Bob James (musician)

Bob James ( born December 25, 1939 in Marshall / Missouri) is an American pianist, keyboard player and arranger. He was twice awarded the Grammy Award and was the early 1970s, a representative of the crossover jazz, and later of smooth jazz.

Life and work

James earned the 1962 Master's degree in composition at the University of Michigan, then worked for three months in Maynard Ferguson and from 1963 to 1968 as a pianist and arranger for Sarah Vaughan. In 1962 he won the competition for the Collegiate Jazz Festival; as the price was - with Quincy Jones as a producer - his debut album, Bold Conceptions for the Mercury label, with interpretations of Miles Davis ' " Nardis " and two original compositions James', "Quest" and " Trilogy ". In 1965, he took in a trio with Barre Phillips and Robert F. Pozar an album for ESP-Disk on (explosion), in which he recorded previously produced electronic bands. He then worked as a studio musician and a with Quincy Jones, Dionne Warwick and Roberta Flack.

In 1973 he became an arranger for Creed Taylor's CTI; for many albums of the CTI label he has arrangements for brass and string arrangements contributed, as for Eric Gale, Hank Crawford and Stanley Turrentine, but also, for example, for some of Grover Washington Jr. 's most successful productions. 1974-1977 he delivered four genredefinierende plates under his own name (titled One, Two, Three, BJ4 ), the Music of the 1970s enjoy today after a general appreciation of the merger legendary status and have been widely sampled. The elaborately produced music skillfully blends jazz components with elements of classical and pop music, and especially disco.

From the late 1970s, Bob James changed his style increasingly, moved to Columbia and turned increasingly to Contemporary Jazz and Smooth Jazz to. Seine - often accompanied by strings or big bands - albums were more melodic, but were still heavily influenced by jazz. This trend is particularly evident in his work as a member of the group Fourplay, but also in his collaborations with other musicians of this genre such as Earl Klugh, Kirk Whalum and Dave McMurray.

James stepped forward and also occasionally occurs in the context of authentic jazz groups and as a solo pianist.

Disco Graphical Notes

(* The first 12 are fusion solo studio albums - some encrypted - numbered. )