RAMSEY LEWIS,
1935-2022

Ramsey Lewis, the jazz pianist who scored hits with his instrumental versions of pop and rock songs in the 1960s and was a progenitor of jazz fusion, died Monday at his home in Chicago. He was 87.

“Ramsey’s passion for music was truly fueled by the love and dedication of his fans across the globe,” his wife, Janet Lewis, said in a statement. “He loved touring and meeting music lovers from so many cultures and walks of life. It was our family’s great pleasure to share Ramsey in this special way with all those who admired his God-given talents. We are forever grateful for your support.”

In a career that stretched from the mid-1950s until his death, Lewis recorded more than 80 albums, received three Grammys and was named an NEA Jazz Master in 2007.

A Chicagoan rooted in gospel and the blues, Lewis and his trio, with Eldee Young on bass and drummer Redd Holt, stuck with standards and traditional material until 1962, when he released an album of country songs, which he followed with the then-trendy collection Bossa Nova. In 1965 he crossed over with his version of the Dobie Gray hit “The In Crowd,” which rose to #5 Pop/#2 R&B; the album The In Crowd went to #2 on the pop chart. The track would win Lewis the Best Jazz Instrumental Performance Grammy and enter the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2009.

Lewis stuck with the formula, recording songs by The Beatles, Motown artists and other pop hitmakers as well as material by Duke Ellington and Jobim. He scored another hit and Grammy win with The McCoys’ “Hang on Sloopy.”

After Young and Holt left to form Young-Holt Unlimited in 1966, Lewis maintained the trio format, hiring future Earth, Wind & Fire founder Maurice White to play drums and bassist Cleveland Eaton. They had a Top 40 hit with the spiritual “Wade in the Water.”

Lewis expanded his band in the 1970s and continued to strive for crossover hits by using electric instruments and recording songs of the day by the likes of Elton John, Paul Simon and Paul Williams. He moved to Columbia Records in 1972 after recording 18 albums for Cadet and more than 20 for Argo.

His 17-year association with Columbia included the 1974 crossover hit Sun Goddess, featuring White, who'd become a longtime collaborator, and other members of Earth, Wind & Fire. It hit #1 R&B and Jazz, plus #12 at Pop. Singles “Hot Dawg It” and the title track were minor hits. The album became a million-seller.

He continued to work in a funk-fusion vein on albums like Don’t It Feel Good and Salongo that landed on jazz and R&B charts. In the mid-1990s, he played keyboards in the fusion all-star group Urban Knights, which released eight albums between 1995 and 2019.

Also in the '90s, Lewis was the host of the syndicated weekly radio program Legends of Jazz With Ramsey Lewis and in 2006 he oversaw a public television series of the same name.

Lewis recorded a CD of solo versions of Beatles songs during the pandemic shutdown; presales began last week.