# Call Cobbs Jr.

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{{short description|American jazz keyboardist}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name             = Call Cobbs
| birth_name       = Harvey Call Cobbs Jr.
| birth_date       = January 30, 1911
| birth_place      = [Urbana, Ohio](/source/Urbana%2C_Ohio), U.S.
| death_place      = [The Bronx, New York](/source/The_Bronx%2C_New_York), U.S.
| death_date       = September 21, 1971 (aged 60)
| genre            = [Jazz](/source/Jazz){{dot}}[free jazz](/source/free_jazz)
| instrument       = [Piano](/source/Piano){{dot}}[electric harpsichord](/source/electric_harpsichord){{dot}}[electric organ](/source/electric_organ)
}}
'''Harvey Call Cobbs Jr.''' (January 30, 1911 – September 21, 1971)<ref name="ssi">''U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007''</ref> was an American [jazz](/source/jazz) pianist, [electric harpsichordist](/source/Rocksichord), and organist. He is remembered for his work with saxophonist [Albert Ayler](/source/Albert_Ayler) in the mid- and late-1960s.

==Early life==
Cobbs was born in [Urbana, Ohio](/source/Urbana%2C_Ohio),<ref name="ssi"/><ref>''Ohio, Birth Index, 1908-1964''</ref> to Harvey Call Cobbs Sr. and Ethel Hill Cobbs. His father, known as Harry Cobbs, was a church janitor.<ref>''1930 United States Federal Census''</ref> In his youth, Cobbs served as companion and guide to the pianist [Art Tatum](/source/Art_Tatum) and later accompanied [Billie Holiday](/source/Billie_Holiday) and replaced [Hampton Hawes](/source/Hampton_Hawes) in the band of [Wardell Gray](/source/Wardell_Gray).

== Career ==
Cobbs worked and recorded with the alto saxophonist [Johnny Hodges](/source/Johnny_Hodges) in 1954, when Hodges' band included [John Coltrane](/source/John_Coltrane). He studied the [Schillinger System](/source/Schillinger_System) of musical composition.

He is best remembered for his work with the [free jazz](/source/free_jazz) saxophonist [Albert Ayler](/source/Albert_Ayler) from 1964 through 1970, playing piano, [rocksichord](/source/rocksichord), and [electronic organ](/source/electronic_organ) in live performances and recordings. He also acted as Ayler's [copyist](/source/copyist) and [musical director](/source/music_director).<ref name="schwartz">Schwartz, Jeff. (1992){{cite web|url=http://geocities.com/jeff_l_schwartz/chpt5.html |title=Albert Ayler: His Life and Music |accessdate=2010-10-14 |url-status=bot: unknown |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090809060423/http://geocities.com/jeff_l_schwartz/chpt5.html |archivedate=2009-08-09 }} . Accessed July 2, 2007.</ref> When Ayler's body was found floating in the [East River](/source/East_River) in New York City on November 25, 1970, Cobbs was called upon to identify the body.<ref name="schwartz" /><ref>Morton, Brian. (November 4, 2004) [http://www.thenation.com/doc/20041122/morton/2 Flowers for Albert: Albert Ayler]. ''[The Nation](/source/The_Nation)''. Accessed July 2, 2007.</ref>

== Death ==
Cobbs was killed in a [hit and run](/source/Hit_and_run_(vehicular)) collision on September 21, 1971. He died at [Jacobi Medical Center](/source/Jacobi_Medical_Center) in [The Bronx](/source/The_Bronx) at the age of 60.

==Discography==
'''With [Albert Ayler](/source/Albert_Ayler)'''
*''[Swing Low Sweet Spiritual](/source/Swing_Low_Sweet_Spiritual)'' (Osmosis, 1964 [1971])
*''[Spirits Rejoice](/source/Spirits_Rejoice)'' (ESP-Disk, 1965)
*''[Love Cry](/source/Love_Cry)'' ([Impulse!](/source/Impulse!_Records), 1967)
*''[Live in Greenwich Village](/source/Live_in_Greenwich_Village)''
*''[New Grass](/source/New_Grass)'' (Impulse!, 1969)
*''[Nuits de la Fondation Maeght Vols. 1 & 2](/source/Nuits_de_la_Fondation_Maeght_(Albert_Ayler_album))'' (Shandar, 1970)
*''[Holy Ghost: Rare & Unissued Recordings (1962–70)](/source/Holy_Ghost%3A_Rare_%26_Unissued_Recordings_(1962%E2%80%9370))'' ( [Revenant](/source/Revenant_Records), 2004)
*''[Live on the Riviera](/source/Live_on_the_Riviera)'' (ESP-Disk, 2005)
'''With [John Coltrane](/source/John_Coltrane)'''
*''First Giant Steps''. Rare Live Recordings
'''With [Johnny Hodges](/source/Johnny_Hodges)'''
*''[The Blues](/source/The_Blues_(Johnny_Hodges_album))'' (Norgran, 1952–54, [1955])
*''[Used to Be Duke](/source/Used_to_Be_Duke)'' (Norgran, 1954)
'''With [Jack McVea](/source/Jack_McVea)'''
*''Two Timin' Baby'' (Juke Box Lil)
'''With [Jimmy Rushing](/source/Jimmy_Rushing)'''
*''1946–1953'' (Jazz Classics)

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
*[{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p65247/credits|pure_url=yes}} Call Cobbs: Credits]. [Allmusic](/source/Allmusic). Accessed July 2, 2007.
*"Final Bar." ''Downbeat'', November 11, 1971: p.&nbsp;9.

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cobbs, Call Jr.}}
Category:1911 births
Category:1971 deaths
Category:People from Urbana, Ohio
Category:African-American jazz pianists
Category:American jazz organists
Category:American male organists
Category:American jazz pianists
Category:American male jazz pianists
Category:American jazz keyboardists
Category:Road incident deaths in New York City
Category:Pedestrian road incident deaths
Category:20th-century American pianists
Category:20th-century American organists
Category:Jazz musicians from Ohio
Category:20th-century African-American musicians
Category:20th-century American male pianists

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Call Cobbs Jr.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_Cobbs_Jr.) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_Cobbs_Jr.?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.