Ayler was born in Cleveland, and first began playing saxophone alongside father in church. After a short stint in the military playing alongside Stanley Turrentine, he spent some time in Sweden with Cecil Taylor’s group. On moving back to New York, he recorded several albums on ESP and Impulse!, and continued to develop his personal style, leaving traditional harmony for freer, more timbral sounds. In 1967, he played at Coltrane’s funeral, and in his final years he was beset with apocalyptic visions. He died from apparent suicide at the age 34.
