Old and New Dreams

Founded in 1976, Old and New Dreams was a jazz quartet composed of Dewey Redman (tenor saxophone/musette), Charlie Haden (bass), Don Cherry (trumpet), and Ed Blackwell (drums). The four musicians had all previously been members of alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman’s band and played a mixture of originals and compositions by Coleman. Each of the band’s members had personal ties with Ornette Coleman dating back to the 1950s and had played with the saxophonist at different times throughout his career. In the mid 1970s, Coleman considered forming an acoustic band using Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden, Don Cherry, and Ed Blackwell, but when that didn’t come to fruition, the quartet moved forward with the idea of playing together and officially formed Old and New Dreams in 1976. Their self-titled debut album was released in 1977 to great acclaim. Signing to the ECM label, they released their second self-titled album in 1979, followed by the live album Playing (1980). The quartet continued to play together, releasing their final album, the live release A Tribute to Blackwell, in 1987. The band officially came to an end after the release of that album although the four musicians continued to collaborate over the years. The last time all four members played together was a live performance in 1991. Ed Blackwell died on October 7, 1992. Don Cherry died on October 19, 1995. Dewey Redman died on September 2, 2006. Charlie Haden died on July 11, 2014.

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