St. Louis-born jazz man Oliver Nelson gained widespread attention for his 1961 album 'The Blues and the Abstract Truth' with its signature track 'Stolen Moments'. A gifted player of many instruments including saxophone, clarinet and piano, he made his name as a composer and arranger on big band albums recorded by top artists.

Having learned to play the piano and saxophone from his Cootie Williams sideman brother, he played in local bands in the early 1950s and woodwinds in a Marine band during the Korean War. A chance hearing of music by Maurice Ravel and Paul Hindemith led him to classical influences and upon his return he studied music at Washington and Lincoln universities where, in 1958, he graduated with a master's degree. A stint as house arranger at Harlem's Apollo Theater followed in New York where he also played with Erskine Hawkins and Wild Bill Davis.

After international tours playing tenor saxophone with Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Quincy Jones, he recorded six albums before his breakthrough. Keen to write scores for the screen, Nelson moved to Los Angeles in 1967 and throughout the '70s he wrote for such TV series as 'Columbo', 'Ironside' and 'The Six Million Dollar Man'. His feature film scores include 'Death of a Gunfighter' (1969), 'Skullduggery' (1970), 'Zig Zag' (1970) and 'The Alpha Caper' (1973) and he also arranged the music for 'Alfie' (1966) and 'Last Tango in Paris' (1972). After publishing an enduring book of practice jazz exercises titled 'Patterns for Improvisation', he suffered a heart attack and passed away at the age of 43.

Oliver Nelson

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