Don Alias

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Charles "Don" Alias (ah-LIE-ahs; December 25, 1939 – March 28, 2006)<ref name=":0"/> was an American jazz percussionist.

Alias was best known for playing congas and other hand drums. He was also a capable drum kit performer. He 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 were able to play the marching band-inspired rhythm requested by Davis.Template:Efn He also played drums and percussion on the Joni Mitchell live album Shadows and Light.

Alias performed on hundreds of recordings and was best known for his associations with Miles Davis and saxophonist David Sanborn. 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

Alias was born in New York City on December 25, 1939.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> He studied piano and guitar as a boy but turned to percussion, learning from the rhythms he learned on New York's streets and the one-on-one lessons with the percussionist Mongo Santamaria.<ref name=":0" /> 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.<ref name=":0" />

He had a degree in biology, studying at Gannon College and the Carnegie Institute for Biochemistry in Boston.<ref name=":0" /> During his time in Boston, he played in jazz night clubs, where he met students from the Berklee College of Music, which aided his entry into the music industry.

Career

Touring with Stone Alliance

While at school in Boston, Alias met bassist Gene Perla, with whom he formed the jazz trio, Stone Alliance, in 1964.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The group also included saxophonist Steve Grossman, mainly centering on jazz, Afro-Cuban, rock, and pop music.Template:Cn In 1976, the trio began a 15-day tour in Chile, launched through the US State Department Jazz Diplomacy program.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 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 two South American tours, four European tours, and two Canada tours. The band recorded four studio albums between 1976 and 1980, with live albums from Amsterdam, Buenos Aires, Berlin, and Bremen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After a 13-year hiatus, the group returned as a power trio with guitarist Mitch Stein playing two notable shows in New York City.Template:Which

Work with Miles Davis, David Sanborn and others

File:Miles Davis-140916-0018-105WPa.jpg
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.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Alias played alongside Jack DeJohnette utilizing a "lean and loose" syncopation that channel inspiration 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.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> 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 added that "[Alias] immersed himself 100 percent in the music, and he gave his all to the music."<ref name=":1" />

He was the drummer for Joni Mitchell's live album Shadows and Light, which 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 was 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

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.<ref name=":0" /> As such, 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.<ref name=":0" /> This change did not present a challenge; instead, Alias thrived and eventually became her musical director. His work was important to Simone's growing interest in percussive sounds, and he's credited with a live performance on her 1970 album Black Gold.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Death

Just before a planned tour with David Sanborn, Alias died at his home on March 28, 2006, at age 66.<ref name=":0" />

Discography

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As sideman

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)

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Notes

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References

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