David Redfern, who was described by drummer Buddy Rich as ‘the greatest jazz photographer in the world’, had been battling pancreatic cancer when he passed away at his home in Uzes, France.
Throughout a long and fruitful photographic career, David Redfern photographed such illustrious stars a Miles Davis, Frank Sinatra, Jimi Hendrix, Marvin Gaye and more.
Starting out in jazz clubs at Soho, Redfern went on to photograph TV shows during the pop explosion of the 1960s, where he made many of his now-famous images of now-legendary artists such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
American jazz tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon, who died in 1990, once described Redfern as ‘the Cartier-Bresson of jazz’.
Redferns was the founder of music picture library Redferns, which was claimed to be the most comprehensive music picture library in the world, and was bought by Getty in 2008.
He had also contributed to the photo industry as chair of the British Association of Picture Libraries and Agencies.
In a statement, Getty Images said, ‘His never dimming passion for both music and photography will be sorely missed.’
David Redfern is survived by his partner, Suzy.
