Bob James
The career of Bob James is long, varied and continues to evolve at every turn. From his first days of piano recital in Marshall, Missouri to his own trio while at the University of Michigan to New York City and beyond, the music of Bob James has captivated audiences throughout the world.
After being discovered by Quincy Jones at the Notre Dame Jazz Festival in 1963, Bob recorded his first solo album, Bold Conceptions, for Mercury Records. 25 more solo albums would follow through four decades; that number is just to date and does not include his Grammy award winning collaboration projects! Although he was to record another trio album, Explosions, for ESP, it was really not until Bob met up with Creed Taylor in New York that his composing, arranging and recording career took off. After working on albums for CTI artists like Hank Crawford, Grover Washington, Jr. and many others, Bob finally recorded his own album, One. This introduced his music to a bigger audience and launched a lifelong career of recording and performing live. There were to be three more CTI albums before Bob moved to CBS in the 1970's and began his own label, Tappan Zee Records. It was during this time that he recorded his own gold seller, Touchdown, which included his composition, Angela, Theme from 'Taxi.' Bob composed all the original music used in that television series for its entire run. "One On One," the first in three collaborations with Earl Klugh, was awarded a Grammy in 1980 and has sold over a million copies. A different aspect of the musical talent of Bob James was demonstrated on his three classical albums recorded for the CBS Masterworks division, the first of which was Rameau released in 1984.
In 1985 Bob moved to Warner Bros Records and began that association with another million seller and Grammy winner, Double Vision, his collaboration with David Sanborn, produced by Tommy LiPuma. It was in 1990 while recording his Grand Piano Canyon album that Bob reunited with his old friend, drummer Harvey Mason, Jr. and worked for the first time with Lee Ritenour on guitar and Nathan East on bass. The sessions for this project were the genesis of the group, Fourplay. Their first album was recorded and released in 1991. They have gone on to record four more albums, with Larry Carlton taking over on guitar the in 1998 in time for album number and title, 4. The group spent much of the second half of 2000 touring throughout the United States. They finished out the year with their first European tour last fall.
A personal and professional highlight was a collaboration with his daughter, Hilary, on the Flesh & Blood album. They wrote together for this project and toured 15 U.S. cities in acoustic vocal and piano duet performances, Bob also did two more records with Earl Klugh and one with Kirk Whalum. His solo career continued into the 90's with "Restless," "Playin' Hooky," and "Joy Ride." Working with producers like Paul Brown, Marcel & Nathan East, Harvey Mason, Jr. and his own longtime producer, Michael Colina, Bob maintained his commitment to sophisticated production and arrangements while stretching out in different and new directions.
"Dancing On the Water," released in 2001 was the fulfillment of a longtime dream. This CD includes duet performances by Bob with Keiko Matsui, Joe Sample, Dave Holland and Chuck Loeb. There are also four original solo piano pieces. It is an unusual and exciting project with the amazing performances all around. Bob toured with this project in Japan with Keiko Matsui. They have called their show "Four Hands, One Piano" - an evening of just piano with them playing alone and together. The response was fantastic and the tour will continue here in the United States in March, starting in Washington, Philadelphia, Boston, then moving westward.
2002 saw the release of Fourplay's first project for BMG, "Heartfelt." The group toured for much of the year across the United States and the far east. Also that year, Bob's 'Morning, Noon Night' was released on Warners. Again, Paul Brown produced several of the tunes. The title track was a number one radio hit. Chuck Loeb and Ken Freeman, Bob's engineer and longtime studio manager, co-produced several of the tracks as well.
And here we are in 2003. While appearing at New York's Blue Note, Bob went into Hit Factory with Billy Kilson and James Genus, with Ken Freeman at the board, and recorded a trio album. The genesis for this project was Bob's idea for a tribute to the pianists who inspired him. There are tunes here originally recorded by Ahmad Jamal, Duke Ellington, Bill Evans, Oscar Peterson and others. It is another personal project for Bob. One that he lovingly produced and recorded with his musical friends and colleagues. They've already taken it on the road. In November, the trio played London's Jazz Cafe where they debuted these tracks to a very enthusiastic and appreciative crowd. The CD, "Take It From the Top," has a street date of February 24, 2004. Keep an eye, and ear, out for it.
