Billy Higgins
Billy Higgins (October 11, 1936 – May 3, 2001) was an American jazz drummer. He played mainly free jazz and hard bop.
Billy Higgins
US jazz drummer.
Brianmcmillen · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Name
- Billy Higgins
- Born
- 11 October 1936
- Birthplace
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- Died
- 3 May 2001
- Place of death
- Inglewood, California, U.S.
- Occupation
- Musician, educator
- Nationality
- United States
- Fields
- jazz · swing
- Honours
- NEA Jazz Masters
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
Billy Higgins (October 11, 1936 – May 3, 2001) was an American jazz drummer. He played mainly free jazz and hard bop.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
Billy Higgins (1936–2001) was an American drummer, jazz musician and musician. Born in Los Angeles, the drummer died in Inglewood. Billy Higgins was a member of Eastern Rebellion and Timeless All Stars.
Genres include jazz and swing. Languages used include English. The drummer received NEA Jazz Masters.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 28 September 2026
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museum · 53019232-166e-4788-8b13-23e60ffced44 · wikidata · Q324522 · wikipedia · Billy Higgins
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Billy Higgins • Born — 11 October 1936 • Birthplace — Los Angeles, California, U.S. • Died — 3 May 2001 • Place of death — Inglewood, California, U.S. • Instrument — Drums • Genre — Jazz • Occupation — Musician, educator • Past Member Of — Ornette Coleman, Herbie Hancock, Cedar Walton, Charles Lloyd, Pat Metheny
Biography
Biography
Higgins was born in Los Angeles, California, United States. Higgins played on Ornette Coleman's first records, beginning in 1958. He then freelanced extensively with hard bop and other post-bop players, including Donald Byrd, Dexter Gordon, Grant Green, Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Don Cherry, Paul Horn, Milt Jackson, Jackie McLean, Pat Metheny, Hank Mobley, Thelonious Monk, Lee Morgan, David Murray, Art Pepper, Sonny Rollins, Mal Waldron, and Cedar Walton. He was one of the house drummers for Blue Note Records and played on dozens of Blue Note albums of the 1960s. He also collaborated with composer La Monte Young and guitarist Sandy Bull. In his career, Higgins played on more than 700 recordings, including recordings of rock and funk. He appeared as a jazz drummer in the 1986 movie Round Midnight and the 2001 movie Southlander. In 1989, Higgins cofounded a cultural center, The World Stage, in Los Angeles to encourage and promote younger jazz musicians. The center provides workshops in performance and writing, as well as concerts and recordings. Higgins also taught in the jazz studies program at the University of California, Los Angeles. Billy Higgins died of kidney and liver failure on May 3, 2001, at a hospital in Inglewood, California.
As leader
As leader
• 1979: Soweto (Red) • 1979: The Soldier (Timeless, [1981]) • 1980: Once More (Red) • 1984: Mr. Billy Higgins (Evidence) • 1980-86: Bridgework (Contemporary) • 1994: ¾ for Peace (Red) • 1997: Billy Higgins Quintet (Evidence) • 2001: The Best of Summer Nights at Moca (Exodus)
With Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt
With Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt
• God Bless Jug and Sonny (Prestige, 1973 [2001]) • Left Bank Encores (Prestige, 1973 [2001])
With Chris Anderson
With Chris Anderson
• Blues One (DIW, 1991)
With Gary Bartz
With Gary Bartz
• Libra (Milestone, 1968)
With Paul Bley
With Paul Bley
• Live at the Hilcrest Club 1958 (Inner City, 1958 [1976]) • Coleman Classics Volume 1 (Improvising Artists, 1958 [1977])
With Sandy Bull
With Sandy Bull
• Fantasias for Guitar and Banjo (Vanguard, 1963) • Inventions (Vanguard, 1965)
With Jaki Byard
With Jaki Byard
• On the Spot! (Prestige, 1967)
With Donald Byrd
With Donald Byrd
• Royal Flush (Blue Note, 1961) • Free Form (Blue Note, 1962) • Blackjack (Blue Note, 1967) • Slow Drag (Blue Note, 1967)
With Joe Castro
With Joe Castro
• Groove Funk Soul (Atlantic, 1959)
With Don Cherry
With Don Cherry
• Brown Rice (EMI, 1975) • Art Deco (A&M, 1988)
With Sonny Clark
With Sonny Clark
• Leapin' and Lopin (Blue Note, 1961)
With George Coleman
With George Coleman
• Amsterdam After Dark (Timeless, 1979)
With Ornette Coleman
With Ornette Coleman
• Something Else!!!! (Contemporary, 1958) • The Shape of Jazz to Come (Atlantic, 1959) • Change of the Century (Atlantic, 1959) • The Art of the Improvisers (Atlantic, 1959) • To Whom Who Keeps a Record (Warner, 1959–60) • Free Jazz: A Collective Improvisation (Atlantic, 1961) • Twins (Atlantic, 1961) • Science Fiction (Columbia, 1971) • Broken Shadows (Columbia, 1971–1972 [1982]) • The Complete Science Fiction Sessions (Columbia, 1971–1972 [2000]) • In All Languages (Caravan of Dreams, 1987)
With John Coltrane
With John Coltrane
• Like Sonny (Roulette, 1960)
With Junior Cook
With Junior Cook
• Somethin's Cookin (Muse, 1981)
With Bill Cosby
With Bill Cosby
• Hello, Friend: To Ennis with Love (Verve, 1997)
With Stanley Cowell
With Stanley Cowell
• Regeneration (Strata East, 1976)
With Ray Drummond
With Ray Drummond
• The Essence (DMP, 1985)
With Teddy Edwards
With Teddy Edwards
• Teddy Edwards at Falcon's Lair (MetroJazz, 1958) • Sunset Eyes (Pacific Jazz, 1960) • Teddy's Ready! (Contemporary, 1960) • Nothin' But the Truth! (Prestige, 1966) • Young at Heart (Storyville, 1979) with Howard McGhee • Wise in Time (Storyville, 1979) with Howard McGhee • Mississippi Lad (Verve/Gitanes, 1991) • Tango in Harlem (Verve/Gitanes, 1994)
With Booker Ervin
With Booker Ervin
• Tex Book Tenor (Blue Note, 1968)
With Art Farmer
With Art Farmer
• Homecoming (Mainstream, 1971) • Yesterday's Thoughts (East Wind, 1975) • To Duke with Love (East Wind, 1975) • The Summer Knows (East Wind, 1976) • Art Farmer Quintet at Boomers (East Wind, 1976)
With Curtis Fuller
With Curtis Fuller
• Smokin (Mainstream, 1972)
With Stan Getz
With Stan Getz
• Cal Tjader-Stan Getz Sextet (1958, Fantasy) with Cal Tjader
With Dexter Gordon
With Dexter Gordon
• Go (Blue Note, 1962) • A Swingin' Affair (Blue Note, 1962) • Clubhouse (Blue Note, 1965 – released 1979) • Gettin' Around (Blue Note, 1965) • Tangerine (Prestige, 1972 [1975]) • Generation (Prestige, 1972) • Something Different (SteepleChase, 1975 [1980]) • Bouncin' with Dex (SteepleChase, 1976) • The Other Side of Round Midnight (Blue Note, 1985)
With Grant Green
With Grant Green
• First Session (Blue Note, 1961) • Goin' West (Blue Note, 1962) • Feelin' the Spirit (Blue Note, 1962)
With Dodo Greene
With Dodo Greene
• My Hour of Need (Blue Note, 1962)
With Charlie Haden
With Charlie Haden
• Quartet West (Verve, 1986) • Silence (Soul Note, 1987) • The Private Collection (Naim, 1987-88 [2000]) • First Song (Soul Note, 1990 [1992])
With Slide Hampton
With Slide Hampton
• Roots (Criss Cross, 1985)
With Herbie Hancock
With Herbie Hancock
• Takin' Off (Blue Note, 1962) • Round Midnight (soundtrack) (Columbia, 1985)
With Roy Hargrove
With Roy Hargrove
• Public Eye (Novus/RCA, 1991)
With Barry Harris
With Barry Harris
• Bull's Eye! (Prestige, 1968)
With Eddie Harris
With Eddie Harris
• The In Sound (Atlantic, 1965) • Mean Greens (Atlantic, 1966) • The Tender Storm (Atlantic, 1966) • Excursions (Atlantic, 1966–73) • How Can You Live Like That? (Atlantic, 1976)
With Johnny Hartman
With Johnny Hartman
• Today (Perception, 1972)
With Jimmy Heath
With Jimmy Heath
• Love and Understanding (Muse, 1973) • The Time and the Place (Landmark, 1974 [1994]) • Picture of Heath (Xanadu, 1975)
With Joe Henderson
With Joe Henderson
• Mirror Mirror (MPS, 1980)
With Andrew Hill
With Andrew Hill
• Dance with Death (Blue Note, 1968 – not released until 1980)
With Christopher Hollyday
With Christopher Hollyday
• Christopher Hollyday (BMG, 1989)
With Richard "Groove" Holmes
With Richard "Groove" Holmes
• Get Up & Get It! (Prestige, 1967)
With Paul Horn
With Paul Horn
• Something Blue (HiFi Jazz, 1960)
With Toninho Horta
With Toninho Horta
• Once I Loved (Verve, 1992)
With Freddie Hubbard
With Freddie Hubbard
• Bolivia (Music Master, 1991)
With Bobby Hutcherson
With Bobby Hutcherson
• Stick-Up (Blue Note, 1969) • Solo / Quartet (Contemporary, 1982) • Farewell Keystone (Theresa, 1982 [1988]) • Color Schemes (Landmark, 1985 [1986])
With J. J. Johnson
With J. J. Johnson
• Pinnacles (Milestone, 1980)
With Hank Jones and Dave Holland
With Hank Jones and Dave Holland
• The Oracle (EmArcy, 1990)
With Sam Jones
With Sam Jones
• Seven Minds (East Wind Records, 1974) • Cello Again (Xanadu, 1976) • Something in Common (Muse, 1977)
With Clifford Jordan
With Clifford Jordan
• Soul Fountain (Vortex, 1966 [1970]) • Glass Bead Games (Strata-East, 1974) • Night of the Mark VII (Muse, 1975) • On Stage Vol. 1 (SteepleChase, 1975 [1977]) • On Stage Vol. 2 (SteepleChase, 1975 [1978]) • On Stage Vol. 3 (SteepleChase, 1975 [1979]) • Firm Roots (Steeplechase, 1975) • The Highest Mountain (Steeplechase, 1975)
With Fred Katz
With Fred Katz
• Fred Katz and his Jammers (Decca, 1959)
With Steve Lacy
With Steve Lacy
• Evidence (New Jazz, 1962) with Don Cherry
With Charles Lloyd
With Charles Lloyd
• Acoustic Masters I (Atlantic, 1993) • Voice in the Night (ECM, 1999) • The Water Is Wide (ECM, 2000) • Hyperion with Higgins (ECM, 2001, released posthumously) • Which Way Is East (ECM, 2004, released posthumously)
With Pat Martino
With Pat Martino
• The Visit! (Cobblestone, 1972) also released as Footprints
With Jackie McLean
With Jackie McLean
• A Fickle Sonance (Blue Note, 1961) • Let Freedom Ring Blue Note, 1962) • Vertigo (Blue Note, 1962–63) • Action Action Action (Blue Note, 1964) • Consequence (Blue Note, 1965 [2005]) • New and Old Gospel (Blue Note, 1967)
With Charles McPherson
With Charles McPherson
• The Quintet/Live! (Prestige, 1966) • Horizons (Prestige, 1968) • Today's Man (Mainstream, 1973)
With Pat Metheny
With Pat Metheny
• Rejoicing (ECM, 1984)
With Blue Mitchell
With Blue Mitchell
• Bring It Home to Me (Blue Note, 1966)
With Red Mitchell
With Red Mitchell
• Presenting Red Mitchell (Contemporary, 1957)
With Hank Mobley
With Hank Mobley
• The Turnaround (Blue Note, 1965) • Dippin (Blue Note, 1965) • A Caddy for Daddy (Blue Note, 1965) • A Slice of the Top (Blue Note, 1966 [1979]) • Hi Voltage (Blue Note, 1967) • Third Season (Blue Note, 1967) • Far Away Lands (Blue Note, 1967) • Reach Out! (Blue Note, 1968) • Breakthrough! (Muse, 1972) with Cedar Walton • Straight No Filter (Blue Note, 1964-66 [1980])
With Thelonious Monk
With Thelonious Monk
• Thelonious Monk at the Blackhawk (Riverside, 1960)
With Buddy Montgomery
With Buddy Montgomery
• Ties of Love (Landmark, 1987) • With Tete Montoliu • Secret Love (Timeless, 1977) • Live at the Keystone Corner (Timeless, 1979 [1981])
With Frank Morgan
With Frank Morgan
• Easy Living (Contemporary, 1985) • Lament (Contemporary, 1986) • Bebop Lives! (Contemporary, 1987) • Love, Lost & Found (Telarc, 1995)
With Lee Morgan
With Lee Morgan
• The Sidewinder (Blue Note, 1963) • Search for the New Land (Blue Note, 1964) • The Rumproller (Blue Note, 1965) • The Gigolo (Blue Note, 1965) • Cornbread (Blue Note, 1965) • Infinity (Blue Note, 1965 [1980]) • Delightfulee (Blue Note, 1966) • Charisma (Blue Note, 1966) • The Rajah (Blue Note, 1966 [1984]) • Sonic Boom (Blue Note, 1967 [1979]) • The Sixth Sense (Blue Note, 1967–68) • The Procrastinator (Blue Note, 1967 [1978]) • Taru (Blue Note, 1968 [1980]) • Caramba! (Blue Note, 1968)
With Bheki Mseleku
With Bheki Mseleku
• Star Seeding (Polygram Records, 1995)
With David Murray
With David Murray
• Live at Sweet Basil Volume 1 (Black Saint, 1984) • Live at Sweet Basil Volume 2 (Black Saint, 1984)
With Horace Parlan
With Horace Parlan
• Happy Frame of Mind (Blue Note, 1963)
With Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen
With Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen
• Jaywalkin (SteepleChase, 1975) • Double Bass (SteepleChase, 1976) with Sam Jones
With Art Pepper
With Art Pepper
• So in Love (Artists House, 1979) • Artworks (Galaxy, 1979 [1984]) • Landscape (Galaxy, 1979) • Besame Mucho (JVC, 1979 [1981]) • Straight Life (Galaxy, 1979) • Art 'n' Zoot (Pablo, 1981 [1995]) with Zoot Sims
With Dave Pike
With Dave Pike
• It's Time for Dave Pike (Riverside, 1961) • Pike's Groove (Criss Cross Jazz, 1986) with Cedar Walton
With Jimmy Raney
With Jimmy Raney
• The Influence (Xanadu, 1975)
With Sonny Red
With Sonny Red
• Sonny Red (Mainstream, 1971)
With Freddie Redd
With Freddie Redd
• Live at the Studio Grill (Triloka, 1990)
With Joshua Redman
With Joshua Redman
• Wish (1993)
With Red Rodney
With Red Rodney
• The Red Tornado (Muse, 1975)
With Sonny Rollins
With Sonny Rollins
• Our Man in Jazz (RCA Victor, 1965) • There Will Never Be Another You (recorded 1965 released 1978)
With Charlie Rouse
With Charlie Rouse
• Bossa Nova Bacchanal (Blue Note, 1965)
With Hilton Ruiz
With Hilton Ruiz
• Piano Man (SteepleChase, 1975)
With Pharoah Sanders
With Pharoah Sanders
• Rejoice (Theresa, 1981)
With Rob Schneiderman
With Rob Schneiderman
• Smooth Sailing (Reservoir, 1990)
With John Scofield
With John Scofield
• Works for Me (Verve, 2001)
With Shirley Scott
With Shirley Scott
• One for Me (Strata-East, 1974)
With Archie Shepp
With Archie Shepp
• Attica Blues (Impulse!, 1972)
With Sonny Simmons
With Sonny Simmons
• Rumasuma (Contemporary, 1969)
With James Spaulding
With James Spaulding
• James Spaulding Plays the Legacy of Duke Ellington (Storyville, 1977)
With Robert Stewart
With Robert Stewart
• Judgement (World Stage, 1994 / Red Records, 1997) • The Movement (Exodus, 2002)
With Sonny Stitt
With Sonny Stitt
• Blues for Duke (Muse, 1975 [1978])
With Idrees Sulieman
With Idrees Sulieman
• Now Is the Time (SteepleChase, 1976)
With Ira Sullivan
With Ira Sullivan
• Peace (Galaxy, 1978) • Multimedia (Galaxy, 1978 [1982])
With Sun Ra
With Sun Ra
• Somewhere Else (Rounder, 1988–89) • Blue Delight (A&M, 1989)
With Cecil Taylor
With Cecil Taylor
• Jumpin' Punkins (Candid, 1961) • New York City R&B (Candid, 1961)
With Lucky Thompson
With Lucky Thompson
• Goodbye Yesterday (Groove Merchant, 1973)
With the Timeless All Stars
With the Timeless All Stars
• It's Timeless (Timeless, 1982) • Timeless Heart (Timeless, 1983) • Essence (Delos, 1986) • Time for the Timeless All Stars (Early Bird, 1990)
With Bobby Timmons
With Bobby Timmons
• Soul Food (Prestige, 1966) • Got to Get It! (Milestone, 1967)
With Charles Tolliver
With Charles Tolliver
• The New Wave in Jazz (Impulse!, 1965)
With Stanley Turrentine
With Stanley Turrentine
• More Than a Mood (MusicMasters, 1992)
With Mal Waldron
With Mal Waldron
• Up Popped the Devil (Enja, 1973) • Like Old Times (RCA Victor, 1976) • One Entrance, Many Exits (Palo Alto, 1982)
With Cedar Walton
With Cedar Walton
• Cedar! (Prestige, 1967) • Eastern Rebellion (Timeless, 1976) with George Coleman & Sam Jones • The Pentagon (East Wind, 1976) • Eastern Rebellion 2 (Timeless, 1977) with Bob Berg & Sam Jones • First Set (SteepleChase, 1977 [1978]) • Second Set (SteepleChase, 1977 [1979]) • Third Set (SteepleChase, 1977 [1982]) • Eastern Rebellion 3 (Timeless, 1980) with Curtis Fuller, Bob Berg & Sam Jones • The Maestro (Muse, 1981) • Among Friends (Theresa, 1982 [1989]) • Eastern Rebellion 4 (Timeless, 1984) with Curtis Fuller, Bob Berg, Alfredo "Chocolate" Armenteros & David Williams • Cedar's Blues (Red, 1985) • The Trio 1 (Red, 1985) • The Trio 2 (Red, 1985) • The Trio 3 (Red, 1985) • Cedar Walton (Timeless, 1985) • Bluesville Time (Criss Cross Jazz, 1985) • Cedar Walton Plays (Delos, 1986) • As Long as There's Music (Muse, 1990 [1993]) • Mosaic (Music Masters, 1990 [1992]) as Eastern Rebellion • Simple Pleasure (Music Masters, 1993) as Eastern Rebellion • Manhattan Afternoon (Criss Cross Jazz, 1992 [1994]) • Just One of Those Nights: At the Village Vanguard (Music Masters, 1995) as Eastern Rebellion
With Don Wilkerson
With Don Wilkerson
• The Texas Twister (1960) • Preach Brother! (1962)
With David Williams
With David Williams
• Up Front (Timeless, 1987)
With Jack Wilson
With Jack Wilson
• Easterly Winds (Blue Note, 1967)
Identity
Identity
Billy Higgins is recorded as having received NEA Jazz Masters.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
Explore 1988–2001
The full dated record · 3 entries
1988
Dave Williams, Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Live At "Music Inn". Rome digitised by Internet Archive.
1988
Dave Williams, Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Live At "Music Inn". Rome (1988) is digitised and catalogued by Internet Archive.
2001
Billy Higgins died in 2001 at Inglewood.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
US.
Country
Los Angeles.
Birth place
Inglewood.
Death place
Holdings and surviving copies
Where the work is held
Holdings and surviving copies
Where material relating to Billy Higgins is held. Dave Williams, Cedar Walton, Billy Higgins, Live At "Music Inn".
Documents and archives
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q324522: Billy Higgins
Reputable secondary · Wikidata
- “Billy Higgins”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
scholarly publication
- Higgins, Billy (1936-2001), jazz drummer, American National Biography Online, 2005
Scholarly · Crossref registry · 2005
Institutional database
- MusicBrainz artist record for Billy Higgins
Scholarly · MetaBrainz Foundation
Literature
Literature
Literature
Higgins, Billy, Oxford Music Online, 2012
Higgins, Billy, Oxford Music Online, 2003
Higgins, Billy, African American Studies Center, 2013
Billy Higgins in the Zone: Brushwork, Breath, and Imagination, Crossing Bar Lines, 2021
Scholarly footprint
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Billy Higgins | Biography & History. AllMusic.
- 2.James Nadal. Billy Higgins. All About Jazz.
- 3.Colin Larkin. The Guinness Who's Who of Jazz. Guinness Publishing. 202. 1992. 0-85112-580-8.
- 4.Ratliff, Ben. Billy Higgins, 64, Jazz Drummer With Melodic and Subtle Swing. The New York Times. 2001-05-04.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
scholarly publication
VerifiedInstitutional database
MusicBrainz artist record for Billy HigginsMetaBrainz Foundation
Verifiedreference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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