Eric Kloss (born April 3, 1949) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

saxophonist.

Music career

Kloss was born blind in

Greenville, Pennsylvania Greenville is a borough with home rule status in northwestern Mercer County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located along the Shenango River, it lies roughly 80 miles from both Pittsburgh and Cleveland. It is 1.89 square miles in area, and had a ...

, near Pittsburgh, and attended the Western Pennsylvania School for the Blind, which was run by his father. When he was 10, he began to play the saxophone, and two years later he was playing in night clubs with professional musicians such as Bobby Negri, Charles Bell, and

Sonny Stitt Edward Hammond Boatner Jr. (February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982), known professionally as Sonny Stitt, was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his ...

. At 16, he recorded his debut album, ''

Introducing Eric Kloss ''Introducing Eric Kloss'' is the debut album by saxophonist Eric Kloss which was recorded in 1965 and released on the Prestige Records, Prestige label.

'' (Prestige, 1965) with Don Patterson and

Pat Martino Pat Martino (born Patrick Carmen Azzara; August 25, 1944 – November 1, 2021) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Biography Martino was born Patrick Carmen Azzara in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, to father Carmen "Mickey" ...

. On his third album, ''

Grits & Gravy ''Grits & Gravy'' is an album by saxophonist Eric Kloss which was recorded in 1966 and released on the Prestige label.

'' (1966), he was recording with musicians over twice his age:

Jaki Byard John Arthur "Jaki" Byard (; June 15, 1922 – February 11, 1999) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and arranger. Mainly a pianist, he also played tenor and alto saxophones, among several other instruments. He was known for hi ...

, Richard Davis, and

Alan Dawson Alan Dawson (July 14, 1929 – February 23, 1996) was an American jazz drummer and percussion teacher based in Boston. Biography Dawson was born in Marietta, Pennsylvania and raised in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Serving in the U.S. Army during th ...

. He continued recording and performing while a student at

Duquesne University Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened as the Pittsbu ...

. A fan of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

and

The Ventures The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in Tacoma, Washington, in 1958, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, which was a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar across the world during the ...

, he was attracted to the growth of

jazz fusion Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and jazz improvisation, improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, ...

in the 1960s and '70s, and eventually worked in the fusion idiom with musicians

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

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, and

Jack DeJohnette Jack DeJohnette (born August 9, 1942) is an American jazz drummer, pianist, and composer. Known for his extensive work as leader and sideman for musicians including Charles Lloyd, Freddie Hubbard, Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, John Abercrombie, ...

. He also collaborated with Richie Cole and

Gil Goldstein Gil Goldstein (born November 6, 1950 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American jazz pianist and accordionist. He has won 5 Grammy Awards and he was nominated 8 time Biography He began studying accordion at age 5 after noticing it in The Lawrence We ...

, and did sessions with

Cedar Walton Cedar Anthony Walton Jr. (January 17, 1934 – August 19, 2013) was an American hard bop jazz pianist. He came to prominence as a member of drummer Art Blakey's band, The Jazz Messengers, before establishing a long career as a bandleader and com ...

, Jimmy Owens,

Kenny Barron Kenny Barron (born June 9, 1943) is an American jazz pianist, who has appeared on hundreds of recordings as leader and sideman and is considered one of the most influential mainstream jazz pianists since the bebop era. Biography Born in Philadel ...

Booker Ervin Booker Telleferro Ervin II (October 31, 1930 – August 31, 1970) was an American tenor saxophone player. His tenor playing was characterised by a strong, tough sound and blues/gospel phrasing. He is remembered for his association with bassi ...

Barry Miles Barry Miles (born 21 February 1943) is an English author known for his participation in and writing on the subjects of the 1960s London underground and counterculture. He is the author of numerous books and his work has also regularly appeared ...

, and

Terry Silverlight Terry Silverlight is a jazz, pop, rock and R&B drummer, composer, producer, arranger and author. Biography Silverlight was born in Newark, New Jersey and grew up in North Plainfield, New Jersey. He made his debut as a drummer on Barry Miles' 's ' ...

. In the 1980s, Kloss taught at

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's ...

, then Duquesne and

Carnegie Mellon Carnegie may refer to: People * Carnegie (surname), including a list of people with the name * Clan Carnegie, a lowland Scottish clan Institutions Named for Andrew Carnegie *Carnegie Building (Troy, New York), on the campus of Rensselaer Polyt ...

. He and his wife, a vocalist, collaborated in a group called Quiet Fire. He has performed and recorded rarely since the 1980s due to health problems. Eric was a frequent guest on the television show

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'' (sometimes shortened to ''Mister Rogers'') is an American half-hour educational children's television series that ran from 1968 to 2001, and was created and hosted by Fred Rogers. The series ''Misterogers'' debut ...

, appearing eight times, first in 1971 and finally in 1996.

Discography

As leader/co-leader

* ''

Introducing Eric Kloss ''Introducing Eric Kloss'' is the debut album by saxophonist Eric Kloss which was recorded in 1965 and released on the Prestige Records, Prestige label.

'' (

Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnett ...

, 1965) * ''

Love and All That Jazz ''Love and All That Jazz'' is a studio album by saxophonist Eric Kloss. It was recorded in 1966 and released on Prestige Records.First Class Kloss!'' (Prestige, 1967) * ''

Grits & Gravy ''Grits & Gravy'' is an album by saxophonist Eric Kloss which was recorded in 1966 and released on the Prestige label.

'' (Prestige, 1967) * '' Life Force'' (Prestige, 1968) * ''

We're Goin' Up ''We're Goin' Up'' is an album by saxophonist Eric Kloss which was recorded in 1968 and released on the Prestige label.

'' (Prestige, 1968) * '' To Hear Is to See!'' (Prestige, 1969) * '' Sky Shadows'' (Prestige, 1969) * '' In the Land of the Giants'' (Prestige, 1969) * '' Consciousness!'' (Prestige, 1970) * '' One, Two, Free'' (

Muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...

, 1972) * ''

Doors A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security b ...

'' (

Cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct fro ...

, 1972) * ''

Essence Essence ( la, essentia) is a polysemic term, used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property or set of properties that make an entity or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it ...

'' (Muse, 1974) * '' Bodies' Warmth'' (Muse, 1975) * ''

Together ''ToGetHer'' (, aka Superstar Express) is a 2009 Taiwanese drama starring Jiro Wang of Fahrenheit, Rainie Yang and George Hu. It was produced by Comic International Productions ( 可米國際影視事業股份有限公司) and directed by Linzi P ...

'' with

(Muse, 1976) * ''

Battle of the Saxes ''Battle of the Saxes'' (subtitled ''Volume 1'') is a live album by saxophonists Eric Kloss and Richie Cole (musician), Richie Cole recorded in 1976 and released on the Muse Records, Muse label.Richie Cole (Muse, 1977) * ''

Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Now ...

'' (Muse, 1978) * '' Celebration'' (Muse, 1980) * ''Sharing'' with Gil Goldstein (Omni Sound, 1982) * ''Sweet Connections: Live at EJ's'' (1998)

As sideman

With

* ''Sky Train'' (RCA, 1977) With

Eddie Jefferson Eddie Jefferson (August 3, 1918 – May 9, 1979) was an American jazz vocalist and lyricist. He is credited as an innovator of vocalese, a musical style in which lyrics are set to an instrumental composition or solo. Jefferson himself claims t ...

* ''The Live-Liest'' (Muse, 1979) With

* ''

Desperado Desperado may refer to: * Outlaw, particularly in the American Old West Books * ''Desperadoes'' (comics), a comic book series * ''Desperadoes'' (novel), a 1979 novel by Ron Hansen * Desperado Publishing, an American independent comic book publ ...

'' (Prestige, 1970)

References

1949 births Living people American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists Musicians from Pittsburgh Blind musicians Cobblestone Records artists Prestige Records artists Transatlantic Records artists Muse Records artists People from Greenville, Pennsylvania 21st-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians {{US-jazz-saxophonist-stub