A flexible drummer who has been a sideman in many different settings,
Billy Hart is a creative player most at home playing advanced jazz. He worked early on in Washington, D.C. with
Buck Hill and
Shirley Horn, and was with
the Montgomery Brothers (1961),
Jimmy Smith (1964-1966), and
Wes Montgomery (1966-1968).
Hart was a member of
Herbie Hancock's challenging sextet (1969-1973), and played regularly with
McCoy Tyner (1973-1974) and
Stan Getz (1974-1977), in addition to extensive freelancing (including recording with
Miles Davis on 1972's
On the Corner). On his own,
Hart has led interesting dates including such albums as 1977's Enchance, 1987's Rah, 1993's Amethyst, and 2006's Quartet, and 2011's La Place Demon and Sixty-Eight. In 2012,
Hart delivered his ECM debut with All Our Reasons featuring pianist Ethan Iverson, saxophonist Mark Turner, and bassist Ben Street.
–
Scott Yanow, Rovi