“One of the reasons that we appear to be not so popular with the so-called ‘jazz’ public is because they expect Miles to be doing something he did five, 10 years ago,” said drummer Al Foster. “This current band is going in another direction, and I think that it’s wrong to put the music down simply because it differs from yesterday. … My favorite musicians today are Miles, Sonny Rollins and Sly Stone. I love the variety available to us. You lose something when you restrict yourself.”
(Photo: DownBeat Archive)Recently, Al Foster played a gig with Buster Williams’ band at a club in New York. The drummer’s propulsive and fiery work was a continuous source of inspiration to his colleagues, while the audience demonstrated their enjoyment most audibly. Foster’s reputation has built steadily over the 12 years since he emerged on the scene, culminating in his career with that most discerning and particular of leaders, Miles Davis, for the last three years.
Recalling his early background, Foster, a warm, friendly individual, recalled, “My father, who played bass, was my inspiration to want to play. There was always music around the house. An aunt gave me a practice pad when I was about six because I was always banging on the pots and pans at home. This was about a year after we moved to New York from Richmond, Virginia, where I was born. I got my first set of drums when I was 10.
“The first drummer who really turned me around was Max Roach. After Max, I heard Art Taylor and he became a big influence on me. I was also exposed to Ron Jefferson, who was married to my mother’s sister. I had no formal training, but watching Ron practice taught me a lot.
“My first professional gig was with Hugh Masakela around 1960. Then I worked with Ted Curson. My first extended gig was with Illinois Jacquet in 1962. Lonnie Hillyer, Sir Charles Thomson, and Ike Isaacs were in the band. I stayed on and off for about two years. I made my first record date with Blue Mitchell (The Thing To Do on Blue Note), who I joined next. That was the band with Junior Cook, Chick Corea, and Gene Taylor. I eventually left Blue because he really wasn’t working that much and I had a family to support.
“After Blue, I went with Erskine Hawkins for a minute, and then Lou Donaldson. It was while I was with Lou in Boston in 1966 that I got a call from Kai Winding to work with him at the Playboy Club in New York. That was the start of a five-year association between Earl May and myself. Earl was playing in Kai’s band at the club. Larry Willis and Al Gafa were also involved.
“Eventually Kai left and was replaced by Sam Donahue — after he quit, the four of us moved over to a club called the Cellar, becoming the Earl May quartet. During that five-year period, I got calls from Cannonball Adderley and Horace Silver; but because of the family, I really didn’t want to go out on the road.”
On asking about the circumstances of his joining Miles, Al replied, “Miles came into the Cellar one night in the middle of 1972, liked the band and decided to have us record. The next week, Teo Macero came in to handle that. A couple of weeks after that, Miles came back and told me that he wanted me to record with him. That was for the On The Corner album. I ended up being on only part of the record because Miles didn’t have my number. He finally reached me, giving me the details of when the session would be. I remember walking in to the date — Billy Hart, Herbie Hancock, Bennie Maupin were there — and being pretty nervous. Afterwards, I really didn’t think I had contributed as much as I could have, and felt Miles probably wouldn’t call me, but three days later he called and told me to come over to his house and learn the music.
“In the three years I’ve been with him, he has been beautiful, and I’ve learned a great deal.
“Bringing things up to date, when Miles has been off, I’ve led my own band at the Cellar. That group has included (at different times) Harold Mabern, Mickey Bass, Stanley Clarke, and Sue Grant, a very fine singer.”
Having detailed his background, Al made some comments concerning the music he is involved with. “One thing I became aware of very early was the need to learn from what has gone before. I’ve listened to Coleman Hawkins, Tatum, Bud Powell, Lester, everyone, because that’s where we come from. I feel that it is important to acknowledge those people.
“You know, there has been a change for the good in the last couple of years. A mutual respect has grown between the different forms of music. For instance, Stevie Wonder has been heavily influenced by jazz performances; Herbie Hancock has dug the rock thing and put his creativity into it. That’s very good to see. However, it’s a shame that someone like Art Blakey has never been awarded super-stardom for his music in the same way some of the rock groups have. Also, credit is rarely given to certain innovators — Max Roach, who I feel has influenced most drummers at one time or another, comes to mind — who deserve recognition for their contributions. It would be nice to see that situation change.”
I asked Foster if he had any interest in leading his own band on a permanent basis.
“I’m not really all that ambitious, I guess. I don’t have eyes for that right now. I feel I’m still learning about both myself and the music, and there is no better place to do that than with Miles.
“I do want to have my own record date sometime soon, playing a variety of music on it. That relates back to what we are doing in Miles’ band right now. This current band is a music band—it just can’t be labelled. Every time we play, the direction is different. Some nights when we are really on, it’s just amazing what is played. It’s not rock or jazz or whatever. It’s just music. I’d like to add that one of the reasons we appear to be not so popular with the so-called ‘jazz’ public is because they expect Miles to be doing something he did five, 10 years ago. This current band is going in another direction and I think that it’s wrong to put the music down simply because it differs from yesterday.”
Apart from being a superb drummer, Foster also plays tenor sax, piano and bass. He also writes, both music and lyrics. He adds, ‘‘I want to cover as much ground as possible — I want to be as open as possible. I came up through jazz but that doesn’t mean I should restrict myself. So far, I’ve been lucky enough to be able to do most of what I’ve wanted to.
‘‘You know, my favorite musicians today are Miles, Sonny Rollins and Sly Stone. I love the variety available to us. You lose something when you restrict yourself.”
Al Foster has the ability and the openness to go in many directions, and that is an object lesson for many of us. His contribution is one of honesty and strong commitment. It shows both in the man and his music. DB
