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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZCHARLES, Teddy(b Theodore Charles Cohen, 13 April 1928, Chicopee Falls MA; d 16 April 2012, Riverhead NY) Vibes, composer/arranger. He studied percussion in the 1940s, taught himself to play vibes, played in various bands and as a leader made seven 10-inch or 12-inch LPs for Prestige '51-5, as the Teddy Cohen Trio at first. His first recording on the West Coast early '53 was a sextet with Frank Morgan, Wardell Gray, Sonny Clark, Lawrence Marable on drums (b Larance Norman Marable, 21 May 1929, L.A.) and Dick Nivison on bass, later reissued under Gray's name; a quartet later that year had Curtis Counce, Shelly Manne and Shorty Rogers and included Charles's tunes such as 'Variations On A Theme By Bud' and 'Etudiez le Cahier'; the album when issued as Collaboration (later on CD from OJC) also included duos with Jimmy Giuffre. Charles was breaking away from the popular song form, exploring the relationship between composition and improvisation and anticipating some of the 'free jazz' developments of later years in terms of modes and collective improvisation. After 1953 he recorded back in NYC. Evolution '55 had a quintet with Charles Mingus on bass (and two more of the Charles/Giuffre duo tracks; confusingly, the album Collaboration was called Evolution in Italy). Charles worked with Mingus's Jazz Workshop, and played on and arranged most of Blue Moods '55, a Miles Davis album on Mingus's Debut label, with Mingus on bass, Elvin Jones on drums and trombonist Britt Woodman. Two albums on Atlantic '56 included Teddy Charles Tentet with arrangements by Giuffre, Gil Evans and George Russell; and A Work From Bird with a quartet, one ten-piece and one twelve-piece track. There were albums on Elektra (also appeared on Savoy) and Jubilee '57, one on Bethlehem '58 and another '60 (tracks with Zoot Sims later on Fresh Sounds CD as On Campus), and tracks for Columbia '59 including 'Swinging Goatherd Blues', which may have been a reaction to a '58 pop hit '58 called 'The Swingin' Shepherd Blues' by flautist Moe Koffman (b 28 January 1928, Toronto; d there 28 March 2001). (Koffman's hit was described as 'jazz' in some circles; in fact it was merely an annoying jingle.) An album with Booker Little and Booker Ervin '60 on Warwick later appeared under their names on TCB as Sounds Of Inner City. There was not much of a living in this music during the 1960s, and Charles concentrated on his other love, of sailing: he became a charter sailboat captain, and did that as well as he had played jazz, though he kept playing. After an album on UA '63 with Giuffre, Eric Dolphy etc on various tracks there were no more recordings, apparently, until the quartet Live At Verona Jazz Festival '88 on Soul Note.
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