Percy Heath was born on April 30, 1923, and passed away on April 28, 2005. He was an American jazz bassist and the brother of saxophonist Jimmy Heath and drummer Albert Heath. Along with his brothers, Percy formed the Heath Brothers in 1975. Percy played with the Modern Jazz Quartet for many years. He also worked with famous musicians such as Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Wes Montgomery, Thelonious Monk, and Lee Konitz.

Biography

Percy Heath was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States, and grew up in Philadelphia. His father played the clarinet, and his mother sang in the church choir. He began playing the violin at age eight and also performed in local singing groups. He joined the Army in 1944, trained with the Tuskegee Airmen, and graduated as a 2nd Lieutenant pilot, though he did not participate in combat.

After the war, Heath decided to pursue a career in music. He purchased a stand-up bass and enrolled in the Granoff School of Music in Philadelphia. He soon performed in the city’s jazz clubs with famous musicians. In 1948, he recorded with his brother on an album by Milt Jackson, as part of the Howard McGhee Sextet. Later, in the late 1940s, he moved to New York and worked with Dizzy Gillespie’s groups. At the same time, he was also a member of Joe Morris’s band, along with Johnny Griffin.

Members of Dizzy Gillespie’s big band, including pianist John Lewis, drummer Kenny Clarke, Milt Jackson, and bassist Ray Brown, later decided to form a permanent group. These musicians were known for their musical interludes during Gillespie’s performances, which provided breaks for the rest of the band. This group eventually became the Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ). When Ray Brown left to join Ella Fitzgerald’s band, Heath joined the group. The MJQ officially began in 1952, with Connie Kay replacing Kenny Clarke in 1955. The group performed regularly until it ended in 1974. It reunited in 1981 and made its final recordings in 1993.

In 1975, Percy Heath and his brothers formed the Heath Brothers with pianist Stanley Cowell. Later in his career, Percy sometimes played the cello instead of the bass during performances.

As a sideman, he appeared on about 300 recordings over a career spanning more than 57 years.

In 1989, he received an Honorary Doctorate of Music from Berklee College of Music.

In 2003, at age 80, Heath released his first album as a leader through the Daddy Jazz label. The album, titled A Love Song, received praise and marked the end of his long career. It included his brother Albert Heath on drums, bassist Peter Washington, and pianist Jeb Patton.

Percy Heath died two days before his 82nd birthday due to bone cancer in Southampton, New York. The following month, bassist William Parker released a tribute album titled For Percy Heath.

Heath enjoyed fishing for striped bass and surfcasting. He often spent time on his fishing boat, named The Fiddler, in Montauk, New York. In 2006, a plaque was placed on a 5,000-pound stone at Turtle Cove, Montauk Point, as a memorial. The ceremony was attended by his wife, June, and his three sons.

Discography

• A Love Song (2003) featuring Jeb Patton on piano, Peter Washington on bass, and Albert "Tootie" Heath on drums.

• Vendome (1952, Prestige 851)
• Modern Jazz Quartet, ii (1954–5, Prestige 170), including the song "Django" (1954)
• Concorde (1955, Prestige 7005)
• Fontessa (1956, Atlantic 1231), including "Versailles"
• The Modern Jazz Quartet Plays No Sun in Venice (Atlantic, 1957)
• The Modern Jazz Quartet (Atlantic, 1957)
• Third Stream Music (1957, 1959–60, Atlantic 1345), including "Sketch for Double String Quartet" (1959)
• The Modern Jazz Quartet and the Oscar Peterson Trio at the Opera House (Verve, 1957)
• The Modern Jazz Quartet at Music Inn Volume 2 (Atlantic, 1958)
• Lost Tapes: Germany 1956–1958 (Jazzhaus, 1956–1958 [2013])
• Music from Odds Against Tomorrow (United Artists, 1959)
• Pyramid (Atlantic, 1960)
• European Concert (Atlantic, 1960 [1962])
• Dedicated to Connie (Atlantic, 1960 [1995])
• The Modern Jazz Quartet & Orchestra (Atlantic, 1960)
• The Comedy (1962, Atlantic 1390)
• Lonely Woman (Atlantic, 1962)
• A Quartet is a Quartet is a Quartet (1963, Atlantic 1420)
• Collaboration (Atlantic, 1964), featuring Laurindo Almeida
• The Modern Jazz Quartet Plays George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess (Atlantic, 1964–65)
• Jazz Dialogue (Atlantic, 1965), featuring the All-Star Jazz Band
• Concert in Japan '66 (Atlantic [Japan], 1966)
• Blues at Carnegie Hall (Atlantic, 1966)
• Place Vendôme (Philips, 1966), featuring The Swingle Singers
• Under the Jasmin Tree (Apple, 1968)
• Space (Apple, 1969)
• Plastic Dreams (Atlantic, 1971)
• The Only Recorded Performance of Paul Desmond With The Modern Jazz Quartet (Finesse/Columbia, 1971 [1981]), featuring Paul Desmond
• The Legendary Profile (Atlantic, 1972)
• In Memoriam (Little David, 1973)
• Blues on Bach (Atlantic, 1973)
• The Last Concert (Atlantic, 1974)
• Reunion at Budokan 1981 (Pablo, 1981)
• Together Again: Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival '82 (Pablo, 1982)
• Echoes (Pablo, 1984)
• Topsy: This One's for Basie (Pablo, 1985)
• Three Windows (Atlantic, 1987)
• For Ellington (East West, 1988)
• MJQ & Friends: A 40th Anniversary Celebration (Atlantic, 1992–93)

With Cannonball Adderley

• Know What I Mean with Bill Evans (Riverside, 1961)
• Work Song (Riverside, 1960)
• Paul Bley (EmArcy, 1954)
• New Star on the Horizon (Blue Note, 1953)
• Miss Rhythm (Atlantic, 1959)
• Telefunken Blues (Savoy, 1955)
• Miles Davis and Horns (Prestige, 1953)
• Bags' Groove (Prestige, 1954)
• Walkin' (Prestige, 1954)
• Blue Haze (Prestige, 1954)
• Miles Davis Volume 1 (Blue Note, 1955)
• Miles Davis Volume 2 (Blue Note, 1955)
• Quintet/Sextet (Prestige, 1956)
• Miles Davis and the Modern Jazz Giants (Prestige, 1958)
• Miles Davis at Newport 1955–1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4 (Columbia Legacy, 2015)
• First Place Again (Wartner Bros., 1959)
• Easy Living (RCA Victor, 1963–65 [1966])
• Early Art (New Jazz, 1954)
• The Art Farmer Septet (Prestige, 1953–54)
• When Farmer Met Gryce (Prestige, 1954), featuring Gigi Gryce
• Brass Shout (United Artists, 195