Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November
21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes
"Bean", was a jazz tenor saxophonist. Hawkins' virtuosic, arpeggiated
approach to improvisation, with his characteristic rich, emotional, loud, and
vibrato-laden tonal style, was the main influence on a generation of tenor
players. While Hawkins became well known with swing music during the big band
era, he had a role in the development of bebop in the 1940s. Miles Davis once
said: "When I heard Hawk, I learned to play ballads."
