Northwoods Improvisers

Northwoods Improvisers is an improvising group from rural Michigan, started in the 1970s around bassist Mike Johnston and Mike Gilmore, later on vibraphone. It began with electric instruments and has played only acoustic instruments since about 1980, mixing free jazz with Indian, Asian and African forms. The group is best known for its long partnership with the Detroit saxophonist Faruq Z. Bey, which began in 2000. Drummer Nick Ashton joined Northwoods Improvisers in the mid-1980s.