GoFundMe campaign set up to raise money for saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett

Baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett is ailing, and family members have set up a page at the website GoFundMe to raise money to help him.

From the message posted to the page by Bluiett's granddaughter Anaya:

"Recently, he's been hospitalized for several months because he has had numerous strokes and seizures. He was in the critical intensive care unit, then the hospital and two rehabs to help him get back to himself but it's still going to take some time. I am trying to raise money for him for his bills and traveling expenses, since he no longer will be able to work."

Considered by many fans and critics to be the top baritone saxophonist of his generation, Bluiett (pictured) originally is from Brooklyn, IL (aka Lovejoy), just across the river from St. Louis, and attended SIU-Carbondale.

Now 76 years old, Bluiett first gained wide recognition in the jazz world in the late 1960s as a member of the Black Artists Group, and then went on to form the World Saxophone Quartet with fellow BAG members Oliver Lake and Julius Hemphill plus David Murray.

In addition to more than 20 albums with the WSQ, Bluiett has made a similar number of recordings as a bandleader, and also has performed or recorded with well-known jazz and improvisational musicians including Charles Mingus, Gil Evans, Anthony Braxton, Kahil El'Zabar, the Music Revelation Ensemble, and many others.

(On a more personal note, as longtime StLJN readers may have noticed, yr. humble editor is a big fan of Bluiett's many musical contributions to our culture. I've also interviewed him a couple of times, and found him to be candid, funny, and very quotable.) 

To find out more or to contribute to the GoFundMe campaign supporting Hamiet Bluiett, go here.