Early Career: 1970s and 1980s
When Kendrick was eighteen, he turned professional, touring and playing keyboards with R&B and funk acts. He traveled internationally with Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, James Brown and George Clinton.
At twenty-one, Kendrick began a primary focus on jazz, moving to New York in 1981. He played keyboards for artists such as Freddie Hubbard, Terence Blanchard, Stanley Turrentine, Clark Terry, J. J. Johnson, and others. He studied with pianist Barry Harris, who remained his teacher and mentor for over 20 years. Kendrick cites Randy Weston and Sun Ra as influences. In the early 1990s he served as Abbey Lincoln’s musical leader for seven years.
Read more about this topic: Rodney Kendrick
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