Jazz drummer Jimmy Cobb dies of lung cancer, last surviving member of Miles Davis' First Great Sextet was 91
Jazz drummer Jimmy Cobb, the last surviving member of Miles Davis’ ensemble sextet, died at his home in Manhattan on Sunday, May 24, at the age of 91. According to his wife Eleana Tee Cobb, the cause of death was lung cancer.
Davis’ sextet, often called Miles Davis' First Great Sextet, included Davis on the trumpet, saxophonists John Coltrane and Julian ‘Cannonball’ Adderley, pianist Bill Evans, bassist Paul Chambers, and Cobb on the drums. Cobb, as part of the sextet, featured in the albums ‘Kind of Blue’, ‘Sketches of Spain’, ‘In Person Friday and Saturday Nights at the Blackhawk’, and more.
Cobb, Chambers, and Kelly continued to play together under Kelly's name until Chambers' untimely death in 1969.
In addition to that, Cobb also worked with iconic artists like Dinah Washington, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Wynton Kelly, Wes Montgomery, Art Pepper, Hank Jones, Bobby Timmons, Walter Booker, Jimmy Cleveland, Sam Jones, Red Garland, Joe Henderson, Richard Wyands, Richie Cole, Nancy Wilson, and Ricky Ford, among others.
They collaborated with Cannonball Adderley, John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter, Benny Golson, Wes Montgomery, Hank Mobley, Art Pepper, and Joe Henderson.
Born James Wilbur Cobb on January 20, 1929, the drummer was raised in Washington, D.C., and began drumming as a teenager. In an old interview, Cobb once said, “I figured it was something I'd like to do. and when I learned enough to do it, I figured that would be what I would do for the rest of my life.”
According to NPR, by his 20th birthday, Cobb had already created a reputation for himself and was playing high-profile gigs, like with Billie Holiday, and in Symphony Sid's traveling show alongside Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. “I've been in the right place at the right time a lot of times,” he said in an interview. “[But today] things are more mechanical than human, than they used to be. [Students today] got some advantages, because they have videos and all that, but it's not walking up and shaking the dude's hand and talking about things, or asking him questions.”
In 1983, Cobb released his first album as a bandleader: ‘So Nobody Else Can Hear’. He continued to release albums, even as recently as last year with ‘This I Dig of You’ and ‘Cobb’s Pocket’.
By the ‘90s, Cobb began teaching young musicians like Roy Hargrove, Christian McBride, Wallace Roney, and Brad Mehldau. He continued to perform and teach until the very end. In 2008, Jimmy Cobb was the recipient of the Don Redman Heritage award. In 2009, he was given the National Endowment for the Arts’ NEA Jazz Masters Award.
He is survived by his wife, Eleana, and his two daughters, Serena and Jaime.
