Biography
Born on 28 September 1941 in Hereford, Herefordshire, England, and deceased on 19 September 2007 in Hereford, Hertfordshire, England, Osborne began on violin within his school orchestra. At London’s Guildhall School of Music he turned instead to clarinet studies, though he also commanded piano; once professional, alto saxophone became his principal voice. He named Phil Woods, Joe Henderson and Jackie McLean as preferred models, sharing their sharp-edged, faintly distressed tonal quality, yet critics repeatedly likened his urgent phrasing and capacity for long, intense, graceful lines of free melody to the approach of Ornette Coleman.
His initial recognition arrived via the Mike Westbrook Concert Band once Westbrook relocated from Plymouth to London. After sitting in on a pair of engagements, ‘Ossie’ received a permanent invitation in early 1963, at which point he counted as one of just two fully professional members. Throughout the ensuing years he proved central to several distinguished ensembles, among them the Michael Gibbs Band, Chris McGregor’s Brotherhood Of Breath, Harry Miller’s Isipingo, and the flexible quartet-to-octet unit he co-directed with John Surman from 1968 to 1969. Additional associations included work alongside John Warren, Alan Skidmore, Kenneth Terroade, Rik Colbeck and Humphrey Lyttelton.
In 1969 he launched his own trio with Harry Miller and Louis Moholo, a unit whose excitement was widely remarked; beyond numerous live appearances the group taped several outstanding BBC Radio Jazz Club sessions. Early in the following decade he formed a productive partnership with Stan Tracey, their completely improvised duets helping to draw the pianist out of near-retirement prompted by disenchantment with the industry. In 1973 Osborne joined Skidmore and Surman to create S.O.S., widely regarded as the first standing all-saxophone ensemble. Between 1969 and 1973 he was annually voted top alto saxophonist in the Melody Maker poll.
By the late 1970s declining health curtailed his activities, and from 1980 he ceased public performance altogether. Though modest in quantity, his recorded legacy nevertheless illustrates the breadth of his expression, encompassing unsentimental yet profoundly affecting ballad readings with Westbrook and fiercely intense free explorations alongside Isipingo or the trio. Lung cancer claimed him in 2007.
His initial recognition arrived via the Mike Westbrook Concert Band once Westbrook relocated from Plymouth to London. After sitting in on a pair of engagements, ‘Ossie’ received a permanent invitation in early 1963, at which point he counted as one of just two fully professional members. Throughout the ensuing years he proved central to several distinguished ensembles, among them the Michael Gibbs Band, Chris McGregor’s Brotherhood Of Breath, Harry Miller’s Isipingo, and the flexible quartet-to-octet unit he co-directed with John Surman from 1968 to 1969. Additional associations included work alongside John Warren, Alan Skidmore, Kenneth Terroade, Rik Colbeck and Humphrey Lyttelton.
In 1969 he launched his own trio with Harry Miller and Louis Moholo, a unit whose excitement was widely remarked; beyond numerous live appearances the group taped several outstanding BBC Radio Jazz Club sessions. Early in the following decade he formed a productive partnership with Stan Tracey, their completely improvised duets helping to draw the pianist out of near-retirement prompted by disenchantment with the industry. In 1973 Osborne joined Skidmore and Surman to create S.O.S., widely regarded as the first standing all-saxophone ensemble. Between 1969 and 1973 he was annually voted top alto saxophonist in the Melody Maker poll.
By the late 1970s declining health curtailed his activities, and from 1980 he ceased public performance altogether. Though modest in quantity, his recorded legacy nevertheless illustrates the breadth of his expression, encompassing unsentimental yet profoundly affecting ballad readings with Westbrook and fiercely intense free explorations alongside Isipingo or the trio. Lung cancer claimed him in 2007.
Albums
