Witness to History

Trumpet legend Dr. Eddie Henderson celebrates the 50^th anniversary of his debut album as a leader, 1973’s Realization, with the exhilarating new release Witness to History. The stellar quintet on this album bridges that half-century of music: lifelong collaborator George Cables returns once again to the piano bench. Henderson’s colleague in The Cookers, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison, and his more recent collaborator, bassist Gerald Cannon, have also appeared on the trumpeter’s recent string of releases for Smoke Sessions. They’re joined by legendary drummer Lenny White, who has reunited with Henderson in the studio for the first time since Realization 50 years ago).

Henderson is also the subject of an upcoming PBS documentary Dr. Eddie Henderson: Uncommon Genius, set to arrive in February 2024 that charts his fascinating life in three disparate endeavors: as a medical doctor, as a pioneering figure skater, and, of course, as a legendary jazz musician.

“My first trumpet teacher, way back in 1949, was Louis Armstrong,” recalls Henderson, “From that point on, I witnessed the evolution in music through Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Lee Morgan, Booker Little, Woody Shaw, John Coltrane, up to the present. I lived through the turmoil of the ’60s and ’70s and the rise of Black Power in this country. So, I have been a witness to history, and inevitably that rubbed off on me musically.”

Witness To History traces Eddie Henderson’s evolution through a remarkable span of time, but it’s abundantly clear that he’s done more than watch from the sidelines as history unfolds. Dr. Henderson has made his own indelible mark on history, and this vital music reveals that he’s far from writing his final chapter.