WAYNE SHORTER

Hard Bop / Post Bop / Fusion / 21st Century Modern / Avant-Garde Jazz / Post-Fusion Contemporary / World Fusion / Third Stream • United States
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Wayne Shorter (August 25, 1933 – March 2, 2023) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Shorter came to prominence in the late 1950s as a member of, and eventually primary composer for, Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. In the 1960s, he joined Miles Davis's Second Great Quintet, and then co-founded the jazz fusion band Weather Report. He has recorded over 20 albums as a bandleader.

Many Shorter compositions have become jazz standards, and his music has earned worldwide recognition, critical praise, and commendation. Shorter won 12 Grammy Awards. He was acclaimed for his mastery of the soprano saxophone since switching his focus from the tenor in the late 1960s and beginning an extended reign in 1970 as Down Beat's annual poll-winner on that instrument, winning the critics' poll for 10 consecutive years and the readers' for 18. The New York Times' Ben Ratliff described Shorter in 2008 as "probably jazz's greatest
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WAYNE SHORTER Discography

WAYNE SHORTER albums / top albums

WAYNE SHORTER Introducing Wayne Shorter (aka Blues à la Carte aka Shorter Moments) album cover 3.76 | 10 ratings
Introducing Wayne Shorter (aka Blues à la Carte aka Shorter Moments)
Hard Bop 1960
WAYNE SHORTER Wayning Moments album cover 3.86 | 7 ratings
Wayning Moments
Hard Bop 1962
WAYNE SHORTER Night Dreamer album cover 4.45 | 19 ratings
Night Dreamer
Hard Bop 1964
WAYNE SHORTER Juju album cover 4.23 | 24 ratings
Juju
Hard Bop 1965
WAYNE SHORTER The All Seeing Eye album cover 4.60 | 15 ratings
The All Seeing Eye
Avant-Garde Jazz 1966
WAYNE SHORTER Speak No Evil album cover 4.37 | 29 ratings
Speak No Evil
Post Bop 1966
WAYNE SHORTER Adam's Apple album cover 4.49 | 21 ratings
Adam's Apple
Hard Bop 1966
WAYNE SHORTER Schizophrenia album cover 3.50 | 15 ratings
Schizophrenia
Post Bop 1969
WAYNE SHORTER Super Nova album cover 3.63 | 11 ratings
Super Nova
Avant-Garde Jazz 1969
WAYNE SHORTER Odyssey of Iska album cover 4.19 | 12 ratings
Odyssey of Iska
Fusion 1971
WAYNE SHORTER Moto Grosso Feio album cover 3.88 | 7 ratings
Moto Grosso Feio
Fusion 1974
WAYNE SHORTER Second Genesis album cover 3.40 | 5 ratings
Second Genesis
Hard Bop 1974
WAYNE SHORTER Native Dancer album cover 3.52 | 11 ratings
Native Dancer
World Fusion 1975
WAYNE SHORTER The Soothsayer album cover 3.82 | 12 ratings
The Soothsayer
Hard Bop 1979
WAYNE SHORTER The Collector (aka Etcetera) album cover 4.47 | 12 ratings
The Collector (aka Etcetera)
Post Bop 1979
WAYNE SHORTER Atlantis album cover 4.17 | 6 ratings
Atlantis
World Fusion 1985
WAYNE SHORTER Phantom Navigator album cover 3.65 | 8 ratings
Phantom Navigator
Fusion 1987
WAYNE SHORTER Joy Ryder album cover 3.04 | 5 ratings
Joy Ryder
Fusion 1988
WAYNE SHORTER Wayne Shorter & Paul Chambers : Alternate Takes Of Introducing Wayne Shorter & Go album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Wayne Shorter & Paul Chambers : Alternate Takes Of Introducing Wayne Shorter & Go
Hard Bop 1990
WAYNE SHORTER High Life album cover 3.33 | 6 ratings
High Life
Post Bop 1995
WAYNE SHORTER Alegria album cover 3.69 | 9 ratings
Alegria
Post-Fusion Contemporary 2003

WAYNE SHORTER EPs & splits

WAYNE SHORTER live albums

WAYNE SHORTER Tribute to John Coltrane: Live Under the Red Sky album cover 3.50 | 1 ratings
Tribute to John Coltrane: Live Under the Red Sky
Post Bop 1987
WAYNE SHORTER Footprints Live! album cover 4.33 | 6 ratings
Footprints Live!
Post-Fusion Contemporary 2002
WAYNE SHORTER Beyound the Sound Barrier album cover 4.09 | 7 ratings
Beyound the Sound Barrier
21st Century Modern 2005
WAYNE SHORTER Without a Net album cover 4.50 | 5 ratings
Without a Net
Post Bop 2013
WAYNE SHORTER North Sea Jazz Legendary Concerts album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
North Sea Jazz Legendary Concerts
Post Bop 2013
WAYNE SHORTER Emanon album cover 4.50 | 3 ratings
Emanon
Third Stream 2018
WAYNE SHORTER Live At The Detroit Jazz Festival album cover 3.00 | 2 ratings
Live At The Detroit Jazz Festival
21st Century Modern 2022
WAYNE SHORTER Celebration, Volume 1 album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Celebration, Volume 1
21st Century Modern 2024

WAYNE SHORTER demos, promos, fans club and other releases (no bootlegs)

WAYNE SHORTER re-issues & compilations

WAYNE SHORTER Wayne Shorter album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Wayne Shorter
Hard Bop 1973
WAYNE SHORTER New Soil album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
New Soil
Hard Bop 1977
WAYNE SHORTER The Best of Wayne Shorter: The Blue Note Years album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Best of Wayne Shorter: The Blue Note Years
Hard Bop 1988
WAYNE SHORTER This Is Jazz album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
This Is Jazz
Hard Bop 1996
WAYNE SHORTER Jazz Profile album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Jazz Profile
Hard Bop 1997
WAYNE SHORTER All or Nothing at All album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
All or Nothing at All
Hard Bop 2002
WAYNE SHORTER The Classic Blue Note Recordings album cover 5.00 | 1 ratings
The Classic Blue Note Recordings
Hard Bop 2002
WAYNE SHORTER Footprints: The Life and Music of Wayne Shorter album cover 3.75 | 2 ratings
Footprints: The Life and Music of Wayne Shorter
Hard Bop 2004
WAYNE SHORTER First Class Jazz album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
First Class Jazz
Hard Bop 2006
WAYNE SHORTER Great Sessions album cover 5.00 | 1 ratings
Great Sessions
Post Bop 2006
WAYNE SHORTER Best Of 3 CD album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Best Of 3 CD
Hard Bop 2009
WAYNE SHORTER Introducing Wayne Shorter Quintet With Wynton Kelly & Lee Morgan album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
Introducing Wayne Shorter Quintet With Wynton Kelly & Lee Morgan
Hard Bop 2011
WAYNE SHORTER 4 Albums album cover 5.00 | 1 ratings
4 Albums
Hard Bop 2011
WAYNE SHORTER The Composer album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Composer
Hard Bop 2011
WAYNE SHORTER The Complete Columbia Albums Collection album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Complete Columbia Albums Collection
Fusion 2011
WAYNE SHORTER The Blue Note Albums album cover 0.00 | 0 ratings
The Blue Note Albums
Hard Bop 2015
WAYNE SHORTER 5 Original Albums album cover 5.00 | 1 ratings
5 Original Albums
Hard Bop 2016
WAYNE SHORTER Miles Davis Tribute Album album cover 4.00 | 1 ratings
Miles Davis Tribute Album
Post Bop 2019

WAYNE SHORTER singles (0)

WAYNE SHORTER movies (DVD, Blu-Ray or VHS)

.. Album Cover
0.00 | 0 ratings
The Language of the Unknown
Post Bop 2014

WAYNE SHORTER Reviews

WAYNE SHORTER Speak No Evil

Album · 1966 · Post Bop
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FunkFreak75
I really dig this album. With the exception of the second song, "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum" I consider each one of these songs to be supreme examples of the sublime, melodic jazz that bridged jazz's Kind of Blue and My Favorite Things era with the melodic beauty of albums like Bill Evans' Conversations with Myself and Vince Guaradli's A Charlie Brown Christmas (all for being very important, seminal albums for me). Also, I don't really know why, but I've never heard MIles Davis' trumpet as an engaging sound-maker, but I've always had an easy and very positive connection with the playing of Freddie Hubbard. Though I've had a lifelong love-hate relationship with Ron Carter's styles of bass playing, I've always respected it. Same for Herbie: his journey deep into the realms of electronic sounds and effects were never as engaging or alluring for me as his exquisite piano playing. And Elvin Jones is among the very best to every sit behind a kit. The most surprising thing about this album is how much I love the compositions: especially Wayne's amazing "touch" with creating long, drawn-out, BEAUTIFUL melodies. (Like Miles' trumpet play, Wayne's sax play within the Weather Report discography have never impressed or engaged me.) This combo makes for such a great unit, it's no wonder that three-fifths of them transferred so easily (so telepathically) into Miles' "Second Great Quintet" (right after the recording of this album!)

Without question this is a five star album of incredible music.

WAYNE SHORTER Phantom Navigator

Album · 1987 · Fusion
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Mssr_Renard
Elektrik Band of Chick Corea.

At least there is some tempo in the music, so it doesn't fall in the category I call Fuzak, like Spyro Gyro and Yellowjackets.

The production is loud and it all sounds very distant. There are electronic drums, programmed drums, synths, sequencers all over the place, drowning the sparse saxophone-moments. I cannot say that this album is essential Wayne Shorter-stuff.

I like my jazzrock and fusion, but not this way. The band sounds like Rush or Yes these days. The eighties were a difficult time for jazz-musicians. And although there was a bop-revival (Hubbard, Shaw, Marsalis) some artists jumped on the electric fusion-train and this one is electric fusion at its loudest.

WAYNE SHORTER The Soothsayer

Album · 1979 · Hard Bop
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Mssr_Renard
I must say that this Shorter-album is one of my favourites, and I consider this one to be a tad overlooked by people. This album was released in the late seventies but contains songs recorded on march 4th 1965 and the line-up is a special one.

McCoy Tyner plays with Shorter on JuJu, while on most Shorter-albums Hancock handles the piano. The Spaulding-Hubbard-Shorter pairing is just perfect, wich is also used on The All Seeing Eye (augmented by Alan Shorter and Moncour).

Also very special about this album is Tony Williams on drums, because Shorter worked mostly with Elvin Jones and Joe Chambers. Tony and Wayne were both members of Miles' group so it is not that odd.

All musicians involved in this wonderful album have their moments, but I think it's mostly the Shorter-Spaulding pairing that makes this album interesting. The two saxes sound excellent on the unisono-parts but the solo-trading is great to. I think that Hubbard is the least prominent.

I already have most of the VSOP-albums (Shorter-Hubbard-Williams-Carter-Hancock) of the late seventies and somehow this album can be seen as a pre-cursor of those great albums.

The music and compositions of this album are much more mature than the Art Blakey-albums Shorter played on. My guess is that Shorter kept the best compositions for himself. This is wonderful album wich should have been released in the sixties and fits perfectly in the string of albums JuJu, Adam's Apple, Speak No Evil, All Seeing Eye, etc.

WAYNE SHORTER Beyound the Sound Barrier

Live album · 2005 · 21st Century Modern
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Steve Wyzard
TOUR HIGHLIGHTS

Recorded between November 2002 and April 2004 before very enthusiastic crowds, Beyond the Sound Barrier can best be described as a collection of tour highlights. I hope that doesn't sound too disparaging, because we are treated to some truly awe-inspiring performances. Yet at 61:17, it seems obvious that Verve Records didn't want to put out a double-disc set of a full concert. Instead, they have given us a "best of" selection without duplicating any titles from the previous live album, Footprints Live (2002).

When you are Wayne Shorter, you don't have to settle for just anybody, or whoever happens to be available when putting together a touring ensemble. If Wayne is on the line, nobody says, "Let me check my schedule." With John Patitucci on bass, Danilo Perez on piano, and Brian Blade on drums, Shorter would have been very hard-pressed to find more qualified players. These are all world-class performers of jaw-dropping virtuosity, and an excellent live mix makes sure every note comes through perfectly. Patitucci in particular shines extra brightly on this album.

So what do we get in a mere 61:17? "As Far as the Eye Can See" and "On Wings of Song" are both faded early in mid-performance. "Beyond the Sound Barrier" is faded in, then faded out. "Tinker Bell" is a brief trio improv with Shorter sitting out. The remaining 4 tracks are all complete performances. Shorter devotes far more time to the soprano sax than the tenor, but we aren't complaining. Don't miss his and Patitucci's amazing solos on "Joy Ryder", or Perez's stunning work on "Adventures Aboard the Golden Mean". The listener is almost tempted to take Blade's drumming for granted, but he never allows us to do just that.

This disc could have accommodated 18 more minutes of music, but for unknown reasons, Verve decided we could do without. That alone prevents this album from a higher ranking, because the actual performances could not be topped. Had I known about the truncated recordings, I would still have bought the album, as I am a huge fan of all the players involved. And while it does leave one to wonder what remains languishing in "the vaults", let us be thankful for what we do have here, especially for those of us who've never seen these guys live.

WAYNE SHORTER The Collector (aka Etcetera)

Album · 1979 · Post Bop
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Steve Wyzard
WAYNE: THE GREAT ONE

So what's the best Wayne Shorter album? While many would opt for Night Dreamer, The All-Seeing Eye, or Adam's Apple, let it be said here that in spite of its complicated release history, Et Cetera is his crowning achievement as a leader in the studio. Recorded on June 14, 1965, four of the five tracks (all except "Toy Tune") were released with "The Collector" (an outtake from Adam's Apple) in Japan only. The full album was finally given a wide release as part of Blue Note's "LT" series in 1980.

As of this writing (2019), all four performers are still with us today: Wayne on tenor sax, Herbie Hancock on piano, Cecil McBee on bass, and Joe Chambers on drums. The low-key opener, "Etcetera" (6:20) is an ever-opening flower, both hypnotizing and unforgettable as it gradually unfolds. I have no idea if this was ever performed live, but it would have made a phenomenal solo trade-off number on stage. One of Shorter's most beautiful ballads, "Penelope" (6:44), comes next, with Wayne's tone and Herbie's solo being especially poignant. The light and breezy "Toy Tune" (7:22) is followed by Gil Evans's "Barracudas" (11:04). This intense workout gives the group a chance to stretch out, with both Wayne and Herbie having their most awe-inspiring moments on the album. Cecil McBee's bizarre bassline and substantial solo dominate the closing "Indian Song" (11:35). Everyone is at the top of their game throughout, and fans of all four players are urged to seek this one out.

It remains an unfathomable mystery why it took 15 years for this album to be released in USA/Europe. I will even go so far as to say that this is the best release in the famous (or is it infamous?) "LT" series, beating out Larry Young's Mother Ship and Grant Green's Nigeria by a close margin. Don't let Et Cetera's original cover dissuade you: yes, it's a wall of TV's. Huh?

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