Illinois Jacquet

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Illinois Jacquet
Jacquet, New York City, c. May 1947 (Photograph by William Paul Gottlieb)
Background information
Birth name	Jean-Baptiste Illinois Jacquet
Born	(1922-10-30)October 30, 1922 Broussard, Louisiana, US
Died	July 22, 2004(2004-07-22) (aged 81) New York City, New York, US
Genres	Swing, bebop, jump blues
Occupation(s)	Musician, bandleader, composer
Instrument(s)	Tenor saxophone, bassoon, alto saxophone
Years active	1941–2004
Labels	Apollo, Savoy, Aladdin, RCA, Verve, Mercury, Roulette, Epic, Argo, Prestige, Black Lion, Black & Blue, Atlantic

Jean-Baptiste Illinois Jacquet (October 30, 1922 – July 22, 2004)^[1] was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, best remembered for his solo on "Flying Home", critically recognized as the first R&B saxophone solo.^[2] He is also known as one of the writers of the jazz standard "Don'cha Go 'Way Mad."

Although he was a pioneer of the honking tenor saxophone that became a regular feature of jazz playing and a hallmark of early rock and roll, Jacquet was a skilled and melodic improviser, both on up-tempo tunes and ballads. He doubled on the bassoon, one of only a few jazz musicians to use the instrument.