Crusaders

There are three bands that have gone by the name “Crusaders.” First was the 1970’s Jazz band. Second is a European Oi band. The Third is a Australian Garage surf band. In 1960, following the demise of a few short-lived Houston-based groups, pianist Joe Sample, drummer Stix Hooper, saxophonist Wilton Felder and trombonist Wayne Henderson relocated to Los Angeles, CA. After changing their name to "The Jazz Crusaders," the group signed with Pacific Jazz Records, where they would remain throughout the 1960s.

There are three bands that have gone by the name “Crusaders.” First was the 1970’s Jazz band. Second is a European Oi band. The Third is a Australian Garage surf band. In 1960, following the demise of a few short-lived Houston-based groups, pianist Joe Sample, drummer Stix Hooper, saxophonist Wilton Felder and trombonist Wayne Henderson relocated to Los Angeles, CA. After changing their name to "The Jazz Crusaders," the group signed with Pacific Jazz Records, where they would remain throughout the 1960s. Employing a two-manned front-line horn section (trombone and tenor saxophone), the group's sound was rooted in hard bop, with an emphasis on R&B and soul. The group shortened their name to "The Crusaders" in 1971, and adopted a jazz-funk style, which really ushered in the genre which came to be known as "jazz fusion". They also incorporated the electric bass and electric guitar into their music.

Guitarist Larry Carlton became a member, and was featured prominently on the group's albums throughout most of the 1970s. With this new style came increased crossover appeal, and the group's albums started to appear on the Billboard pop charts. The height of the group's commercial success came with 1979's Street Life, which peaked at #18 on the pop charts. The Crusaders created a unique, warm, southern soul based Jazz funk hybrid. Wilton Fender's soaring muscular tenor saxophone improvisations are without peer and combined with Wayne Henderson's trombone managed to create a tight horn section sound with only a tenor sax and a trombone.

Joe Sample on Fender Rhodes piano weaved ambitious funky lines and 'stix" hooper's intricate drum playing were a solid foundation for what was a seminal group in their heyday. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL..