thumb|406x406px|Charles Gayle, George Wein's CareFusion Jazz Festival 55 – Newport, RI

Charles Gayle (February 28, 1939 – September 7, 2023) was an American free jazz musician. Initially known as a saxophonist who came to prominence in the 1990s after decades of obscurity, Gayle also performed as pianist, bass clarinetist, bassist, and percussionist.

Biography

Charles Gayle was born on February 28, 1939, in Buffalo, New York. He briefly taught music at the University at Buffalo before relocating to New York City during the early 1970s. He had described making a conscious decision to become homeless: "I had to shed my history, my life, everything had to stop right there, and if you live through this, good, and if you don't, you don't. I can't do the rent, the odd jobs, the little rooms, scratchin', and all that, no!" It consisted mostly of straightforward jazz standards,

Gayle appears in the 1985 Jazz documentary, "Rising Tones Cross", directed by Ebba Jahn. He is seen playing with Rashied Ali, Marilyn Crispell, and many others, and is interviewed.

Charles Gayle died in Brooklyn, New York on September 7 2023, at the age of 84. He had suffered from complications of Alzheimer's disease.

Discography

As leader or co-leader

  • Always Born (Silkheart, 1988)
  • Homeless (Silkheart, 1989)
  • Spirits Before (Silkheart, 1988)
  • Repent (Knitting Factory, 1992)
  • More Live at the Knitting Factory (Knitting Factory, 1993)
  • Touchin' on Trane (FMP, 1993)
  • Consecration (Black Saint, 1993)
  • Raining Fire (Silkheart, 1993)
  • Translations (Silkheart, 1993)
  • Live at Disobey (Blast First, 1994)
  • Kingdom Come (Knitting Factory, 1994)
  • Unto I Am (Victo, 1995)
  • Testaments (Knitting Factory, 1995)
  • Delivered (2.13.61, 1997)
  • Berlin Movement from Future Years (FMP, 1997)
  • Solo in Japan (PSF, 1997)
  • Daily Bread (Black Saint, 1998)
  • Ancient of Days (Knitting Factory, 1999)
  • Abiding Variations (FMP, 1999)
  • Jazz Solo Piano (Knitting Factory, 2001)
  • Precious Soul (FMP, 2001)
  • No Bills (Long Arms, 2005)
  • Shout! (Clean Feed, 2005)
  • Time Zones (Tompkins Square, 2006)
  • Live at Glenn Miller Cafe (Ayler, 2006)
  • Consider the Lilies (Clean Feed, 2006)
  • Blue Shadows (Silkheart, 2007)
  • Forgiveness (Not Two, 2008)
  • Live at Crescendo (Ayler, 2008) with By Any Means (Gayle, William Parker, and Rashied Ali)
  • Our Souls: Live in Vilnius (NoBusiness, 2010)
  • Streets (Northern Spy, 2012)
  • Look Up (ESP Disk, 2012)
  • Christ Everlasting (For Tune, 2015)
  • Solar System (For Tune, 2017)
  • Seasons Changing (Otoroku 2019)
  • The Alto Sessions (El Negocito, 2019)

As sideman

  • Sunny Murray, Illuminators (Audible Hiss, 1996)
  • William Parker, Requiem (Splasc(H), 2006)
  • William Parker. For Those Who Are, Still (Aum Fidelity 2015) Charles Gayle on Disc Three.
  • Henry Rollins, Everything (2.13.61, 1996)
  • Henry Rollins, Weighting (2.13.61, 2003)
  • Sirone and Billy Bang, Configuration (Silkheart, 2005)
  • Cecil Taylor, Always a Pleasure (FMP, 1996)

References

  • The FMP releases
  • Charles Gayle interview by Howard Mandel for The Wire