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Bob James: Once Upon A Time: The Lost 1965 New York Studio Sessions
by Dan McClenaghan
Most people have heard the music of Bob James. He wrote “Angela," the theme song for the popular television comedy Taxi. The show ran from 1978 to 1983, and reruns are ongoing. The Bob James became one of the fathers and most successful purveyors of the smooth/fusion jazz sound, in recordings under his own name, with the group Foreplay and in teamings with saxophonist David Sanborn. Once Upon A Time: The Lost 1965 New York Studio Sessions takes ...
read moreBob James, David Sanborn, and Marcus Miller: The Lost Tour
by Jim Worsley
Backing a new record with a live tour is, of course, standard practice. So, a tour in support of Double Vision (Warner Brothers, 1986) would be nothing out of the ordinary. The Bob James and David Sanborn classic, that also features Marcus Miller and Steve Gadd, proved to be visionary in its scope and profound in its significance. So much so, that it won a Grammy for Best Improvisational Jazz Album in 1986. The tour seems like it was only ...
read moreDouble Vision Revisited: Bob James, David Sanborn, and Marcus Miller at the Lakewood Civic Auditorium
by C. Andrew Hovan
Double Vision Revisited: Bob James, David Sanborn, and Marcus Miller Lakewood Civic Auditorium Lakewood, Ohio August 17, 2019 By the mid '80s, there started to be a major shift in the quality and focus of the music termed as jazz fusion. The genre had started in the late '60s with rockier strains popularized by groups like Tony Williams' Emergency and subsequently the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Eventually the rougher and more substantial strains of this style would ...
read moreBob James Trio: Expresso
by Dan McClenaghan
Bob James wrote “Angela," the theme song to the popular late-1970s/early 1980s television show, Taxi, a feather in the cap that introduced his sound to millions of listeners who might not ever slip a jazz CD into the stereo. For those with an ear and a love of jazz, he is probably most familiar for his work with the group Fourplay and saxophonist David Sanborn, along with a three record, mid-1970s stint with Creed Taylor's CTI Recordings, and three Grammy ...
read moreBob James: Piano Player
by R.J. DeLuke
In a career that spans about five decades, Bob James has made an impact on a variety of musical genres. His roots are in jazz, but he has run the gamut from playing avant-garde jazz on the outer fringes--which he was doing when discovered by Quincy Jones--to composing and arranging for a variety of people in the jazz and pop worlds. He did extensive work for the well known CTI Records and has won Grammys recording with the ...
read moreBob James Trio at Nighttown
by C. Andrew Hovan
Bob James Trio Nighttown Cleveland, Ohio June 22, 2018 Although we keep hearing all the time that by sheer numbers the jazz audience is a small and select crowd, the fact remains that select musicians have crafted the type of following that guarantees crowd interest in all their latest endeavors. This type of pedigree has followed Bob James for many decades now and no doubt Cleveland's Nighttown was betting on the pianist's drawing power when ...
read moreBob James Trio with Randy Brecker at the Blue Note
by Tyran Grillo
Bob James Trio with Randy Brecker Blue Note New York, NY August 16, 2017 As part of a week-long residency at the Blue Note, legendary keyboardist-composer Bob James broke sonic bread with up-and-coming bassist Michael Palazzolo and faithful drummer Billy Kilson. The result of this communion was a head-nodding dive into one of jazz's most hallowed oeuvres. As was clear throughout this performance, central to the bandleader's commercial success--not counting the many times his ...
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