George Adams (musician)

George Adams
Adams performing on July 6, 1976 in New York City
Background information
Birth name	George Rufus Adams
Born	(1940-04-29)April 29, 1940 Covington, Georgia, United States
Died	November 14, 1992(1992-11-14) (aged 52) New York City, United States
Genres	Jazz, hard bop, post-bop, avant-garde jazz
Occupation(s)	Musician, composer
Instruments	Tenor saxophone, flute, bass clarinet
Labels	Blue Note, Atlantic, Timeless, Soul Note, Palcoscenico, Horo
Associated acts	Charles Mingus, Don Pullen, Gil Evans, Roy Haynes, Dannie Richmond, Cameron Brown, John Scofield, McCoy Tyner, James Blood Ulmer, Phalanx

George Rufus Adams (April 29, 1940 Covington, Georgia – November 14, 1992 New York City) was an American jazz musician who played tenor saxophone, flute and bass clarinet. He is best known for his work with Charles Mingus, Gil Evans, Roy Haynes and in the quartet he co-led with pianist Don Pullen, featuring bassist Cameron Brown and drummer Dannie Richmond. He was also known for his idiosyncratic singing.

George Adams was born in Covington, Georgia on April 29, 1940. He first started playing piano at the age of eleven and switched to tenor saxophone in high school. Later on, he went study at the Clark College and got lessons on flute by Wayman Carver. As a teenager, George Adams frequently gained performance experience by playing with local funk bands. In 1961, he accompanied singer Sam Cooke on a tour. At this point, Adams was based out of Cleveland where he spent a great deal of time studying and working with organ trios alongside pianist and organist Bill Doggett. The two men played a form of music that combined rhythm and blues with jazz. In 1968, he decided to expand his career and move to New York City to participate in the city's growing jazz scene. A year later, George Adams toured with Roy Haynes, playing with him until 1973. Shortly after, he performed with Art Blakey before joining Charles Mingus' band. His partnership with Mingus would last until 1976.

George Adams' first appearance with Mingus was on Mingus Moves with Ronald Hampton, Dannie Richmond, and Don Pullen in 1973. Later on, Adams went to perform in Mingus at Carnegie Hall, Changes One and Changes Two. He also appeared in Mingus' Whee(1973) and other albums. 1975, while touring Europe with Mingus, he made his first recordings under his own name with Don Pullen, Dannie Richmond and bassist David Williams. Adams also began a working relationship with Gil Evans that lasted until 1978 that same year.

Adams' first appearance with Evans was on his album The Gil Evans Orchestra Plays the Music of Jimi Hendrix, which was dedicated to the compositional efforts of rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix. The album features orchestral versions of songs such as Angel,Castles Made of Sand and Voodoo Child. George Adams continued to record with Gil Evans throughout 1975 by contributing to his album There Comes a Time.