Remembering Roy Ayers
September 10, 1940 – March 4, 2025
A tribute to the popular vibraphonist
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Vibraphonist Roy Ayers passed away on March 4, 2025 at the age of 84.
He was born on Sept. 10, 1940 in Los Angeles to a musical family that included a father who played trombone and a mother who was a pianist.
When he was five, Ayers was given a pair of vibraphone mallets by Lionel Hampton.
His early musical experiences included leading a band in high school in which he played steel guitar and piano.
As a vibraphonist Ayers made his first recordings in 1962 and during the next seven years as a jazz player he recorded with Curtis Amy, Vi Redd, Jack Wilson, Leroy Vinnegar, the Gerald Wilson Orchestra, and Herbie Mann (with whom he worked regularly during 1966-69), in addition to leading four hard bop-oriented albums of his own.
His career changed in the early 1970s when he signed with the Polydor label, led Roy Ayers Ubiquity, and emphasized funk, r&b and (later in the decade) even disco in his music.
Ayers became a commercial success with such hits as “Everybody Loves The Sunshine,” “Lifeline,” “No Stranger To Love,” “Running Away,” and “Don’t Stop The Feeling,” largely de-emphasizing jazz by the mid-1970s in favor of dance music.
Ayers was also successful as a record producer for others and his recordings were heavily sampled by hip hop artists.
While he could always play jazz and generally included a sampling during his live performances, Roy Ayers’ international fame was largely due to his feel-good pop hits.
Roy Ayers is featured playing “Vibrations” with his group in 1976.
-Scott Yanow
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