Lyrics | Artists | Dorothy Ashby

Dorothy Ashby

Dorothy Ashby had to convince her peers that the harp was a viable jazz instrument, and once they accepted her into their ranks, she didn’t disappoint. Born in Detroit, Michigan, on August 6, 1930, Ashby was originally a pianist who adopted the harp in her early 20s. Alice Coltrane, the other top name in jazz harp and a fellow Detroiter, would make her solo debut more than decade after Ashby’s emergence. Ashby arrived as a solo artist with her debut album, The Jazz Harpist, in 1957, and released albums at a steady clip through 1970. The Rubaiyat of Dorothy Ashby, released in...