Biography

Cannonball Adderley was born in 1928 in Tampa, Florida. He moved around Florida frequently during his early life, and even played with Ray Charles in the early 1940’s when Charles lived in Florida himself. Adderley eventually settled in Ft. Lauderdale Florida where he was the band director at Dillard High School. He moved to New York City in 1955, quickly finding success on the New York scene. Shortly after relocating, Adderley met Miles Davis, beginning a fruitful period in which he would record on ‘Kind of Blue’ and ‘Milestones’. It was also during this time that he recorded his solo albums ‘Somethin Else’, ‘Portrait of Cannonball’, and ‘Know What I Mean?’. Cannonball’s style is one of extreme virtuosity; no one had played the alto saxophone like Cannonball since Charlie Parker. Cannonball was extremely explosive, possessing one of the single greatest saxophone tones in 20th century music, and contained a heavy soul and blues influence which helped him navigate across genres.