An unsung hero of the acoustic piano,
Alan Broadbent is a highly lyrical and melodic bebopper/post-bopper who has cited
Bill Evans,
Wynton Kelly,
Tommy Flanagan,
Nat "King" Cole, and
Red Garland as some of his favorite pianists. Raised in New Zealand, he moved to Boston in 1966 to study at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. After staying on the road with
Woody Herman (for whom he was a writer, arranger, and soloist) from 1969-1972, he settled in Los Angeles.
Broadbent went on to work as a sideman for
Chet Baker, tenor saxmen
Warne Marsh and
Gary Foster, and the late singer
Irene Kral in the '70s, and with
Bud Shank and arranger
Nelson Riddle in the '80s.
The '90s found him writing arrangements for
Natalie Cole,
Marian McPartland,
Scott Hamilton, and others, and playing alongside bassist
Charlie Haden, tenor saxman
Ernie Watts, and drummer
Larance Marable in
Haden's
Quartet West -- a unique and conceptual L.A.-based group that is known for including bits of dialogue from film-noir movies between bop performances.
Broadbent's excellent trio albums for Discovery in the '80s and Concord in the '90s make it clear that he deserves to be much better known as a soloist.
–
Alex Henderson, Rovi