Fred Hopkins

Fred Hopkins gained his greatest recognition as bassist with the co-op trio Air, but he played through the years with most of the top avant-garde musicians and his abilities were well-known to his fellow players. He recorded with Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre in 1970, worked with Henry Threadgill and Steve McCall in the trio Reflection (1971-1972), freelanced in Chicago, moved to New York in 1975, and reunited with Threadgill and McCall as Air (1975 through the mid-'80s); after McCall's departure in 1982, the group (with Pheeroan AkLaff on drums) became known as New Air. Hopkin...