Rashied Ali (1935-2009)

I was saddened to hear of the loss of great jazz drummer Rashied Ali, who died yesterday at Bellevue hospital. Cause of death was a blocked artery.

Ali is probably most famous for his work with saxophonist John Coltrane on late recordings such as Expression and Meditations. After Coltrane’s death, he went on to over a dozen records as a leader on Knitting Factory and Blue Music.

Here’s a recent performance by Ali, courtesy of YouTube.

Rashied Ali Band live on YouTube