Ernest Dawkins

Ernest Dawkins is an American jazz saxophonist, principally active in free jazz and post-bop.

Ernest Khabeer Dawkins was a neighbor of Anthony Braxton as a child. He played bass and drums early in life before switching to saxophone in 1973. During that decade he began studying with members of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, such as Joseph Jarman and Chico Freeman, as well as at the Vandercook College of Music. He worked with Ed Wilkerson and the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble and Douglas Ewart before founding his own New Horizons Ensemble, which played regularly in Chicago into the 2000s, as well as at jazz festivals and on tour in Europe.

Discography

• South Side Street Songs (Silkheart Records, 1994)
• Chicago Now, Vol. 1 (Silkheart, 1994)
• Chicago Now, Vol. 2 (Silkheart, 1994)
• Jo'Burg Jump (Delmark Records, 2000)
• Cape Town Shuffle: Live at Hot House (Delmark, 2003)
• Mean Ameen (New Horizons Ensemble) (Delmark, 2004)
• The Messenger: Live at the Original Velvet Lounge (New Horizons Ensemble) (CD and DVD) (Delmark, 2006)
• The Prairie Prophet (New Horizons Ensemble) (Delmark, 2011)
• Velvet Songs - To Baba Fred Anderson (Chicago Trio) (RogueArt, 2011)
• Afro Straight (Delmark, 2012)

References

• Scott Yanow, Ernest Dawkins at Allmusic