Black Music Sunday: Celebrating jazz genius Wayne Shorter

This isn’t the first time we’ve written about jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and bandleader Wayne Shorter here, and it won’t be the last. Today would have been his 90th birthday, and while Charles Jay wrote about Shorter joining the ancestors in 2023 at the age of 89 and I recently wrote about his role in creating Weather Report with Joe Zawinul, it behooves us to celebrate not only his music, but his life and impact on the genre we know as jazz.

Shorter played with a long list of major greats during his storied career, including Art Blakey, John Coltrane, and Miles Davis, as well as heading his own groups. Many of his compositions are now jazz classics covered by major artists and extending into other genres.

Come join the celebration and exploration of his life and music.  

”Black Music Sunday” is a weekly series highlighting all things Black music, with over  225 stories covering performers, genres, history, and more, each featuring its own vibrant soundtrack. I hope you’ll find some familiar tunes and perhaps an introduction to something new.