Music
Gerald Cleaver
born 1963 · jazz drummer, composer, bandleader
Detroit-born drummer, son of drummer John Cleaver Jr., who taught at the University of Michigan and became a leading figure of the New York creative-jazz scene.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 63- Detroit years
- 1963–1990s
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Gerald Cleaver grew up in Detroit as the youngest of seven children of drummer John Cleaver Jr., who came from Springfield, Ohio, and he learned the instrument in a house where Detroit's straight-ahead tradition was part of daily life. He came up on the city's bandstands alongside players such as pianist Craig Taborn and joined the jazz faculty of the University of Michigan in 1995. From there his career turned toward the adventurous end of jazz: he has performed and recorded with Roscoe Mitchell, Joe Morris, Mat Maneri, Miroslav Vitouš, Tomasz Stańko, Michael Formanek and Matthew Shipp. His 2001 album Adjust, released under the name Veil of Names with Maneri, Ben Monder and Taborn, was nominated for best debut by the Jazz Journalists Association. He leads the groups Uncle June, Black Host, Violet Hour and NiMbNl, and Uncle June in particular draws on his family's Detroit and Mississippi roots.
Highlights
- Son of Detroit drummer John Cleaver Jr.
- Joined the University of Michigan jazz faculty in 1995
- Veil of Names album Adjust (2001), Jazz Journalists Association nominee
- Leads Uncle June, Black Host and Violet Hour