Calvin Keys

{{Short description|American jazz guitarist (1942–2024)}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Calvin Keys

| image =

| image_size =

| landscape =

| caption =

| birth_name =

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1942|2|6}}

| birth_place = Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2024|4|14|1942|2|6}}

| death_place = Berkeley, California, U.S.

| genre = Jazz, soul jazz

| occupations = Musician, composer

| instrument = Electric guitar

| years_active = 1969–2024

| label = Black Jazz, Wide Hive

| website =

}}

Calvin Keys (February 6, 1942 – April 14, 2024) was an American jazz guitarist, known for the several albums he released for Black Jazz Records.[{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p93610|pure_url=yes}} AllMusic Discography]

Keys performed and recorded with Ray Charles, Ahmad Jamal, Jimmy Smith, John Handy, Bobby Hutcherson, Eddie Marshall, Sonny Stitt, Pharoah Sanders, Joe Henderson and Leon Williams.[http://www.totallyguitars.com/thelisteningpost/calvin-keys/ Calvin Keys] at Totally Guitars. Retrieved 2013-01-25.

Keys died from a stroke in Berkeley, California, on April 14, 2024, at the age of 82.{{cite news |last=Meline |first=Gabe |url=https://www.kqed.org/arts/13955977/calvin-keys-jazz-guitarist-dies-obit-oakland |title=Calvin Keys, Jazz Guitarist With Endless Soul, Dies at 82 |publisher=KQED |date=2024-04-15 |accessdate=2024-04-15}}

Discography

=As leader=

  • Shawn-Neeq (Black Jazz, 1971)
  • Proceed with Caution! (Black Jazz, 1974)
  • Criss Cross (Ovation, 1976)
  • Full Court Press (Olive Branch, 1985)
  • Maria's First (Olive Branch, 1987)
  • Standard Keys [live] (Lifeforce Jazz, 1992 [1997])
  • Detours into Unconscious Rhythms (Wide Hive, 2000)
  • Touch (Olive Branch, 2000) compilation
  • An Evening With Calvin Keys [live] (Lifeforce Jazz, 2003) 2-CD
  • Calvinesque (Silverado, 2005)
  • Vertical Clearance (Wide Hive, 2006)
  • Hand Made Portrait (Silverado, 2007)
  • Electric Keys (Wide Hive, 2013)
  • Close Enough For Love (Lifeforce Jazz, 2015)
  • Simply Calvin (Lifeforce Jazz, 2022)
  • Blue Keys (Wide Hive, 2022)

=As sideman=

With Ahmad Jamal

With others

  • Gene Russell, Talk to My Lady (Black Jazz, 1973)
  • Billy Brooks, Windows of the Mind (Crossover, 1974)
  • Doug Carn, Adam's Apple (Black Jazz, 1974)
  • Doug Carn, Higher Ground (Ovation, 1976)
  • Gene Russell, Listen Here (Ovation, 1976)
  • James Newton Howard, Dying Young (Arista, 1991)
  • Denise Perrier, I Wanna Be Loved (Chezz Perrier, 1996)
  • Dissent, Dissent (Wide Hive, 1999)
  • Azeem, Mayhem Mystics (Wide Hive, 2004)

References

{{Reflist}}