Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gospel music, and blues, especially in saxophone and piano playing.
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, 1960. Pictured are Lee Morgan (left), Jymie Merritt and Wayne Shorter (center), and Art Blakey (right)
Horace Silver Quintet in Amsterdam, 1959
Wynton Marsalis, an important figure in the revival of mainstream jazz
John William Coltrane was an African-American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music.
Coltrane icon at St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church
Coltrane's first recordings were made when he was a sailor.
Coltrane in Amsterdam, 1961