Roy Ayers, Jazz-Funk Virtuoso, Dead at 84

Roy Ayers, the "Everybody Loves the Sunshine" jazz-funk virtuoso who paved the way for neo-soul, has died at age 84

👉 Click Here to read in detail 👈

Roy Ayers, the jazz vibraphonist whose smooth fusion planted the seeds of acid jazz and neo-soul, died March 5, 2025 at the age of 84.

Ayers’s family confirmed his death on the musician’s Facebook page: “It is with great sadness that the family of legendary vibraphonist, composer, and producer Roy Ayers announce his passing which occurred on March 4, 2025 in New York City after a long illness.”

Originally a practitioner of hard bop, Ayers eased into jazz fusion in the early 1970s, a transition he underscored by forming the group Roy Ayers Ubiquity. Cultivating a smooth signature sound that wove lush soul, elastic jazz, and tight funk, Ayers emphasized rhythm and texture, a combination that gave him a handful of crossover R&B hits; “Running Away” cracked Billboard’s R&B Top 20 in 1977, with “Hot” matching that feat in 1985.

It was a blend that also made his work ripe for sampling. “Everybody Loves the Sunshine,” a Ubiquity track from 1976, became a ubiquitous sample in the 1990s after being featured in Mary J. Blige’s “My Life.” Over the years, Ayers’s music was sampled by Dr. Dre, Kendrick Lamar, A Tribe Called Quest, Kanye West, Common, and Tyler the Creator, among scores of other acts. 

A native of Los Angeles, Ayers was born September 10, 1940. Raised in a musical household, he found himself drawn to the vibraphone after witnessing Lionel Hampton’s Big Band when he was five years old. Soon, he learned piano and sang in a church choir but didn’t acquire his first vibraphone until he was 17. As he studied music theory at Los Angeles City College, he played jazz in nightclubs.

The first time Ayers appeared on record was on a session by saxophonist Curtis Amy. By 1963, he had his own recording contract, releasing his debut album West Coast Vibes in 1963. Ayers began to gain widespread recognition for his collaboration with flutist Herbie Mann. The vibraphonist joined Mann’s band in 1966, a favor the flutist returned by producing three albums for Ayers in the late sixties, sessions that helped push the vibraphonist toward funkafied fusion.

Signing with Polydor, Ayers released Ubiquity in 1970, swiftly forming a group named after the album. His burgeoning jazz-funk had a cinematic flair that flowered on his soundtrack for the seminal blaxploitation film Coffy in 1973.

Ayers hit his groove in the mid-1970s, releasing Everybody Loves The Sunshine, the 1976 album that became the cornerstone of his legacy. Its warm, comforting vibes turned it into an enduring standard that eclipsed its chart position, thanks considerably to it being repurposed on hip-hop records by generations of musicians raised on his music. 

Ayers continued to play fusion as the cult around his old records coalesced. He embraced the newer musicians who created acid jazz, neo-soul, and jazz-rap out of his albums. He appeared on Guru’s pioneering 1993 album Jazzmatazz Vol. 1 and, nearly a decade later, took advantage of his status in neo-soul circles with Mahogany Vibe, a 2004 record featuring appearances by Erykah Badu and Betty Wright. 

Ayers didn’t record more albums after Mahogany Vibe but he didn’t become a recluse. He cameoed on Tyler, The Creator’s “Find Your Wings,” then played with Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad on the 2020 album Roy Ayers JID002.

👉 Click Here to read in detail 👈

Miatamil

Listed here the latest Trending News