"Happy birthday to the great Herbie Hancock who was born on this day in 1940. As part of Miles Davis’s “second great quintet”, Hancock helped redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section, and was one of the primary architects of the “post-bop” sound.
He was also one of the first jazz musicians to embrace synthesizers and funk. In the 1970s, Hancock experimented with jazz fusion, funk, and electro styles, using a wide array of synthesizers and electronics. It was during this period that he released perhaps his best-known and most influential album, Head Hunters, the first jazz album to reach platinum status.
Hancock’s best-known compositions include “Cantaloupe Island”, “Watermelon Man”, “Maiden Voyage”, and “Chameleon”, all of which are jazz standards. During the 1980s, he enjoyed a hit single with the electronic instrumental “Rockit”, a collaboration with bassist/producer Bill Laswell. Hancock has won an Academy Award and 14 Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year the second jazz album to win the award after Getz/Gilberto in 1965.
Here, he is performing “Hang Up Your Hang Ups” with Bennie Maupin on flute and reeds, Wah Wah Watson on guitar, Paul Jackson on bass and James Levi on drums live in 1976. "
