Yusef Lateef

Yusef Lateef

A pioneer of "World Music", Yusef Lateef was playing Eastern wind instruments in the early 1960s, introducing a new generation to the sounds of other cultures. An accomplished saxophonist while still a teenager, he had played with many iconic jazzmen in his home city, Detroit: Kenny Burrell, Milt Jackson, Paul Chambers, Elvin Jones... By the time he released Eastern Sounds in1961, he had toured with Dizzy Gillespie and recorded for both Savoy & Prestige.  After two years with Cannonball Adderley, he studied in depth, earning a Masters degree and an Ed. D.  Writing, performing and teaching formed the core of his later life.  He eventually won a Grammy and was awarded a NEA Lifetime Jazz Master Fellowship.

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