In the 25 years since the release of his self-titled solo debut album, saxophonist Dave Koz has received nine GRAMMY® nominations, had nine No. 1 albums on Billboard’s Current Contemporary Jazz Albums chart, toured the world and been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Reflecting on his extraordinary career, Dave decided to celebrate the milestone with a different kind of retrospective album.
“From the beginning, collaborations have been a special source of inspiration to me. I wanted to shine a light on that process and share these recordings, which feature some of my favorite artists,” said Dave Koz.
Collaborations: 25th Anniversary Collection, Koz’s latest album on Concord Records, features three brand new tracks – “Good Foot” with Jeff Lorber, “(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher” with Kenny Lattimore and Rick Braun and “Let It Go” (from Frozen) with Sturken & Rogers – plus previously recorded collaborations with Barry Manilow (who recently tapped Dave as opener on his One Last Time! tour of the U.S.), Luther Vandross, Stevie Nicks, Stevie Wonder, Toby Keith, Herb Alpert, Rod Stewart, David Benoit and Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox, among others.
In the course of his career, Koz has also played with such artists as Burt Bacharach, Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Celine Dion, Shelby Lynne, Kenny Loggins, U2 and Michael McDonald. A platinum-selling artist, he is also known as a humanitarian, entrepreneur, radio host and instrumental music advocate.
Born and raised in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley, Dave initially just saw the saxophone as a way to help him gain entry into his big brother’s band. What began as a ploy became a lifelong obsession. After graduating from UCLA, Koz decided to become a professional musician. Within weeks of that decision, he was recruited as a touring member of Bobby Caldwell’s band. It was during this time that Koz befriended keyboardist Jeff Lorber, who invited Koz to come play on one of his tours. That stint was followed by a fourteen-month tour with pop singer Richard Marx.
Signed to Capitol Records by Bruce Lundvall, Koz released his self-titled solo debut album in 1990. This was the first in a body of best-selling work, which includes the gold-certified Lucky Man (1993), Off The Beaten Path (1996), and the holiday-themed albums December Makes Me Feel This Way (1997) and Dave Koz & Friends – A Smooth Jazz Christmas (2001). His gold-certified fifth album, The Dance (1999), spawned no less than five Top 5 contemporary jazz hits. Saxophonic (2003) produced another four Top 5 singles and garnered Koz two GRAMMY® nominations spanning two consecutive years.
In 2007, Koz released two chart-topping collections of standards. At The Movies, his lush, romantic celebration of timeless melodies from cinema, spent 12 weeks atop Billboard’s Top Contemporary Jazz chart. Produced by the legendary Phil Ramone, it was nominated for a GRAMMY® in the “Best Pop Instrumental Album” category. Memories Of A Winter’s Night, a festive collection of holiday standards, hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Contemporary Jazz chart in December 2007. Dave Koz At The Movies Double Feature CD + DVD followed in early 2008, which featured the At The Movies CD with two never-before-released bonus audio tracks, a new DVD and a track-by-track commentary.
more at davekoz.com
