Ask saxophonist David Sanborn to reel off a list of career achievements, and you'd better get comfortable. It's a long list.
Even he looks surprised when he reaches the end of it, and quips, “I split the atom and cured cancer."
Sanborn's career spans jazz, rock, pop and R&B. He's played with Stevie Wonder, the Rolling Stones, James Taylor, David Bowie and Carly Simon -- just to name a few. He's won six Grammys, hosted the TV show “Night Music" in the early '80s and has performed with the bands for “Saturday Night Live" and “Late Night with David Letterman."
OK, so maybe curing cancer is a bit of a stretch -- but Sanborn is certainly no stranger to fighting his own health battles. Having suffered polio in his childhood, he says his mantra growing up was “Hey guys, wait up!" as he trailed his peers. At age 11, he took up the saxophone on his doctors' advice that the wind instrument would help build up his lungs.
Now 63, Sanborn has just released “Here and Gone" (Decca), his 23rd album. It's a sultry, bluesy nod to early influences Ray Charles and Hank Crawford, and features guest appearances by Eric Clapton, Joss Stone and Sam Moore. Video Watch Sanborn play a few notes
Sanborn invited CNN to his Manhattan home to talk about his uneasy relationship with the sax, letting Eric Clapton play and sing, and why you probably shouldn't call his music “smooth jazz."
Even he looks surprised when he reaches the end of it, and quips, “I split the atom and cured cancer."
Sanborn's career spans jazz, rock, pop and R&B. He's played with Stevie Wonder, the Rolling Stones, James Taylor, David Bowie and Carly Simon -- just to name a few. He's won six Grammys, hosted the TV show “Night Music" in the early '80s and has performed with the bands for “Saturday Night Live" and “Late Night with David Letterman."
OK, so maybe curing cancer is a bit of a stretch -- but Sanborn is certainly no stranger to fighting his own health battles. Having suffered polio in his childhood, he says his mantra growing up was “Hey guys, wait up!" as he trailed his peers. At age 11, he took up the saxophone on his doctors' advice that the wind instrument would help build up his lungs.
Now 63, Sanborn has just released “Here and Gone" (Decca), his 23rd album. It's a sultry, bluesy nod to early influences Ray Charles and Hank Crawford, and features guest appearances by Eric Clapton, Joss Stone and Sam Moore. Video Watch Sanborn play a few notes
Sanborn invited CNN to his Manhattan home to talk about his uneasy relationship with the sax, letting Eric Clapton play and sing, and why you probably shouldn't call his music “smooth jazz."
For more information contact All About Jazz.
