Ed Reed
Written:
April 2024
Your voice:
A soul-stirring sound that captures its listeners
Creating hallowed vistas upon which spirits linger mesmerized
They escape their grey-swaddled yesterdays
To embrace a magical now
HONORING ED REED – VOCALIST EXTRAORDINAIRE –
Edward Lawrence Reed (February 2, 1929 - January 31, 2024
Following a life of heroin addiction, imprisonment, and numerous rehab attempts, this extraordinarily gifted vocalist gained national recognition in his late seventies for an inimitable delivery of jazz vocals.
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Reed moved with his parents to Los Angeles’s Watts neighborhood in the late 1930s. His parents lived across the street from my mother, Charles Mingus, Jr.’s sister, Vivian. The teen-aged Mingus sometimes babysat me and and my siblings and welcomed young Ed into our home. Here the iconic bassist shared his knowledge of chord changes and how they relate to melody with Reed who internalized the knowledge. Later it became a base for Reed’s unique vocal delivery.
While incarcerated, Reed encountered jazz greats like Art Pepper, Frank Butler and Frank Morgan, fellow inmates and drug addicts who helped him develop his vocal talents. After attending Jazz Camp West in 2005, Reed began recording songs at the insistence of his instructors. Reed credits his mother, Ruth, a gifted singer, for his musical skills and often incorporates memories of her into his jazz concerts.
Legacy:
Developed a health education lecture series called “The Art and Practice of Living Well.”
Recognized as Downbeat’s Rising Star Male Vocalist in 2014.
Released his autobiography in 2021 with wife Diane entitled Double Helix: A Memoir of Addiction, Recovery and Jazz in Two Voices.
