Remembering Charlie Haden

We're celebrating the spirited life and music of bassist Charlie Haden (1937-2014) who passed away on July 11th. We've included links to four archived interviews as well as our coverage of Mr. Haden's music from years past.

Charlie Haden: An Analog Guy in a Digital World (2004)

Born August 6, 1937 in Shenandoah, Iowa, Charlie Haden came up in a musical family. After moving around the Midwest, he eventually settled in Los Angeles playing bass with Hampton Hawes, Elmo Hope, and Paul Bley. A fateful meeting in 1958 with Ornette Coleman netted Haden one of his most infamous gigs, which continued with brief interruptions into the late 1960s. While noted for his sideman work on numerous landmark avant-garde recordings, as well as co-leading the star-studded Liberation Music Orchestra since 1970, Haden has always had a penchant for the tuneful and melodic. This quality has marked not only... read more

Charlie Haden: Making Beautiful Music (2004)

Music has occupied the life of Charlie Haden, the superbly melodic bassist, from as early as he can remember. Before he was 2, he was singing harmony to songs he heard around the house, songs his mother sang, songs his family performed at the Grand Ole Opry in the 1930s. Songs, beautiful songs, have been at the core of Haden's work since he took up serious study of music and moved to California, where he began playing with some of the jazz greats; where he first met Ornette Coleman. Sonorous melodies and rich sound have been springing from... read more

Charlie Haden Remembers Tomorrow (2003)

"As long as there are musicians who have a passion for spontaneity, for creating something that's never been before, the art form of jazz will flourish." —Charlie Haden "The whole underlying theme for the new music...is to communicate honest, human values, and in doing that to try to improve the quality of life."—Charlie Haden (re: his Liberation Music Orchestra) If lower Manhattan is the Ellis Island for jazz and creative improvised music, the heartland of America is from where it originates. Miles hailed from St. Louis, Wes from Indiana and both Haden's... read more

Q&A with Charlie Haden (2005)

All About Jazz: How did you come to play jazz? Charlie Haden: Well, I was involved with country-western music during the beginning of my life, from the time I was 2 until the time I was 16. My parents were on the Grand Ole Opry before I was born. AAJ: Why the bass? CH: My brother played bass on our radio show and I really loved the bass. I loved the sound of the bass. I loved the way it lifted up the music. When the bass stopped playing the music kind... read more

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