dance Foundation when he landed his first professional gig playing with Dizzy Gillespie at the Newport Jazz Festival.[4]

He had a degree in biology, studying at Gannon College and the Carnegie Institute for Biochemistry in Boston.[4] He followed this degree at the insistence of his mother, who wanted him to have a career besides music to fall back on. During his time in Boston, he played in jazz night clubs, where he met students from the Berklee College of Music, which aided him in entering the music industry.

Career

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Touring with Stone Alliance

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While at school in Boston, Alias met bassist Gene Perla, with whom he formed the jazz trio Stone Alliance in 1964.[5] The group, which included saxophonist Steve Grossman, centered on jazz, Afro-Cuban, rock, and pop music.

In 1976, the trio began a 15-day tour in Chile, through the US State Department Jazz Diplomacy program.[6] The initial leg with 10 locations in Chile extended into a 6-month tour with stops in Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina.

The group totaled 2 South American tours, 4 European tours, and 2 in Canada. The band recorded four studio albums between 1976 and 1980, with live albums from Amsterdam, Buenos Aires, Berlin, and Bremen.[7] After a 13-year hiatus, the group returned as a power trio with guitarist Mitch Stein playing 2 notable shows in New York City.

Work with Miles Davis and others

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Charles “Don” Alias playing alongside Miles Davis, Keith Jarrett, Michael Henderson, Leon "Ndugu" Chancler, Gary Bartz, and James Forman.

His work with Nina Simone caught the eye of Miles Davis, who recruited him to play trap-set drums on Bitches Brew.[8] His impact as a percussionist was not lost among the A-list group responsible for this album, as critics and journalists have recounted that “the heart of Bitches Brew is that driving rhythm section” and “is in many ways the revolutionary art the album is famed for.”[citation needed] Alias played alongside Jack DeJohnette and utilized a “lean and loose” syncopation, which drew from New Orleans parade tunes.

Alias’ most prominent work was with saxophonist David Sanborn, for whom he worked as a stage and studio member for nearly 20 years.[9] During these sessions and beyond, he paid careful attention to detail and had a dedication to the improvement of every member of the group. Sanborn remarked that Alias would consistently come to sessions offering specific improvements based on the previous day's work. Sanborn says "[Alias] immersed himself 100 percent in the music, and he gave his all to the music.”[9]

His work reached its widest audience as the drummer for Joni Mitchell’s live album Shadows and Light, which notably features his drum kit on the cover. For Mitchell's second live album, she recruited many well-known jazz artists, such as Pat Metheny, Jaco Pastorius, Lyle Mays, and Michael Brecker. Alias also served as the studio percussionist for Mitchell's early jazz-influenced albums. On Don Juan's Reckless Daughter, he played congas, claves, snare drums, and sandpaper blocks; he also provided some background vocals. Alias played congas on the Mingus album.

Style and influence

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Alias credited his playing style to Cuban and Puerto Rican hand drummers, whose techniques he said he picked up from the streets of New York.[4] From this background, he often played congas, bongos, and other hand drums, rather than a traditional drum kit.

Gene Perla was responsible for introducing Alias to singer-songwriter Nina Simone, for whom he switched gears and played a traditional full-set drum kit.[4] This change did not present a challenge; instead, Alias thrived and eventually became her musical director.

Death

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After his long career as a sideman (and just before a planned tour with David Sanborn), Alias passed away at his home on March 28, 2006, at age 66. Alias is survived by his son, Charles Donald Alias Jr.; his daughter, Kimberlee Marisa Alias; and four grandchildren. [4]

Discography

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As sideman

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With Philip Bailey

With Cheryl Bentyne

  • Talk of The Town (Paddle Wheel, 2002)
  • The Lights Still Burn (Paddle Wheel, 2003)
  • Moonlight Serenade (King, 2003)
  • The Book of Love (Telarc, 2006)

With Carla Bley

With Blood, Sweat & Tears

With Jonathan Butler

  • Heal Our Hand (Jive, 1990)
  • Head to Head (Mercury, 1993)

With Uri Caine

With David Clayton-Thomas

  • Bloodlines (DCT, 1999)

With Marc Cohn

With Miles Davis

With Jack DeJohnette

With Klaus Doldinger

  • Doldinger in New York – Street of Dreams (WEA, 1994)

With Eliane Elias

With Joe Farrell

With Roberta Flack

With Dan Fogelberg

With Michael Franks

With Bill Frisell

With Hal Galper

With Kenny Garrett

With Don Grolnick Group

With Herbie Hancock

With Ian Hunter

With Elvin Jones

With Dave Liebman

With Joe Lovano

With Pat Metheny Group

With Bob Mintzer

  • One Music (DMP, 1991)

With Joni Mitchell

With Jane Monheit

  • In the Sun (N-Coded, 2002)

With Pages

  • Future Street (Epic, 1979)

With Jaco Pastorius

With Weather Report

With Lou Reed

With Sanne Salomonsen

  • In a New York Minute (Virgin, 1998)

With Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin

With Lalo Schifrin

With Marlena Shaw

  • Love is in Flight (Verve, 1988)

With Nina Simone

With Jeremy Steig

With Ira Sullivan

With Steve Swallow

With James Taylor

With The Tony Williams Lifetime

  • Ego (Polydor, 1971)

References

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  1. ^ surname pronounced ah-LIE-ahs
  2. ^ Chinen, Nate (April 5, 2006). "Don Alias, 66, Percussionist and Sideman, Is Dead (Published 2006)". The New York Times. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  3. ^ see the notes for The Complete Bitches Brew Sessions (1998)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Chinen, Nate (April 5, 2006). "The New York Times". Retrieved December 10, 2024.
  5. ^ "Stone Alliance ~ History". www.stonealliance.com. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
  6. ^ "Jazz Diplomacy: Then and Now". United States Department of State. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
  7. ^ "Stone Alliance Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & M..." AllMusic. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
  8. ^ "Running The Voodoo Down - Bitches Brew At Fifty". The Big Takeover. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
  9. ^ a b "NPR". April 9, 2006. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
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