Veteran jazz drummer Roy Haynes died in Nassau County, New York, on Tuesday at age 99, said his daughter Leslie Haynes-Gilmore.
Haynes-Gilmore said The New York Times that his father died on the south shore of Long Island after a brief illness.
Haynes’ time with his drums spanned more than 70 years, as he played alongside legendary figures such as Miles Davis, Charlie Parker and Sarah Vaughan, according to the newspaper.
The newspaper emphasized his innovations and longevity, calling him “an irrepressible force who proudly remained relevant and elegant during a career that spanned seven decades, having participated in every major development of modern jazz, beginning in the era of bebop.”
Haynes was born on March 13, 1925, and raised in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston. He began playing music in his teens and was already playing full-time as a career by the age of 20.
Veteran jazz drummer Roy Haynes died in Nassau County, New York, on Tuesday at age 99, said his daughter Leslie Haynes-Gilmore. Photographed in 1981 in San Francisco, California.
Haynes photographed backstage at the Blue Note nightclub in New York on June 27, 2013.
In the 1940s, he collaborated with saxophonist Lester Young and, between 1949 and 1952, he was a member of the Charlie Parker Quintet. In 1952, Haynes turned down an offer to play alongside Duke Ellington to ply his trade in smaller bands where he had more creative space to work with.
Other notable names Haynes worked with included late legends such as Ray Charles, Thelonious Monk, Stan Getz and Art Blakey.
Haynes also worked as a bandleader and released his debut album Busman’s Holiday in 1954, the newspaper reported.
Haynes’ albums as a bandleader included 1958’s We Three with bassist Paul Chambers and pianist Phineas Newborn Jr.; and Out of the Afternoon, from 1962, with Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Tommy Flanagan and Henry Grimes.
Haynes had also played on collaborative albums such as Eric Dolphy’s 1960 album Outward Bound, Oliver Nelson’s 1961 album The Blues and the Abstract Truth, Stan Getz’s 1962 album Focus, and Chick Corea’s 1968 album Now. He Sings, Now He Sobs.
Throughout his decades-long career, Haynes won two Grammy Awards with eight nominationsfirst in 1988 for his Blues For Coltrane – A Tribute To John Coltrane for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group. He also won Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Individual or Group for Like Minds in 1999.
The Grammys also gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. The Jazz Foundation of America gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.
In 1996, the French government awarded Haynes the title of Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters. The New England Conservatory and Berklee College of Music also awarded him honorary doctorates.
Haynes, who worked alongside late legends such as Ray Charles, Thelonious Monk, Stan Getz and Art Blakey, was photographed in 2011 in New York.
Over the course of her decades-long career, Haynes won two Grammy Awards with eight nominations and received a Lifetime Achievement Award. Photographed in 2011 with former Grammy Chairman Neil Portnow.
Musician and educator Peter Erskine said Haynes embodied a futuristic sound.
Jazz author Ted Gioia praised Haynes for what he described as “an incredible career.”
Several fans praised the late jazz drummer amid news of his death.
Haynes was fondly remembered by several people amid the news of his passing.
Musician and educator Peter Erskine said: “When you heard Roy Haynes play, it was as if the music sent you a postcard saying, ‘Greetings from the future. I wish you were here!” RIP, teacher.’
Jazz author Ted Gioia praised Haynes for what he described as “an incredible career.”
“RIP jazz drum legend Roy Haynes, leaving us at 99 years old,” Gioia said. “Along the way, he performed with John Coltrane, Lester Young, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Chick Corea, Sarah Vaughan, Dave Brubeck, Stan Getz and many, many others.”
Musician Emmet Cohen wrote: ‘ROY HAYNES! May he rest in power to one of American music’s greatest innovators, who forever changed the scope of the drum set and left an indelible mark of excellence on this Earth!!!’
One fan called Haynes “one of the most important jazz drummers of our time.”
‘Drums were the first instrument I learned and it had a huge influence on the community as a whole. Real life legend who made it to 99!’
Another said: “RIP Roy Haynes, one of the absolute greats.”
Haynes, photographed in Los Angeles in 1989, was called “one of the most important jazz drummers of our time” in a tribute.
Haynes photographed at the Village Vanguard nightclub in New York on June 1, 1993.
Some users noted the recent series of deaths of several prominent and stalwart musicians, including Hayes, Lou Donaldson and Quincy Jones this month; and Benny Golson in September
One user said they were “very heartbroken to hear the sad news,” and called Haynes “connected to so many generations of black music.”
Some users noted the recent series of deaths of several prominent and stalwart musicians, including Hayes, Lou Donaldson and Quincy Jones this month; and Benny Golson in September.
“We just lost Lou Donaldson and Roy Haynes in less than a week,” one user said. “May these legends live forever.”
Another said: “2024 has been tough getting our seniors out of here,” while another called Haynes “one of the greatest drummers who ever lived.”
Haynes and his late wife Jesse Lee Nevels Haynes, who died in 1979, were the parents of three children, the newspaper reported. Haynes is survived by his daughter and two sons, Craig and Graham, both musicians; eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.