Carlos Garnett

Who is Carlos Garnett?

Carlos Garnett is a Panamanian-American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and jazz group leader.

Garnett was born on December 1, 1938, in Red Tank, Panama Canal Zone. He became interested in jazz music after hearing Louis Jordan's and James Moody's music in film shorts. He taught himself to play the saxophone as a teenager and played with soldiers from the nearby United States Army base. In 1957 he started playing in calypso and Latin music groups.

After moving to New York in 1962 Garnett played in a rock 'n' roll group led by Leo Price. Around this time he also started learning music theory, being self-taught and having always played by ear. Jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard hired Garnett in 1968 and introduced him to many New York musicians. Garnett's first recording was Hubbard's 1969 album A Soul Experiment, which contained two original compositions by him.

In the late 1960s and early 1970 Garnett also played with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Charles Mingus and Miles Davis. He also led his own group called the Universal Black Force. His group recorded five albums between 1974 and 1977. In 1982 Garnett, suffering from depression and drug abuse, experienced a spiritual awakening and stopped playing music for years. He began performing again in 1991 and released the albums Fuego en mi alma, Under Nubian Skies and Moon Shadow. In 2000 he moved back to Panama, where he continues to perform actively.