Biography of Herbie Mann

No instrumentalist was more popular in the 60s and early 70s than Herbie Mann, nor more eclectic. Mann began to investigate and record bossa-nova music in 1961 and had his first hit single and album in 1962. Through the late 50s and early 60s, Mann had been a fairly conventional mainstream/bop saxophonist, but he switched to flute and became a superstar in the 60s. Mann's simple melodies and incorporation of international elements at times, or R&B, blues, and rock backbeats at other times, clicked with record buyers. He played in Brazil and Japan and regularly topped many listener/reader polls throughout the 60s. His late-60s release Memphis Underground was a monster smash and an early jazz/rock/fusion document. During the 70s Mann moved into reggae and disco, had his own label for a while, and produced sessions by Ron Carter, Miroslav Vitous, and Attila Zoller, among others. ~ Ron WynnMann's popularity waned in the 80s, and he has never been a critical favorite. But reissues have shown he's made some respectable albums in with the fluff, among them Nirvana in 1961 with Bill Evans. -- RW