Another jazz legend joins that big band in the sky. Vibraphonist and composer Roy Ayers recently passed away at the age of 84. One of the greatest soul jazz players that ever lived, Roy Ayers was a musician who’s influence was (you could say) “ubiquitous” among the jazz scene although (it is amazing to me that) he is still relatively unknown to most of the jazz listening crowd. Regardless, he carved out a very special niche that was all his own and continued to evolve his style and sound well into the new millennium. He was and still is a huge part of my jazz collection. He will surely be missed by many.
