Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Norman Hedman was born July 17, 1945 in the West Indies and discovered his first hand drum, a conga, in a Brooklyn garbage can. Instinctively repairing the conga at age 12, he has been playing music ever since.

Hedman founded Tropique in 1995 and the percussion instruments of timbales, cowbells and congas formed his Latin jazz and island flavor sound. This first call percussionist brought together an array of talent from around the globe to create music that spanned teenage to silver  generations appreciating and enjoying his music. His new and inventive concepts, clean, tight lines and original compositions were his hallmark of success.

Over the course of his career Norman composed five number one R&B hits with one receiving 5 Grammy awards, in addition to two platinum and two gold albums, composed three songs for movie soundtracks for Ali,  Shaft and Dr. Doolittle 2. His One Step Closer, Taken By Surprise and Healing Hands albums by his group Norman Hedman’s Tropique were nominated for Best Latin Jazz Album.

He has worked with Arturo Sandoval, Nancy Wilson, Bobby Watson, Grady Tate, Pat Martino, Chico and Vaughn Freeman, Arthur Blythe, George Cables, John Hicks, Gary Bartz, Ahmad Alladeen, Giovannie Hidalgo, Hilton Ruiz, Horacee Arnold, Airto Moreira, Monguito Santamaria, Delmar Brown, Lew Soloff and Marcus Miller.

Percussionist, producer and composer Norman Hedman passed away from acute myeloid leukemia and pneumonia on September 29, 2008 in New York City.

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