Dave Brubeck, legend who helped define jazz, dies

By Charles Gans

Published December 6, 2012 3:27am ET

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Dave Brubeck, legend who helped define jazz, dies — FILE - This July 4, 2009 file photo shows Jazz legend Dave Brubeck performing at the 30th edition of the Montreal International Jazz Festival in Montreal. Brubeck, a pioneering jazz composer and pianist died Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2012 of heart failure, after being stricken while on his way to a cardiology appointment with his son. He would have turned 92 on Thursday. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Paul Chiasson) | Paul Chiasson

You don’t have to be a jazz aficionado to recognize “Take Five,” the smoky instrumental by the Dave Brubeck Quartet that instantly evokes swinging bachelor pads, hi-fi systems and cool nightclubs of the 1950s and ’60s.

“Take Five” was a musical milestone — a deceptively complex jazz composition that managed to crack the Billboard singles chart and introduce a new, adventurous sound to millions of listeners.

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