William Hooker
William Hooker (born June 18, 1946) is an American drummer and composer.
William Hooker
![The flat peach of China (Prunus persica cv.): fruiting branch, flowers and cut fruit. Coloured etching by W. Hooker, c. 1820., [1812-48], by William Hooker](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/V0044482ER/full/1280,/0/default.jpg)
William Hooker · Wellcome Collection, London · Wellcome Collection · Public Domain Mark
- Name
- William Hooker
- Born
- June 18, 1946
- Birthplace
- New Britain, Connecticut, U.S.
- Nationality
- United States
- Occupation
- composer · singer · percussionist · musician
- Fields
- jazz
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Documentary connections
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
museum · a9216dbe-44b2-47a9-a5db-46e7e70e6b66 · wikidata · Q662835
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The documentary record
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Institutions cited
Bibliothèque nationale de France · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Complete reading chain (JSON)In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — William Hooker • Born — June 18, 1946 • Birthplace — New Britain, Connecticut, U.S. • Genre — Jazz, free jazz • Instruments — Drums William Hooker (born June 18, 1946) is an American drummer and composer.
Documentary record
William Hooker, recorded as a composer and musician, was born on 18 June 1946. The birth is recorded by the Bibliothèque nationale de France.
Early life and education
Early life and education
Hooker was born in New Britain, Connecticut, on June 18, 1946. He began to play the drums at the age of 12. In high school, he played in a rock band, then switched to jazz. After graduating from Central Connecticut College, Hooker moved to California and became interested in free jazz.
Career
Career
Hooker moved to New York City in the mid-1970s and was part of the loft jazz scene, playing with musicians such as saxophonists David Murray and David S. Ware. His first recording as a leader was in 1976. His music was too radical to be commercially successful, and Hooker took other jobs to earn a living. This changed after he received praise for a 1988 recording, and he made frequent appearances at the Knitting Factory from early the following decade. Hooker was a founding member of the Text of Light, a musician's collective that released seven albums between 2004 and 2010. Hooker has led several bands, including a drums–trumpet–saxophone trio and an organ trio. They usually do not feature a bass, "because of the intensity and volume of his drumming". He has also been the drummer in duos with guitarists, including Elliott Sharp and Thurston Moore. Hooker's playing and recordings have embraced a wide range and combination of musics, including free jazz, noise rock, electronics, contemporary classical, and experimental electronic. • Illustration — William Hooker in 2023 The Down Beat reviewer of Hooker's Symphonie Of Flowers album wrote "Hooker uses history to enliven a suite of music that bounds through subgenres and percussive ideas". "He is an elemental drummer of considerable force, equally at home in free-form jazz and avant-garde rock circles; he also experiments with electronics and turntables".
Identity and overview
Identity and overview
The following is established of the heading itself.
Discography
•...Is Eternal Life (Reality Unit Concepts 1977) - featuring David Murray, Mark Miller, David S. Ware, Hasaan Dawkins, and Les Goodson • Brighter Lights (Reality Unit Concepts 1986) • Lifeline (Silkheart Records 1988) - William Hooker Quartet featuring Alan Michael, Claude Lawrence, William Parker, Mark Hennen, Charles Compo, Masahiko Kono • The Firmament Fury (Silkheart 1989) - William Hooker Ensemble featuring Claude Lawrence, Charles Compo, Masahiko Kono, Donald Miller • Shamballa: Duets with Thurston Moore and Elliott Sharp (Knitting Factory Works 1993; reissued on double vinyl LP by Org Music, 2023) • Envisioning (Knitting Factory Works 1994) - William Hooker and Lee Ranaldo • Radiation (Positive Music 1994) - featuring Donald Miller, Brian Doherty, Charles Compo, Masahiko Kono • Armageddon (Homestead 1995) • Gift of Tongues (1995) - featuring Lee Ranaldo and Zeena Parkins • Joy (Within)! (Silkheart 1996) - William Hooker - Billy Bang Duo • Heat of the Light (Dream Sequences) (Rabid God Inoculator 1996) - Solo • Tibet (Ummo 1996) - featuring Mark Hennen, Charles Compo, Donald Miller • Mindfulness (Knitting Factory Works 1997) - featuring DJ Olive and Glenn Spearman • The Distance Between Us (Knitting Factory Works 1999) • Bouquet: Live at the Knitting Factory 4.23.99 (Knitting Factory Works 2000) - Christian Marclay and Lee Ranaldo • Hard Time (Squealer 2001) - featuring Jesse Henry, Richard Keene, Donald Miller, Doug Walker • Black Mask (Knitting Factory Works 2002) - Duets with Andrea Parkins, Jason Hwang, Roy Nathanson • Out Trios, Vol. 1: Monsoon (Atavistic 2003) - featuring Roger Miller and Lee Ranaldo • Yearn for Certainty (2010) - featuring Sabir Mateen and Dave Soldier • Crossing Points (2011) - featuring Thomas Chapin • William Hooker Duo featuring Mark Hennen (2012) • A Postcard From the Road (2012) - featuring Edward Ricart and Dave Ross • Channels of Consciousness (2012) - featuring Adam Lane, Dave Ross, Chris DiMeglio, and Sanga • Heart of the Sun (2013) - featuring Roy Campbell and Dave Soldier • Red (Atypeek Music 2015) - William Hooker Quartet featuring Matt Lavelle, Mark Hennen, Larry Roland and William Hooker • Aria (Multatta Records 2016) - featuring Dave Soldier, On Davis, Mark Hennan, Richard Keene, and Louie Belogenis • Pillars... at the Portal (Multatta Records 2018) – featuring Jon Irabagon, James Brandon Lewis, Luke Stewart, and Anthony Pirog • Remembering (Astral Spirits 2018) - William Hooker Trio featuring Ava Mendoza and Damon Smith • Symphonie of Flowers (Org Music, 2019) • Cycle of Restoration (FPE, 2019) - featuring Mark Kirschenmann and Joel Peterson • Full On! (2019) - Duos with Mark Kirschenmann, featuring guest Marcus Elliot • Nels Cline, Alan Licht & William Hooker Live (2020) • Big Moon (Org Music, 2021) • Flesh And Bones (Org Music, 2023) • Jubilation (Org Music, 2025) • A Time Within: Live at the New Your Jazz Museum, January 14, 1977 (Valley of Search, 2025)
Primary material
Documents and archives
Institutional database
- MusicBrainz artist record for William Hooker
Scholarly · MetaBrainz Foundation
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q662835: William Hooker
General reference · Wikidata
Text attribution
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article William Hooker (musician), revision 1339661167 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
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.Adams, Simon. Grove Music Online. Oxford University Press. 2003. 9781561592630.
- 2.Bush, Nathan. William Hooker. AllMusic.
- 3.Cantor, Dave. William Hooker: Symphonie of Flowers. Down Beat. December 2019.
- 4.https://www.williamhooker.com/interviewdetail.aspx?interview=4
- 5.William Hooker: Pillars. At the Portal. AllMusic.com.
- 6.Drummer, composer, and poet William Hooker joins us to talk about his latest release, Flesh and Bones. The album marks his third full length effort for Org Music, following "Big Moon" (2021) and "Symphonie of Flowers" (2019).: Music for a Free World with Dave Sewelson.
References
Citations
References
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Institutional database
MusicBrainz artist record for William HookerMetaBrainz Foundation
Institutional witnessauthority record
General reference
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 21 August 2026.
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