David Sanborn

David William Sanborn (born July 30, 1945) is an American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album Taking Off in 1975, but has been playing the saxophone since before he was in high school.

One of the most commercially successful American saxophonists to earn prominence since the 1980s, Sanborn is described by critic Scott Yannow as "the most influential saxophonist on pop, R&B, and crossover players of the past 20 years." He is often identified with radio-friendly smooth jazz, but he has expressed a disinclination for the genre and his association with it.

Sanborn was born in Tampa, Florida, and grew up in Kirkwood, Missouri. He suffered from polio for eight years in his youth. He began playing saxophone on a physician's advice to strengthen his weakened chest muscles and improve his breathing. Alto saxophonist Hank Crawford, at the time a member of Ray Charles's band, was an early and lasting influence on Sanborn.

Sanborn attended college at Northwestern University and studied music. But he transferred to the University of Iowa where he played and studied with saxophonist J.R. Monterose.

Sanborn performed with blues musicians Albert King and Little Milton at the age of 14. He continued playing blues when he joined Paul Butterfield's band in 1967. Sanborn recorded on four Butterfield albums as a horn section member and soloist from 1967 to 1971.In the early morning of Monday, August 18, 1969 Sanborn appeared as a member of the band at the Woodstock Music Festival at Bethel, NY

In the mid-70s and playing bebop Sanborn became prominent in the newly popular jazz/funk scene by joining the Brecker Brothers band where he became influenced by Michael Brecker, and it was with the brothers that he recorded his first solo album, 'Taking Off', nowadays regarded as something of a jazz/funk classic. Although Sanborn is most associated with smooth jazz, he studied free jazz in his youth with saxophonists Roscoe Mitchell and Julius Hemphill. In 1993, he revisited this genre when he appeared on Tim Berne's Diminutive Mysteries, dedicated to Hemphill. Sanborn's album Another Hand featured avant-garde musicians.

In 1985 Sanborn and Al Jarreau played two sold-out concerts at Chastain Park in Atlanta.

Recordings

He has been a highly regarded session player since the late 1960s, playing with an array of well-known artists, such as James Brown, Bryan Ferry, Michael Stanley, Eric Clapton, Bobby Charles, Cat Stevens, Roger Daltrey, Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Jaco Pastorius, the Brecker Brothers, Michael Franks, Kenny Loggins, Casiopea, Players Association, David Bowie, Todd Rundgren, Bruce Springsteen, Little Feat, Tommy Bolin, Bob James, James Taylor, Al Jarreau, Pure Prairie League, Kenny G, Loudon Wainwright III, George Benson, Joe Beck, Donny Hathaway, Elton John, Gil Evans, Carly Simon, Guru, Linda Ronstadt, Billy Joel, Kenny Garrett, Roger Waters, Steely Dan, Ween, the Eagles, The Grateful Dead, Nena, Utada Hikaru, The Rolling Stones, Ian Hunter, and Toto.

His solo recordings have often featured the bassist/multi-instrumentalist and producer Marcus Miller. He has also done some film scoring for films such as Lethal Weapon (and its sequels) and Scrooged. In 1991 Sanborn recorded Another Hand, which the All Music Guide to Jazz described as a "return by Sanborn to his real, true love: unadorned (or only partly adorned) jazz" that "balanced the scales" against his smooth jazz material. The album, produced by Hal Willner, featured musicians from outside the smooth jazz scene, such as Charlie Haden, Jack DeJohnette, Bill Frisell, and Marc Ribot.

In 1994 Sanborn appeared in A Celebration: The Music of Pete Townshend and The Who, also known as Daltrey Sings Townshend. This was a two-night concert at Carnegie Hall produced by Roger Daltrey of English rock band The Who in celebration of his fiftieth birthday. In 1994 a CD and a VHS video were issued, and in 1998 a DVD was released. In 1995 he performed in The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True a musical performance of the popular story at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund. The performance was broadcast on Turner Network Television (TNT) and issued on CD and video in 1996.

In 2006, he was featured in Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band's album The Phat Pack on the track "Play That Funky Music", a remake of the Wild Cherry hit in a big band style. Sanborn often performs at Japan's Blue Note venues in Nagoya, Osaka, and Tokyo. He plays on the song "Your Party" on Ween's 2007 release La Cucaracha. On April 8, 2007, Sanborn sat in with the Allman Brothers Band during their annual run at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. In 2010, Sanborn toured primarily with a trio featuring jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco and Steve Gadd where they played the combination of blues and jazz from his album Only Everything. In 2011, Sanborn toured with keyboardist George Duke and bassist Marcus Miller as the group DMS. In 2013, Sanborn toured with keyboardist Brian Culbertson on "The Dream Tour" celebrating the 25th anniversary of the song "The Dream."

Broadcasting

Sanborn has performed on both radio and television broadcasts; he has also acted as a host. From the late 1980s he was a regular guest member of Paul Shaffer's band on Late Night with David Letterman. He also appeared a few times on the Late Show with David Letterman in the 90s. From 1988–89, he co-hosted Night Music, a late-night music show on NBC television with Jools Holland. Following producer Hal Willner's eclectic approach, the show positioned Sanborn with many famed musicians, such as Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Pharoah Sanders, Eric Clapton, Robert Cray, Lou Reed, Elliott Sharp, Jean-Luc Ponty, Santana, Todd Rundgren, Youssou N'dour, Pere Ubu, Loudon Wainwright III, Mary Margaret O'Hara, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Leonard Cohen, Was, John Zorn, and Curtis Mayfield. During the 1980s and 1990s, Sanborn hosted a syndicated radio program, The Jazz Show with David Sanborn. Sanborn has recorded many shows' theme songs (most notably the one for L.A. Law) as well as several other songs for The Late Late Show with Tom Snyder.

He has won six Grammy Awards and has had eight gold albums and one platinum album.

Sanborn won Grammy Awards for Voyeur (1981), Double Vision (1986) and the instrumental album Close Up (1988).

In 2004, Sanborn was inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame.

As leader

• Taking Off (1975)
• David Sanborn (1976)
• Promise Me the Moon (1977)
• Heart to Heart (1978)
• Hideaway (1979); #2 jazz hit; #33 R&B hit
• Voyeur (1980); #1 jazz hit
• As We Speak (1981); #1 jazz hit
• Backstreet (1983); #1 jazz hit
• Straight to the Heart (1984); #1 jazz hit
• Love and Happiness (1986)
• Double Vision, with Bob James (1986)
• A Change of Heart (1987)
• Close-Up (1988)
• Another Hand (1991)
• Upfront (1992)
• Hearsay (1994)
• Pearls (1995)
• Love Songs (1995)
• Songs from the Night Before (1996)
• Inside (1999)
• Time Again (2003)
• Closer (2005)
• Dreaming Girl (2008)
• Here and Gone (2008)
• Only Everything (2010)
• Then Again: The Anthology (July 2012)
• Quartette Humaine, with Bob James (2013)
• Time and the River (2015)

As guest

• All My Friends Are Here, So Blue Arif Mardin feat. Chaka Khan & David Sanborn

As sideman

With Joe Beck

• 1975 Beck (Kudu)

With George Benson

• 1976 Good King Bad
• 1981 GB
• 1983 In Your Eyes
• 1983 Pacific Fire

With David Bowie

• 1974 David Live
• 1975 Young Americans
• 1976 Changesonebowie
• 1981 Another Face
• 1989 Sound + Vision
• 1990 Changesbowie

With the Brecker Brothers

• 1975 The Brecker Bros.
• 1976 Back to Back
• 1992 Return of the Brecker Brothers

With Paul Butterfield

• 1967 The Resurrection of Pigboy Crabshaw
• 1968 In My Own Dream
• 1969 Keep on Moving
• 1971 Live: New York, 1970
• 1971 Sometimes I Just Feel Like Smilin
• 1973 Paul Butterfield's Better Days
• 1976 Put It in Your Ear

With the Eagles

• 1979 The Long Run

With Gil Evans

• 1973 Svengali
• 1974 The Gil Evans Orchestra Plays the Music of Jimi Hendrix
• 1975 There Comes a Time
• 1977 Priestess
• 1979 Gil Evans Live at the Royal Festival Hall London 1978

With Maynard Ferguson

• 1976 Primal Scream
• 1981 Maynard
• 1982 Hollywood

With Michael Franks

• 1976 The Art of Tea
• 1977 Sleeping Gypsy
• 1979 Tiger in the Rain
• 1985 Skin Dive
• 1982 Objects of Desire
• 1995 Abandoned Garden

With Bob James

• 1977 Heads
• 1978 Touchdown
• 1979 Lucky Seven
• 1983 Foxie

With Steve Khan

• 1977 Tightrope
• 1978 The Blue Man
• 1979 Arrows

With Lisa Lauren

• 1998 What Comes Around
• 2001 My Own Twist
• 2004 It Is What It Is
• 2006 Lisa Lauren Loves the Beatles

With O'Donel Levy

• Everything I Do Gonna Be Funky (Groove Merchant, 1974)

With Pure Prairie League

• 1979 Can't Hold Back
• 1980 Firin' Up
• 1981 Something in the Night

With Carly Simon

• 1978 Boys in the Trees
• 1979 Spy
• 1981 Torch
• 1983 Hello Big Man

With Mike Stern

• 1985 Neesh
• 1986 Upside Downside
• 1997 Give and Take

With James Taylor

• 1975 Gorilla
• 1977 JT
• 1979 Flag
• 1985 That's Why I'm Here

With John Tropea

• 1976 Tropea
• 1976 John Tropea
• 1979 To Touch You Again

With others

• 1972 Guess Who, B.B. King
• 1972 Album III, Loudon Wainwright III
• 1972 House of the Rising Sun, Idris Muhammad
• 1972 Talking Book, Stevie Wonder
• 1973 A Wizard, a True Star, Todd Rundgren
• 1974 Hell, James Brown
• 1974 Reality, James Brown
• 1975 The Chicago Theme, Hubert Laws
• 1975 Initiation, Todd Rundgren
• 1975 Prisoner in Disguise, Linda Ronstadt
• 1975 Anything Goes, Ron Carter
• 1975 Still Crazy After All These Years, Paul Simon
• 1975 Mark Murphy Sings, Mark Murphy
• 1975 The Manhattan Transfer, The Manhattan Transfer
• 1975 Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen
• 1976 Aspects, Larry Coryell
• 1976 Jaco Pastorius, Jaco Pastorius
• 1976 Second Childhood, Phoebe Snow
• 1976 All American Alien Boy, Ian Hunter
• 1976 Blue Moves, Elton John
• 1976 Your Mind Is on Vacation, Mose Allison
• 1977 Futures, Burt Bacharach
• 1977 Love Play, Mike Mainieri
• 1977 Prime Time, Don McLean
• 1978 Living in the U.S.A., Linda Ronstadt
• 1978 Alive on Arrival, Steve Forbert
• 1978 Chaka, Chaka Khan
• 1978 City Lights, Dr. John
• 1978 Everyday Everynight, Flora Purim
• 1978 The Joy of Flying, Tony Williams
• 1979 Fearless, Tim Curry
• 1979 Electric Dreams, John McLaughlin
• 1979 The Glow, Bonnie Raitt
• 1979 You're Only Lonely, J.D. Souther
• 1980 One Trick Pony, Paul Simon
• 1980 Gaucho Steely Dan
• 1980 The Seduction, James Last
• 1981 Pavane, Hubert Laws
• 1981 Pirates, Rickie Lee Jones
• 1981 Sleepwalk, Larry Carlton
• 1982 El Noche Sol Ron Carter
• 1982 High Adventure, Kenny Loggins
• 1982 Wild Heart of the Young Karla Bonoff
• 1983 An Innocent Man Billy Joel
• 1983 Night-Lines, Dave Grusin
• 1983 Papa Lips, Bob Mintzer
• 1983 Undercover, The Rolling Stones
• 1983 Wishful Thinking, Earl Klugh
• 1984 Electric Outlet, John Scofield
• 1984 The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, Roger Waters
• 1985 Boys and Girls, Bryan Ferry
• 1985 Mobo Splash, Kazumi Watanabe
• 1985 Vox Humana, Kenny Loggins
• 1986 Fahrenheit Toto
• 1986 From All Sides Hiram Bullock
• 1987 At Home, Janis Siegel
• 1987 Brasil, The Manhattan Transfer
• 1987 Give It What U Got, Hiram Bullock
• 1987 Primitive Cool, Mick Jagger
• 1988 Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, Robert Cray
• 1988 Heart's Horizon, Al Jarreau
• 1989 Journeyman Eric Clapton
• 1989 Steady On, Shawn Colvin
• 1989 Sueño Eddie Palmieri
• 1993 Diminutive Mysteries, Tim Berne
• 1993 The World's Most Dangerous Party, Paul Shaffer
• 1994 Tenderness, Al Jarreau
• 1995 The Promise, John McLaughlin
• 1995 Whatever It Takes, Larry Goldings
• 1996 Big Girl, Candy Dulfer
• 1999 Souvenir, Ricky Peterson
• 2000 Celebrating the Music of Weather Report, Jason Miles
• 2002 Beautiful World, Take 6
• 2003 34th N Lex, Randy Brecker
• 2005 To Love Again: The Duets, Chris Botti
• 2006 The Phat Pack, Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band
• 2014 Enjoy the View, Bobby Hutcherson
• 2016 Bye Bye Blackbird with Jimmy Chamberlin and Frank Catalano

DVDs

• Legends: Live at Montreux 1997 (2005)
• The Legends of Jazz: Showcase (2006)