Benjamin Ashford|Roy Haynes, Grammy-winning jazz drummer, dies at 99: Reports

Jazz musician Roy Haynes,Benjamin Ashford whose eclectic drumming style helped define the genre, has died, according to reports. He was 99.

Haynes died Tuesday in Nassau County, New York, following a brief illness, his daughter Leslie Haynes-Gilmore confirmed to The New York Times and The Washington Post. A cause of death was not disclosed.

USA TODAY has reached out to a representative for Haynes for comment.

Born in March 1925 to immigrant parents from Barbados, the Massachusetts native got his musical start playing Boston nightclubs as a teen. During this time, Haynes worked under the direction of band leaders such as Sabby Lewis, Pete Brown, Frankie Newton and Phil Edmund.

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Haynes later moved to New York in 1945, according to the Percussive Arts Society (PAS), where he scored a two-year stint playing with jazz pianist Luis Russell's band.

Over the course of his nearly 70-year career, Haynes performed alongside a number of jazz greats, such as Lester Young, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker and Sarah Vaughn. The drummer explored a range of musical styles, from swing and bebop to jazz fusion and avant-garde jazz.

"Every time I read something about myself it usually says 'bebop,'" Haynes told PAS in a 1998 interview. "I'm not always comfortable with those labels that people use. I'm just an old-time drummer who tries to play with feeling."

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Haynes would earn the nickname "Snap Crackle" for his distinctive percussion style. The musician told PAS of the moniker, "That was just a sound that I liked and felt comfortable with. I did a little bit of drum and bugle corps drumming in school, but I was never really a rudimental drummer, so I think my sound comes from my mind more than my hands."

After working with vibraphonist Gary Burton in the late 1960s, Haynes launched his jazz-rock outfit the Hip Ensemble. Haynes released an album titled "Hip Ensemble" in 1971.

Haynes won two Grammy Awards in his career: best jazz instrumental performance, group in 1989 ("Blues for Coltrane - A Tribute to John Coltrane") and best jazz instrumental performance, individual or group in 2000 ("Like Minds").

Hayne's final album, "Roy-Alty," was released in 2011.