Editing Albert Ayler

{{short description|American jazz saxophonist (1936-1970)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name            = Albert Ayler
| image           = Albert Ayler (1967–68 photo portrait for ABC Impulse!).jpg
| alt             = Photograph of a man with a short afro hairstyle and short goatee playing saxophone, arching his back to raise the instrument above his head
| caption         = Ayler {{circa}} 1967–68
| birth_date      = {{Birth date|1936|7|13|mf=y}}
| birth_place     = [[Cleveland]], Ohio, U.S.
| death_date      = {{death date and age|1970|11|25|1936|7|13}}
| death_place     = New York City
| instrument      = [[Tenor saxophone]], [[alto saxophone]], [[soprano saxophone]], [[bagpipes]]
| genre           = [[Avant-garde jazz]], [[free jazz]]
| occupation      = Saxophonist, bandleader, composer
| years_active    = 1952–1970
| label           = Bird Notes, [[ESP-Disk]], [[Impulse! Records|Impulse!]], Ayler
| website         = 
}}
'''Albert Ayler''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|aɪ|l|ər}}; July 13, 1936&nbsp;– November 25, 1970) was an American [[avant-garde]] [[jazz]] saxophonist and composer.<ref name="RCJE">{{Cite book
 | last = Cook
 | first = Richard
 | year = 2005
 | title = Richard Cook's Jazz Encyclopedia
 | publisher = Penguin Books
 | location = London
 | isbn = 0-141-00646-3
 | pages = 25–26
}}</ref>

After early experience playing [[rhythm and blues]] and [[bebop]], Ayler began recording music during the [[free jazz]] era of the 1960s. However, some critics argue that while Ayler's style is undeniably original and unorthodox, it does not adhere to the generally accepted critical understanding of free jazz.<ref name=Mandel /> In fact, Ayler's style is difficult to categorize, and it evoked incredibly strong and disparate reactions from critics and fans alike.<ref name=Claghorn>Claghorn, 1982.</ref> His innovations have inspired subsequent jazz musicians.<ref name=Mandel />

His trio and quartet records of 1964, such as ''[[Spiritual Unity]]'' and ''[[The Hilversum Session]]'', show him advancing the improvisational notions of [[John Coltrane]] and [[Ornette Coleman]] into abstract realms where whole [[timbre]], and not just mainly [[harmony]] with [[melody]], is the music's backbone. His ecstatic music of 1965 and 1966, such as "Spirits Rejoice" and "Truth Is Marching In", has been compared by critics to the sound of a [[Brass band#New Orleans|brass band]], and involved simple, march-like themes which alternated with wild group [[Free improvisation|improvisations]] and were regarded as retrieving jazz's pre-[[Louis Armstrong]] roots.<ref>{{Cite book | last=Wilmer|first=Val|author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious as Your Life | publisher=Quartet | year=1977 | isbn=0-7043-3164-0|pages=95–96}}</ref>

==Biography==

===Early life and career===
Born in [[Cleveland]], Ohio, and raised in [[Shaker Heights]],<ref>{{cite web |title=18. The Far-Ranging 1960s |url=http://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?filename=17&article=1134&context=scholbks&type=additional |publisher=Cleveland State University |access-date=27 April 2021}}</ref> Ayler was first taught alto saxophone by his father Edward, who was a semiprofessional saxophonist and violinist. Edward and Albert played alto saxophone duets in church and often listened to jazz records together, including swing era jazz and then-new bop albums.<ref name=Claghorn /> Ayler's upbringing in the church had a great impact on his life and music, and much of his music can be understood as an attempt to express his spirituality, including the aptly titled ''[[Spiritual Unity]]'', and his album of spirituals, ''Goin' Home'', which features "meandering" solos that are meant to be treated as meditations on sacred texts, and at some points as "speaking in tongues" with his saxophone.<ref name=Whitehead>Whitehead, NPR, 2001.</ref> Ayler's experience in the church and exposure to swing jazz artists also impacted his sound: his wide vibrato was similar to that of gospel saxophonists, who sought a more vocal-like sound with their instruments, and to that of brass players in New Orleans swing bands.<ref name=Whitehead />

Ayler attended [[John Adams High School (Cleveland, Ohio)|John Adams High School]] on Cleveland's East Side, and graduated in 1954 at the age of 18. He later studied at [[Academy Music (Cleveland, Ohio)|Academy Music]] in Cleveland with jazz saxophonist [[Benny Miller]]. Ayler also played the [[oboe]] in high school. As a teenager, Ayler's understanding of bebop style and mastery of standard repertoire earned him the nickname of "Little Bird", after [[Charlie Parker|Charlie "Bird" Parker]], in the small Cleveland jazz scene.<ref>Litweiler, 1984, p. 153.</ref>

In 1952, at the age of 16, Ayler began playing bar-walking, honking, [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]]-style tenor with blues singer and harmonica player [[Little Walter]], spending two summer vacations with Walter's band.<ref name=Litweiler152 /> In 1958, after graduating from high school, Ayler joined the United States Army, where he switched from alto to tenor sax and jammed with other enlisted musicians, including tenor saxophonist [[Stanley Turrentine]]. Ayler also played in the regiment band, along with future composer [[Harold Budd]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gaffa.org/archives/1987-06/msg00075.html|title=The Harold Budd interview|publisher=Gaffa.org|access-date=May 1, 2017}}</ref> In 1959 he was stationed in France, where he was further exposed to the martial music that would be a core influence on his later work. After his discharge from the army, Ayler tried to find work in Los Angeles and Cleveland, but his increasingly iconoclastic playing, which had moved away from traditional harmony, was not welcomed by traditionalists.<ref name=Litweiler152 />

Ayler relocated to Sweden in 1962, where his recording career began, leading Swedish and Danish groups on radio sessions and jamming as an unpaid member of [[Cecil Taylor]]'s band in the winter of 1962–63. (Long-rumored tapes of Ayler performing with Taylor's group were released by [[Revenant Records]] in 2004, as part of a [[Holy Ghost: Rare & Unissued Recordings (1962–70)|10-CD set]].)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.revenantrecords.com/ayler/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716103848/http://www.revenantrecords.com/ayler/ |archive-date=July 16, 2011 |title=Albert Ayler Holy Ghost |publisher=Revenant Records |date=July 16, 2011 |access-date=June 25, 2012}}</ref> The album ''[[My Name Is Albert Ayler]]'' is a session of standards recorded for a Copenhagen radio station with local musicians including [[Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen]] and drummer Ronnie Gardiner, with Ayler playing tenor and soprano on tracks such as "[[Summertime (George Gershwin song)|Summertime]]".

===Early recording career===
In 1963, Ayler returned to the US and settled in New York City, where he continued to develop his personal style and occasionally played alongside free jazz pianist Cecil Taylor.<ref name=Claghorn />
1964 was the most well-documented year of Ayler's career, during which he recorded many albums, the first of which was ''[[Spirits (Albert Ayler album)|Spirits]]'' (re-released later as ''Witches and Devils'') in March of that year.<ref>Litweiler, 1984, p. 154.</ref> Ayler also began his rich relationship with [[ESP-Disk]] Records in 1964, recording his breakthrough album (and ESP's very first jazz album) ''[[Spiritual Unity]]'' for the then-fledgling record label. ESP-Disk came to play an integral role in recording and disseminating free jazz. ''Spiritual Unity'' featured the trio that Ayler had just assembled that summer, including bassist [[Gary Peacock]] and drummer [[Sunny Murray]]. The liner notes of ''Spiritual Unity'' include a brief description of the musicians on that day, July 10, 1964, in the Variety Arts Recording Studio:<ref name=ESP>ESP-Disk' Discography.</ref> 
::Just before 1 PM, Sunny Murray arrived, a large, genial walrus....Gary Peacock was next, tall, thin, ascetic looking, and soft spoken....Albert Ayler was last, small, wary, and laconic.<ref name=ESP />

On July 17, 1964, the members of this trio, along with trumpet player [[Don Cherry (trumpeter)|Don Cherry]], alto saxophonist [[John Tchicai]], and trombonist [[Roswell Rudd]], collaborated in recording ''[[New York Eye and Ear Control]]'', a freely improvised soundtrack to Canadian artist and filmmaker [[Michael Snow]]'s film of the same name.<ref name=ESP />
During this time, Ayler began to garner some attention from critics, although he was not able to foster much of a fan following. However, later in 1964, Ayler, Peacock, Murray, and Cherry were invited to travel to Europe for a brief Scandinavian tour, which too yielded some new recordings, including ''[[The Copenhagen Tapes]]'', ''[[Ghosts (Albert Ayler album)|Ghosts]]'' (re-released later as ''Vibrations''), and ''[[The Hilversum Session]]''.

Ayler recorded ''[[Bells (album)|Bells]]'' on May 1, 1965. It is a ferociously-paced 20-minute improvisation featuring his signature military-march influenced melodies. ''[[Spirits Rejoice]]'' was recorded on September 23, 1965, at Judson Hall in New York City, and features a much larger band than the sparse trio of his earlier album ''Spiritual Unity''. ''The Encyclopedia of Popular Music'' describes ''Spirits Rejoice'' as a "riotous, hugely emotional and astonishingly creative celebration of the urge to make noise."<ref>''Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', 2006.</ref> Both albums feature Albert's brother, trumpet player [[Donald Ayler]], who translated his brother's expansive approach to improvisation to the trumpet. Donald played with Albert until he experienced a debilitating nervous breakdown in 1967.<ref>Wilmer, ''The Guardian'', 2001.</ref>

In 1966 Ayler was signed to [[Impulse Records]] at the urging of Coltrane, the label's star attraction at that time.<ref name=Jenkins26>Jenkins, 2004, p. 26.</ref> But even on Impulse, Ayler's radically different music never found a sizable audience. Ayler's first set for Impulse was recorded a few weeks before Christmas in 1966, entitled ''[[Albert Ayler in Greenwich Village]]''. Ayler performed with his brother, Michel Samson, [[Beaver Harris]], [[Henry Grimes]], and Bill Folwell, while Coltrane was in attendance. For a tune titled "For John Coltrane", Ayler returned to the alto saxophone for the first time in years.<ref name=Jenkins26 />

Ayler first sang on a recording in a version of "Ghosts" performed in Paris in 1966, in which his vocal style was similar to that of his saxophone, with an eerie disregard for pitch.<ref>Jost, 1975, p. 121.</ref> Ayler continued to experiment with vocals for the rest of his career (see, for example, the wordless vocalising near the end of "Love Cry" from the [[Love Cry|album of the same name]]); however, his singing on later albums such as ''[[New Grass]]'' and ''[[Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe]]'' has been the subject of some derision. [[Val Wilmer]] referred to his singing as "tortuous",<ref>{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val |author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=[[Serpent's Tail]] | year=2018 | pages=143 }}</ref> and critics have stated that "his words and vocal delivery are truly frightening",<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/music-is-the-healing-force-of-the-universe-mw0000021647 |title=Albert Ayler: Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe |last=Campbell |first=Al |website=allmusic.com |access-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> describing him as having "a bellowing, untrained voice that was wavering at its most controlled,"<ref name="pitchfork_newgrass">{{cite web |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/albert-ayler-new-grass |title=Albert Ayler: New Grass |last=Thomas |first=Fred |date=June 30, 2020 |website=pitchfork.com |access-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> and delivering lyrics in "a manic wail".<ref name="pitchfork_newgrass" />

In 1967, John Coltrane died of liver cancer, and Ayler was asked to perform at his funeral.<ref>Lewis, ''The Guardian'', 2011.</ref> (One of Coltrane's last wishes was that Ayler and Ornette Coleman should play at his funeral.<ref name="Wilmer 2018 142">{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val |author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=[[Serpent's Tail]] | year=2018 | pages=142 }}</ref>) It is said that during his performance, Ayler ripped his saxophone from his mouth at two points: once, to emit a cry of anguish, the other a cry of joy to symbolize his friend and mentor's ascension into heaven.<ref name=Jenkins26 /> Ayler later recalled: "John was like a visitor to this planet. He came in peace and he left in peace; but during his time here, he kept trying to reach new levels of awareness, of peace, of spirituality. That's why I regard the music he played as spiritual music - John's way of getting closer and closer to the Creator."<ref>{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val |author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=[[Serpent's Tail]] | year=2018 | pages=33 }}</ref> In the liner notes for Ayler's album ''[[Love Cry]]'', [[Frank Kofsky]] wrote that Ayler said the following concerning Coltrane's album ''[[Meditations (John Coltrane album)|Meditations]]'': "The father, son, and holy ghost. What Coltrane was talking about there - maybe it was a biblical term: he was the father, [[Pharoah Sanders|Pharoah]] was the son, and I was the holy ghost. And only he could tell me things like that."<ref name="lovecry">{{cite AV media notes |title=Love Cry |others=Albert Ayler |type=liner notes |year=1968 |last=Kofsky |first=Frank |publisher=[[Impulse! Records]] |id=AS-9165}}</ref>

===Final years and death===
For the next two-and-a-half years Ayler began to move from a mostly improvisatory style to one that focused more closely on compositions.<ref name=Kernfeld /> This was largely a result of pressures from Impulse who, unlike ESP-Disk, placed heavier emphasis on accessibility than artistic expression.<ref name=Jenkins27>Jenkins, 2004, p. 27.</ref> In 1967 and 1968, Ayler recorded three LPs that featured the lyrics and vocals of his girlfriend [[Mary Maria Parks]] and introduced regular chord changes, funky beats, and electronic instruments.<ref name=Schwartz>Schwartz, American Music.</ref>

Ayler himself sang on his album ''[[New Grass]]'', which hearkened back to his roots in R&B as a teenager. However, this album was unsuccessful, scorned by Ayler fans and critics alike.<ref name=Schwartz /> Ayler staunchly asserted that he wanted to move in this R&B and rock-and-roll direction, and that he was not simply succumbing to the pressures of Impulse and the popular music of that day, and it is true that Ayler heavily emphasizes the spirituality that seems to define the bulk of his work.<ref name=Jenkins27 /> (However, according to [[Gary Giddins]], "In interviews, Ayler left no doubt about who was responsible for ''New Grass'': 'They told me to do this. [[Bob Thiele]]. You think I would do that? He said, "Look Albert, you gotta get with the young generation now.{{" ' "}}<ref>{{cite book | last = Giddins | first = Gary | author-link = Gary Giddins | title = Natural Selection: Gary Giddins on Comedy, Film, Music, and Books | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 2008 | pages=286 }}</ref>) ''New Grass'' begins with the track "Message from Albert", in which Ayler speaks directly to his listener, explaining that this album was nothing like his ones before it, that was of "a different dimension in [his] life." He claims that, "through meditation, dreams, and visions, [he has] been made a Universal Man, through the power of the Creator..."

At around this time, there were hints that Ayler was becoming emotionally unstable, blaming himself for his brother's breakdown.<ref>{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=Serpent's Tail | year=2018 | pages=145–146 }}</ref> In 1969, he submitted an impassioned, rambling open letter to ''[[the Cricket (magazine)|the Cricket]]'' magazine entitled "To Mr. Jones—I Had a Vision", in which he described startling apocalyptic spiritual visions.<ref name=Jenkins27 /> He "saw in a vision the new Earth built by God coming out of Heaven," and implored the readers to share the message of Revelations, insisting that "This is very important. The time is now."<ref>Ayler, ''Cricket'', 27-30</ref> [[Noah Howard]] recalled seeing Ayler that summer, wearing gloves and a full-length fur coat despite the heat, his face covered in Vaseline, and saying "Got to protect myself."<ref>{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=Serpent's Tail | year=2018 | pages=146 }}</ref>

His final album, ''[[Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe]]'', featured rock musicians such as [[Henry Vestine]] of [[Canned Heat]] alongside jazz musicians like pianist [[Bobby Few]]. This was a return to his blues-roots with very heavy rock influences, but did feature more of Ayler's signature timbre variations and energetic solos than the unsuccessful ''New Grass''.

In July 1970, Ayler returned to the free jazz idiom for a group of shows in France (including at the [[Fondation Maeght]], documented on ''[[Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (Albert Ayler album)|Nuits de la Fondation Maeght]]''), but the band he was able to assemble (Call Cobbs, bassist Steve Tintweiss and drummer [[Allen Blairman]]) was not regarded as being of the caliber of his earlier groups.<ref>{{Cite book | last=Wilmer|first=Val|author-link=Val Wilmer | title=Albert Ayler: Holy Ghost (Spiritual Unity) | publisher=Revenant | year=2004 |page=27}}</ref>

Ayler disappeared on November 5, 1970, and he was found dead in New York City's [[East River]] on November 25, a presumed suicide.<ref name=Mandel>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90627436|title=Albert Ayler's Fiery Sax, Now on Film|last=Mandel|first=Howard|newspaper=NPR.org|publisher=NPR|date=June 7, 2008|access-date=August 30, 2009}}</ref> For some time afterwards, rumors circulated that Ayler had been murdered, with a long-standing [[urban legend]] that the Mafia had tied him to a jukebox.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ayler.co.uk/html/biography.html|title=Biography|publisher=Ayler.co.uk|access-date=May 1, 2017}}</ref>

==Artistry==
Ayler routinely showcased his highly untraditional personal saxophone style in very conventional musical contexts, including children's songs, march melodies, and gospel hymns.<ref name=Mandel /> However, Ayler's wild energy and intense improvisations transformed them into something nearly unrecognizable. Ayler took a deconstructive approach to his music, which was characteristic of the free jazz era. Phil Hardy says that Ayler "dismantled" melody and harmony to more deeply explore "the physical properties" of his saxophone.<ref>Hardy, 2001.</ref> Ayler wished to free himself and his bandmates to improvise, relate to one another, and relate to their instruments on a more raw, "primal" level.<ref name=Litweiler151>Litweiler, 1984, p. 151.</ref>

The intensely spiritual aspect of Ayler's music was clearly aligned with the beliefs of jazz saxophonist [[John Coltrane]], who was profoundly affected by the "otherworldly" sounds of Ayler's music. This effect is especially evident in Coltrane's albums ''[[Meditations (John Coltrane album)|Meditations]]'' and ''[[Stellar Regions]]''.<ref name=Whitehead /> (Coltrane served as a mentor throughout Ayler's life, providing financial and professional support.<ref>Woideck, 1998, p. 221.</ref>) This intensity, the extremes to which Ayler took his tenor saxophone, is the most defining aspect of his sound. His style is characterized by [[timbre]] variations, including squeaks, honks, and improvisation in very high and very low registers.<ref name=Shipton>Shipton, 2001, p. 795.</ref> He possessed a deep blistering tone—achieved by using the stiff plastic Fibrecane no. 4 reeds<ref>{{Cite book | last=Wilmer|first=Val|author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious as Your Life | publisher=Quartet | year=1977 | isbn=0-7043-3164-0|page=94}}</ref> on his [[tenor saxophone]]—and used a broad, pathos-filled [[vibrato]].<ref name=Litweiler151 />

Ayler experimented with [[microtonality]] in his improvisations, seeking to explore the sounds that fall between the notes in a traditional scale.<ref name=Shipton /> This technique was best showcased when he played, as he often did, without a piano, backed only by bass and drums. Ayler also resisted the standard swing beat, and instead built momentum through the frenetic speed of his improvisatory lines, which he forcefully overblew from his saxophone.<ref name=Litweiler152>Litweiler, 1984, p. 152.</ref>
Jazz historian [[Ted Gioia]] describes Ayler as a "virtuoso of the coarse and anomalous", and claims that Ayler aimed to break away from the constraints of playing notes and instead to "enter into a new realm in which the saxophone created "''sound''"."<ref>Gioia, 2011, p. 323.</ref>

==Influence and legacy==
At no point in his career was Ayler allowed the comfort of a steady audience. Despite largely positive critical reception, he remained poor for his entire life and often sought financial support from his family and fellow musicians, including Coltrane.<ref name=Kernfeld>Kernfeld, ''Grove Music Online''.</ref>

However, Ayler's influence is still felt, and not only among jazz musicians. His wild sound foreshadowed contemporary hardcore, noise, and experimental rock styles.<ref name=Mandel /> Albert Ayler is one of the most revered historical figures in the genre of free jazz along with the likes of [[Sun Ra]], Cecil Taylor, John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, and [[Milford Graves]] (who drummed with Ayler). To this day his albums are among the best selling in the narrow genre of "free jazz", along with the aforementioned legends. The so-called "titans" of free jazz in the 21st century who play saxophone, such as [[Charles Gayle]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hallwalls.org/music/4788.html |title=Charles Gayle / Han Bennink Duo |date=January 22, 2009 |website=hallwalls.org |access-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> [[Ken Vandermark]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://jazztimes.com/features/profiles/searching-for-albert-ayler |title=Searching for Albert Ayler |last=Randall |first=Mac |date=November 2, 2016 |website=jazztimes.com |access-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> [[Peter Brötzmann]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ibiblio.org/aim/brotzman.html |title=Brotzmann Quartet Pays Joyful Homage to Ayler |last=Stern |first=Jeff |website=Alliance for Improvised Music |access-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> and the late [[David S. Ware]],<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/pianist-matthew-shipp-says-goodbye-to-tenor-colossus-david-s-ware |title=Pianist Matthew Shipp Says Goodbye To Tenor Colossus David S. Ware |last=Shipp |first=Matthew |date=October 21, 2012 |newspaper=The Daily Beast |access-date=August 17, 2020}}</ref> were all heavily influenced by Albert Ayler. Ayler was also a crucial influence on some of his renowned contemporaries such as [[Frank Lowe]], Rev. [[Frank Wright (jazz musician)|Frank Wright]], [[Charles Tyler (musician)|Charles Tyler]] (on Ayler's album ''Bells''), [[Marion Brown]], and Frank Smith (on ESP-Disk ''Burton Greene Quartet'').

Ayler developed a close friendship with [[John Coltrane]], and the two influenced each other's playing. Coltrane said that Ayler "filled an area that it seems I hadn't got to. I think what he's doing, it seems to be moving music into even higher frequencies."<ref>{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val |author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=[[Serpent's Tail]] | year=2018 | pages=43 }}</ref> Ayler stated: "when he [Coltrane] started playing, I had to listen just to his tone... To listen to him play was just like he was talking to me, saying, 'Brother, get yourself together ''spiritually.'' Just one sound - that's how profound this man was..."<ref name="lovecry" /> According to [[Val Wilmer]], "the relationship between the two men was a very special one. They talked to each other constantly by telephone and by telegram and Coltrane was heavily influenced by the younger man."<ref>{{cite book | last=Wilmer |first=Val |author-link=Val Wilmer | title=As Serious As Your Life | publisher=[[Serpent's Tail]] | year=2018 | pages=141 }}</ref> Coltrane first heard Ayler in 1962, after which he told Ayler that "he had heard himself playing like that in a dream once."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Porter |first1=Lewis |last2=DeVito |first2=Chris |last3=Fujioka |first3=Yasuhiro |last4=Wild |first4=David |last5=Schmaler |first5=Wolf |title=The John Coltrane Reference |year=2008 |publisher=Routledge |pages=347 }}</ref> In February of the following year, Ayler sat in with Coltrane's group for the first time during a gig at the [[The Jazz Temple|Jazz Temple]] in [[Cleveland|Cleveland, Ohio]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Porter |first1=Lewis |last2=DeVito |first2=Chris |last3=Fujioka |first3=Yasuhiro |last4=Wild |first4=David |last5=Schmaler |first5=Wolf |title=The John Coltrane Reference |year=2008 |publisher=Routledge |pages=272–273 }}</ref> Beginning that year, "Coltrane and Ayler, when both in New York, were often in the same room. Various recollections have placed Coltrane watching Ayler and Cecil Taylor at the Take 3 Coffeehouse in the West Village in the fall of 1963; watching Ayler and [[Eric Dolphy]] together at the Half Note sometime that year; inviting Ayler onstage at the Half Note in March 1964; hearing Ayler's group with [[Rashied Ali]] at a little performance space at 27 Cooper Square in early 1965."<ref>{{cite book | last = Ratliff | first = Ben | author-link = Ben Ratliff | title = Coltrane: The Story of a Sound | publisher = Farrar, Straus and Giroux | year = 2007 | pages=95 }}</ref> Following the recording of ''[[Ascension (John Coltrane album)|Ascension]]'' in June 1965 (after Ayler had sent him copies of his albums ''[[Ghosts (Albert Ayler album)|Ghosts]]'' and ''[[Spiritual Unity]]''), Coltrane "called Ayler and told him, 'I recorded an album and found that I was playing just like you.' Albert's reply: 'No man, don't you see, you were playing like yourself. You were just feeling what I feel and were just crying out for spiritual unity."<ref name="Wilmer 2018 142"/> While in Antibes a month later, Coltrane "remained... in his hotel room, practicing as usual, playing along to a tape of an Ayler concert."<ref>{{cite book | last = Kahn | first = Ashley | author-link = Ashley Kahn | title = A Love Supreme: The Story of John Coltrane's Signature Album | publisher =Viking Penguin | year = 2002 | pages=172 }}</ref>

The Swedish filmmaker [[Kasper Collin]] was so inspired by Ayler's music and life that he produced a documentary, ''[[My Name Is Albert Ayler (documentary)|My Name Is Albert Ayler]]'', which includes interviews with ESP-Disk founder [[Bernard Stollman]], along with interviews with Ayler's family, girlfriends and bandmates.<ref>Brody, ''The New Yorker'', 2007.</ref> The film includes footage of Albert Ayler (from 1962, 1964, 1966 and 1970) and is built around his music and recordings of his voice (from interviews made between 1963 and 1970).

On his 1969 album ''[[Folkjokeopus]]'', English guitarist/singer-songwriter [[Roy Harper (singer)|Roy Harper]], dedicated the song "One for All" ("''One for Al''") to Albert Ayler, "who I knew and loved during my time in Copenhagen".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.roughtrade.com/albums/56492|date=March 7, 2014 |title=Roy Harper, FOLKJOKEOPUS|publisher=Rough Trade |access-date=March 7, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.royharper.co.uk/shop/cd-dvd/folkjokeopus.html|date=March 7, 2014|title=Folkjokeopus (CD)|publisher=Roy Harper|access-date=March 7, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140307225425/http://www.royharper.co.uk/shop/cd-dvd/folkjokeopus.html|archive-date=March 7, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> Harper considered Ayler to be "one of the leading jazzmen of the age".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.royharper.co.uk/shop/product_info.php?products_id=5 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090217234935/http://www.royharper.co.uk/shop/product_info.php?products_id=5 |archive-date=February 17, 2009 |title=Roy Harper site |date=February 17, 2009 |access-date=June 25, 2012}}</ref> In the ''Folkjokeopus'' [[liner notes]], Harper states, "In many ways he [Ayler] was the king".

Canadian artist [[Stan Douglas]]'s video installation ''Hors-champs'' (meaning "off-screen") addresses the political context of free jazz in the 1960s, as an extension of [[Pan Africanism|black consciousness]].<ref name="Krajewsk 2008">Krajewsk, "Stan Douglas, 15 September 2007 – 6 January 2008, Staatsgalerie & Wurttembergischer"</ref> Improvising Ayler's "Spirits Rejoice", four American musicians, [[George E. Lewis]] (trombone), [[Douglas Ewart]] (saxophone), Kent Carter (bass) and Oliver Johnson (drums), who lived in France during the free jazz period in the 1960s, perform in the installation, a recreation of 1960s French television.<ref>Gale, "Stan Douglas: ''Evening'' and others", p. 363</ref>

In 1990, pianist [[Giorgio Gaslini]] released ''Ayler's Wings'', a CD consisting entirely of solo interpretations of Ayler's compositions.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/aylers-wings-mw0000272252 |title=Giorgio Gaslini: Ayler's Wings |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> In 1999, [[John Lurie]] of the [[Lounge Lizards]] released a piece titled "The Resurrection of Albert Ayler".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/stranger-than-paradise-the-resurrection-of-albert-ayler-mw0000195909 |title=John Lurie: Stranger Than Paradise/The Resurrection of Albert Ayler |last=Ankeny |first=Jason |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> Composer and guitarist [[Marc Ribot]] recorded an [[Spiritual Unity (Marc Ribot album)|album dedicated to Ayler's ''Spiritual Unity'']] in 2005 with former Ayler bassist and free jazz leader [[Henry Grimes]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/spiritual-unity-mw0000141802 |title=Marc Ribot: Spiritual Unity |last=Westergaard |first=Sean |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref>

Ayler's tune "Ghosts" has been recorded by a number of musicians, including [[Gary Lucas]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/live-at-the-knitting-factory-vol-2-mw0000202180 |title=Various Artists: Live at the Knitting Factory, Vol. 2 |last=Yanow |first=Scott |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> [[David Moss (musician)|David Moss]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/my-favorite-things-mw0000758376 |title=David Moss: My Favorite Things |last=Dupont |first=David |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> [[Crazy Backwards Alphabet]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/crazy-backwards-alphabet-mw0000272930 |title=Crazy Backwards Alphabet |last=Boisen |first=Myles |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> [[Lester Bowie]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/all-the-magic%21-the-one-and-only-mw0000272685 |title=Lester Bowie: All the Magic!/The One and Only |last=Yanow |first=Scott |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> [[Eugene Chadbourne]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/ghost-legends-mw0000968883 |title=Eugene Chadbourne: Ghost Legends |last=Couture |first=François |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref> and [[Gary Windo]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/his-masters-bones-mw0000617037 |title=Gary Windo: His Master's Bones |last=Powers |first=Jim |website=AllMusic |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref>

Albert Ayler is the titular 'ghost of a jazzman' in [[Maurice G. Dantec]]'s 2009 science-fiction novel ''Comme le fantôme d'un jazzman dans la station Mir en deroute.''

Starting in 2018, late Chicago saxophonist [[Mars Williams]] recorded and released four CDs in a series called "Mars Williams Presents An Ayler Xmas", documenting annual Christmastime live concerts, recorded in Chicago, Vienna, Krakow, and New York City and featuring intertwined holiday standards and Albert Ayler music.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marswilliams.com/ayler-xmas |title=Mars Williams Presents An Ayler Xmas: The Music of Albert Ayler and Songs of Christmas |website=MarsWilliams.com |access-date=March 7, 2021}}</ref>

==Discography==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- "
!Released<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://rateyourmusic.com/artist/albert-ayler|title=Albert Ayler discography|website=RateYourMusic.com|access-date=2020-07-01}}</ref> !! Recorded<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ayler.co.uk/html/discography.html|title=Discography|website=Ayler.co.uk|access-date=2020-07-01}}</ref> !! Album !! Original Issue
|-
| 1963 || 1962 || ''[[Something Different!!!!! (Albert Ayler album)|Something Different!!!!!!]] (The First Recordings Vols. 1 & 2)'' || Bird Notes
|-
| 1964 || 1963 || ''[[My Name Is Albert Ayler]]'' || [[Debut Records|Debut]]
|-
| 1964 || 1964 || ''[[Spirits (Albert Ayler album)|Spirits]]'' (re-released as ''Witches & Devils'') ||Debut
|-
| 1971 || 1964 || ''[[Swing Low Sweet Spiritual]]'' || Osmosis 
|-
| 1975 || 1964 || ''[[Prophecy (Albert Ayler album)|Prophecy]]'' [Live] || [[ESP-Disk]]
|- 
| 1996 || 1964 || ''Albert Smiles With Sunny'' [Live] || Inrespect 
|-
| 1965 || 1964 || ''[[Spiritual Unity]]'' ||ESP
|-
| 1966 || 1964 || ''[[New York Eye and Ear Control]]'' ||ESP 
|-
| 2002 || 1964 || ''[[The Copenhagen Tapes]]'' || [[Ayler Records|Ayler]]
|-
| 1965 || 1964 || ''[[Ghosts (Albert Ayler album)|Ghosts]]'' (re-released as ''Vibrations'') || Debut 
|-
| 1980 || 1964 || ''[[The Hilversum Session]]'' || Osmosis  
|-
| 1965 || 1965 || ''[[Bells (album)|Bells]]''  [Live]|| ESP
|-
| 1965 || 1965 || ''[[Spirits Rejoice]]'' ||ESP 
|-
| 1965 || 1965 || ''[[Sonny's Time Now]]'' ([[Sunny Murray]]'s album)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/sunnys-time-now-mw0000254323|title=Sonny's Time Now : Sunny Murray|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=2020-07-01}}</ref> || Jihad 
|-
| 1965 || 1965 || ''[[The New Wave in Jazz]]'' [Live] || Impulse! 
|-
| 2022 || 1966 || ''[[La Cave Live, Cleveland 1966 Revisited]]'' || ezz-thetics
|-
| 1982 || 1966 || ''[[Live at Slug's Saloon (Albert Ayler album)|At Slug's Saloon, Vol. 1 & 2]]''  [Live] || ESP 
|-
| 1990 || 1964–66 || ''Albert Ayler''  [Live] || Philology 
|-
| 2011 || 1966 || ''[[Stockholm, Berlin 1966]]''  [Live] || [[Hathut Records|hat MUSICS]] 
|-
| 1982 || 1966 || ''[[Lörrach / Paris 1966]]'' [Live] || hat MUSICS
|-
| 1967 || 1965–67 || [[Albert Ayler in Greenwich Village|''In Greenwich Village'']] [Live]|| [[Impulse! Records|Impulse!]] 
|-
| 1998 || 1965-1967 || ''[[Live in Greenwich Village: The Complete Impulse Albums (IMPD-2-273)]]'' || Impulse!
|-
| 1968 || 1967–68 || ''[[Love Cry]]'' || Impulse! 
|-
| 1969 || 1968 || ''[[New Grass]]''|| Impulse! 
|-
| 1970 || 1969 || ''[[Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe]]'' || Impulse! 
|-
| 1971 || 1969 || ''[[The Last Album]]''  || Impulse! 
|-
| 2005 || 1970 || ''[[Live on the Riviera]]'' [Live] || ESP
|-
| 1971 || 1970 || ''[[Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (Albert Ayler album)|Nuits de la Fondation Maeght Vol. 1]]'' [Live] || [[Shandar]]
|-
| 1971 || 1970 || ''[[Nuits de la Fondation Maeght (Albert Ayler album)|Nuits de la Fondation Maeght Vol. 2]]'' [Live] || Shandar
|-
| 2022 || 1970 || ''Revelations: The Complete ORTF 1970 Fondation Maeght Recordings'' || Elemental Music
|-
| 2004 || 1960–70 || ''[[Holy Ghost: Rare & Unissued Recordings (1962–70)]]'' || [[Revenant Records|Revenant]] 
|}

===Compilations===
<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ayler.co.uk/html/compilations.html|title=Compilations|website=Ayler.co.uk|access-date=2020-07-01}}</ref>
(this list is incomplete)
* ''The Complete ESP-Disk Recordings'' (ESP, 2006)
* ''European Radio Studio Recordings 1964'' ([[Hathut Records|hatOLOGY]], 2016)
* ''The Early Albums Collection'' (Enlightenment, 2020)

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
*"Ayler, Albert—Spirits Rejoice", ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music''. Oxford University Press, November 17, 2006. Web.
*Ayler, Albert. [http://www.ayler.co.uk/html/cricket.html "To Mr. Jones—I Had a Vision"]. ''The Cricket'' 4. 
*Brody, Richard. [http://www.newyorker.com/arts/reviews/film/my_name_is_albert_ayler_collin "My Name is Albert Ayler"], ''The New Yorker'', November 12, 2007. 
*Claghorn, Charles Eugene. ''The Biographical Dictionary of Jazz''. Prentice-Hall, 1982.
*ESP-Disk' Discography. [http://www.espdisk.com/official/series/1000cover.html Esp-Disk.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140330223854/http://espdisk.com/official/series/1000cover.html |date=March 30, 2014 }}
*Gioia, Ted. ''The History of Jazz''. Oxford University Press, 2011.
*Hardy, Phil. "Albert Ayler", ''The Faber Companion to 20th Century Popular Music'', 2001. Web.
*Jenkins, Todd S. ''Free Jazz and Free Improvisation: An Encyclopedia'', Volume 1. Greenwood Press, 2004.
*Jost, Ekkehard. ''Free Jazz''. Da Capo Press, 1975.
*Kernfeld, Barry. "Albert Ayler." Grove Music Online. Oxford University Press. Web.
*Koloda, Richard. ''Holy Ghost: The Life & Death Of Free Jazz Pioneer Albert Ayler'' Jawbone Press, 2022.
*Lewis, John. [https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/jun/17/john-coltranes-funeral "John Coltrane's Funeral"], ''The Guardian'', June 16, 2011. 
*Litweiler, John. ''The Freedom Principle: Jazz After 1958''. William Morrow and Company, Inc, 1984.
*Mandel, Howard. [https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90627436 "Albert Ayler's Fiery Sax, Now on Film"], NPR, June 7, 2008.
*Richardson, Mark. [http://pitchfork.com/features/resonant-frequency/7845-resonant-frequency-73/ "Funerals and Ghosts and Enjoying the Push"], ''Pitchfork''. August 13, 2010.
*Schwartz, Jeff. "Review: Healing Force: The Songs of Albert Ayler." ''American Music'', Vol. 27. JSTOR.
*Shipton, Alyn. A New History of Jazz. Continuum, 2001. 
*Weiss, Jason. ''Always in Trouble: An Oral History of ESP-Disk: The Most Outrageous Record Label in America''. Wesleyan University Press, 2012.
*Whitehead, Kevin. [https://www.npr.org/2001/05/08/1122654/avant-garde-made-easy-albert-ayler "Albert Ayler: Testifying the Breaking Point"], NPR, May 8, 2001. 
*Wilmer, Valerie. ''As Serious As Your Life: John Coltrane and Beyond'', London, Serpent's Tail, 1993
*Wilmer, Valerie. [https://www.theguardian.com/news/2007/nov/16/guardianobituaries.obituaries "Obituary: Donald Ayler"], ''The Guardian'', November 15, 2001. #
*Wilson, Peter Niklas. [https://www.wolke-verlag.de/musikbuecher/peter-niklas-wilson-spirits-rejoice-albert-ayler-and-his-message/ Spirits Rejoice! Albert Ayler and his message]. Hofheim, Wolke Verlag, 2022.
*Woideck, Carl. ''The John Coltrane Companion: Five Decades of Commentary''. Schirmer Books, 1998.

==External links==
* {{AllMusic}} {{Bandcamp}} {{Discogs artist}} {{MusicBrainz artist}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100902181517/http://www.reocities.com/jeff_l_schwartz/ayler.html ''Albert Ayler: His Life and Music''] (e-book by Jeff Schwartz, 1992)
* [http://www.ayler.co.uk/index.html Albert Ayler]
* {{Cite web |url=http://www.albert-ayler.de/index.html |title=Albert Ayler |access-date=June 28, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718195502/http://www.albert-ayler.de/index.html |archive-date=July 18, 2011 |url-status=dead  }}, in German language.
* [http://www.jazzdisco.org/ayler/dis/c/ Albert Ayler Discography Project]
* [https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15404711 Albert Ayler at NPR Music]
* {{Find a Grave|8818}}

{{Albert Ayler}}Biography, Holy Ghost by Richard Koloda. https://www.amazon.com/Holy-Ghost-Death-Pioneer-Albert/dp/1911036939?dplnkId=ad708e19-599f-4023-9da0-8b563c96548b&nodl=1<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jassin |first=Lloyd |date=November 15, 2022 |title=Amazon.com |publisher=Jawbone Press |isbn=978-1911036937 }}</ref>{{Authority control}}

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