[2] An important figure in the free jazz movement of the 1960s, she gained acclaim for her jazz opera Escalator over the Hill (released as a triple LP set), as well as a book of compositions that have been performed by many other artists, including Gary Burton, Jimmy Giuffre, George Russell, Art Farmer, Robert Wyatt, John Scofield, and her ex-husband Paul Bley.

[5] After giving up church to immerse herself in roller skating at the age of fourteen,[6] she moved to New York City at seventeen and became a cigarette girl at Birdland, where she met jazz pianist Paul Bley, who encouraged her to start composing.

[15] Bley collaborated with a number of other artists, including Jack Bruce,[2] Robert Wyatt, and Nick Mason, drummer for the rock group Pink Floyd.

[16] Wolfgang Sandner summarized for Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that she was "great as a stimulator, as a muse, catalyst, idea generator, as a sounding board and amplifier, also in refusing – virtuosity, fetishised technique, perfect craft, convention and false pathos".

[4] Bley continued to record frequently with her own big band, which included Lew Soloff from Blood, Sweat & Tears, and with a number of smaller ensembles, notably the Lost Chords.