Jackie McLean

Jackie McLean played with an array of jazz greats during the 1950s before releasing a string of sweltering albums on the Blue Note label during the '60s. His alto sax consumes elements of Bop, Cool, Avant Garde and Free Jazz and then fires out its own unique sound. McLean is like an encyclopedia of the history of post-Charlie Parker jazz. Check out any of his albums -- McLean works at an unusually consistent level of excellence.