david sanborn.

I waited a few days to put some extra thought into what I wanted to write for this post.

I respect David Sanborn the same way that basketball fans respect Larry Bird, or baseball fans respect Mickey Mantle. To me, his music is timeless and legendary. I don’t doubt that people will still be listening to his music for years to come, and I hope that his music will now have a resurgence, even if only in the world of “smooth jazz.”

I’ll start at my beginning. I was very fortunate to become friends with David’s son Jonathan back in high school in the fall of 1983. I looked up (and still look up) to Jonathan, a great friend and fantastic musician in his own right. In addition to taking me under his wing, Jon indirectly turned me on to his dad’s music, as I started listening to albums where his dad was a sideman (Bowie, Carly Simon, James Taylor, etc.) By the time I listened to David’s “Hideaway” album for the first time, I already had an incredible appreciation of his talent and his influence as a sideman.

There was many a Friday morning when I went to school very tired from staying up and watching David Letterman the previous night, as David Sanborn regularly sat in with Paul Shaffer and the World’s Most Dangerous Band most Thursday nights. In hindsight, I have no regrets about my lack of sleep or my grades, as this was a far more valuable education in music!

It was with my friend Sean Tarleton that I heard Sanborn’s “Straight to the Heart” album for the first time. This was a total game changer for me. Hearing Sanborn playing live with a killer band of Marcus Miller, Hiram Bullock, Don Grolnick and Buddy Williams turned my world upside down….I became obsessed with this album, and not a day went by during the summer of 1985 that I didn’t listen to the album in its entirety.

At that point, I went back to listen to all of his previous albums, and I have each of his solo albums in my collection. In addition to having an incredibly soulful sound, David Sanborn’s playing has a unique, almost trademarked sound, as you can identify it right away from the first note. It’s said that he brought saxophone back to rock n’ roll, and I believe that. He’s composed and been featured in movie scores (Lethal Weapon immediately comes to mind), and his television show Sunday Night/Night Music was a progressive program which showcased an eclectic mix of music and musicians.

Hearing the news of his passing was like a shock to the system. I knew that he was having issues with his back, but I did not know the extent of his illness. He was so dedicated to his fans that he was still going on the road to play concerts, and I have the utmost respect for that. He easily could have retired, but he still wanted to make music, and get the energy back from the audience that he also gave to the audience.

My world will be forever changed, as are the lives of fans of his music all over the world. Even though I’m a trumpet player, i appreciated the too-many-to-count musical ideas I got from listening to his music, and I’ll continue to listen and learn, as his virtuosity covers numerous idioms of music. Name another sideman who played at the original Woodstock, played with Miles Davis, Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, Pure Prairie League, Roger Waters, Burt Bacharach, and took the time to record music for a Fisher Price toy for his grandchildren….

My heart goes out to Jonathan and his family, to David’s wife Alice, and to all of his friends and family…we’ve lost a true legend.

Thank you for your music, your talent, your personality, and thank you from the bottom of my heart for being my hero.

Rest in Peace. ❤️🎷😔