Kirk Whalum

Kirk Whalum ( born July 11, 1958 in Memphis, Tennessee ) is an American fusion musician ( tenor and soprano saxophone, flute) is particularly emerged in the area of smooth jazz. He has been nominated eleven times for a Grammy and won this 2011 in the Best Gospel Song category with the title It's What I Do, which he wrote with Jerry Peters.

Life and work

Whalum comes from a musical family and sang in a gospel choir of his father, a Baptist clergyman; two of his uncles played in jazz bands. After visiting the Melrose High School, where he switched to saxophone from the drums, he received a scholarship to Texas Southern University, where in 1979 he founded a band, recorded with the local clubs. In 1984 he played in the opening act for Bob James in Houston, who invited him to be contributing to his album 12 and touring with him. In 1985 he was given the opportunity einzuspielen his own debut album, the more albums followed. With Jean Michel Jarre he took the place of the crashed astronaut Ron McNair on 1986 several concerts NASA. In 1987 he moved to Pasadena and he worked with Larry Carlton, in the next few years with Babyface, Nancy Wilson, Al Jarreau, Luther Vandross, Barbra Streisand, Kevin Mahogany, Al Green and Quincy Jones. Worldwide he performed as the opening act for Whitney Houston, on their successful cover -single I Will Always Love You (1992 ) he played the saxophone solo.

His album Caché (1993 ) earned him the breakthrough; it was five weeks at the top of the Billboard Contemporary Jazz charts. In recent years, he has primarily presented concept albums: In his album Into My Soul (2003) he sat down with the music of his native city, the Memphis soul apart; as guest musicians were about Isaac Hayes, Maurice White ( Earth, Wind & Fire ) and children Whalums friend, drummer Blair Cunningham, involved. In 2005, Whalum be Babyface Songbook (2005) to a selection of popular songs from Babyface. He has also taken other smooth jazz musicians such as trumpeter Rick Braun, saxophone colleague Dave Koz and guitarist Norman Brown and Chuck Loeb to the studio. More albums dealing with the music of Donny Hathaway and the connections between jazz and gospel music.

Whalum was continued as a studio musician on a number of film scores like The Prince of Tides, Boyz n the Hood - involved in the heart of the city and infidelities - boys in the neighborhood, The Bodyguard, Grand Canyon.

2006 to 2008 he was the first Artist in Residence at the Stax Music Academy in his hometown.

Disco Graphical Notes

  • Floppy disk (1985)
  • The Promise (1989 )
  • Caché (1993 )
  • In This Life (1995 )
  • Colors (1997)
  • Gospel According to Jazz: Chapter 1 (1998)
  • Unconditional (2000)
  • Hymns in the Garden (2001)
  • The Christmas Message ( 2001)
  • The Best of Kirk Whalum (2002)
  • Gospel According to Jazz: Chapter 2 (2002)
  • Into My Soul (2003)
  • Kirk Whalum Performs the Babyface Songbook (2005)
  • Round Trip ( 2007)
  • Everything Is Everything: The Music of Donny Hathaway (2010)
  • The Gospel According to Jazz Chapter III (2010)
  • Romance Language ( 2012)
Memphis (Tennessee) Jazz fusion Bob James (musician) Ronald McNair Pasadena, California Integrated Authority File
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