One of the earliest and finest jazz-rock flutists,
Jeremy Steig was an outstanding soloist. He mastered the entire flute family, including bass, and also played piccolo well. He had a similarly rich, classically pure tone and timbre as
James Newton or
Hubert Laws, and used almost as many devices, such as tongue fluttering, humming, and swirling lines. But he wasn't as blues- or swing-oriented, and his associations included working in the early '60s with
Richie Havens and heading Jeremy & the Satyrs in 1967.
Steig's father is the famous artist William Steig; he began playing recorder at six and took flute lessons at 11.
Steig attended the High School of Music and Art. He played with
Gary Peacock and
Paul Bley in the early '60s, then led a jazz-rock combo in 1967 backing
Tim Hardin before heading his own groups.
Steig played with Mike Manieri and
Eddie Gomez in the '60s, and
Jan Hammer in 1970. He began using electronics and synthesizers in the '70s, and toured Europe both as a soloist and heading quartets and quintets. He recorded with
Gomez and
Joe Chambers in the late '70s, and subsequently did sessions with the likes of
Mike Nock,
Karl Ratzer,
Nana Vasconcelos,
Ray Barretto,
Steve Gadd, and
Jack DeJohnette.
Steig died in Yokohama, Japan in April 2016 at the age of 73. ~ Ron Wynn