The younger brother of
Percy and
Jimmy Heath,
Albert "Tootie" Heath has long been a top hard bop-based drummer with an open mind toward more commercial styles of jazz. After moving to New York (1957), he debuted on record with
John Coltrane.
Heath was with
J.J. Johnson's group (1958-1960) and
the Jazztet (1960-1961), worked with the trios of
Cedar Walton and
Bobby Timmons in 1961, and recorded many records as a sideman for Riverside during that era. He lived in Europe in 1965-1968 (working frequently with
Kenny Drew,
Dexter Gordon, and backing touring Americans), and, after returning to the U.S., he played regularly with
Herbie Hancock's sextet (1968-1969) and
Yusef Lateef (1970-1974). After an additional year in Europe, he joined
the Heath Brothers band (1975-1978) and then settled in Los Angeles, where
Tootie Heath continued freelancing, recording with the Riverside Reunion Band. ~ Scott Yanow