Charles Lloyd, born 15 March 1938 in Memphis, is an American saxophonist, flautist and composer. He led Chico Hamilton's group as music director, then formed his classic quartet with Keith Jarrett and Jack DeJohnette in 1966; the Monterey recording "Forest Flower" (1967) made his name. After stepping back from the jazz scene in the 1970s he returned in the early 1980s, and he has put out a long run of albums on Blue Note since the 2000s. At 88 he is still touring and recording.
Charles Lloyd performs on November 30, 2026 at Loveland Music Festival in Copenhagen together with Jakob Bro, Larry Grenadier and Jorge Rossy.
The album "Sangam & Friends" with Zakir Hussain and Eric Harland was released on July 24 and is based on recordings from Mumbai in 2009.
Lloyd returned to Montreux Jazz Festival in July 2026, six decades after he performed at the first festival.
In June 2026 he performed at Healdsburg Jazz Festival with pianist Gerald Clayton, bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Kweku Sumbry.
The album "Figure in Blue" was released on Blue Note in October 2025 and became No. 1 on New York Times' list of instrumental music in June 2026.
Three jazz legends - Bill Frisell, Charles Lloyd, and Jakob Bro - perform together with a stellar ensemble at Bremen Teater.
Jazz legends Bill Frisell and Charles Lloyd perform with Danish and Icelandic musicians at Bremen Teater.