Saxophonist Byard Lancaster Dies, Aged 70

He lost his battle with pancreatic cancer on 23 August (12) at a hospice centre in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania.

Born in Philadelphia, Lancaster began playing piano at the age of four and picked up the saxophone soon after. He studied at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts and then moved to New York City.

Throughout the course of his career, he recorded and performed with the likes of Nigerian icon Fela Kuti, blues band Funkadesi, singer Johnny Copeland, drummer Sunny Murray and trumpeter Bill Dixon.

He also played with pianist MCCoy Tyner, marimba player Khan Jamal, composer Sun Ra, and blues star Memphis Slim, releasing his own album, It's Not Up to Us, in 1968.