Carter Jefferson, born in 1946 in the United States of America, was a jazz tenor saxophonist. He began his career playing clarinet and alto saxophone, performing with backing bands for artists such as The Temptations, The Supremes, and Little Richard during the 1960s. In 1971, Jefferson entered New York University and started collaborating with musicians like Mongo Santamaría and Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. Between 1977 and 1980, he performed and recorded with Woody Shaw. His only album as a bandleader was The Rise of Atlantis, released in 1978 and produced by Woody Shaw. Throughout his career, Jefferson collaborated with various artists, including Elvin Jones, Roy Haynes, Cedar Walton, Jerry Gonzalez, Malachi Thompson, Barbara Donald, and Jack Walrath. Jefferson passed away on December 9, 1993, in Kraków, Poland, following complications from an emergency surgical procedure.
