Greg Osby (born August 3, 1960) is an American saxophonist and composer.

Biography

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Osby studied at

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

, then at the

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

. He moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1982, where he played with

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 ...

, Jim Hall,

Muhal Richard Abrams Muhal Richard Abrams (born Richard Lewis Abrams; September 19, 1930 – October 29, 2017) was an American educator, administrator, composer, arranger, clarinetist, cellist, and jazz pianist in the free jazz medium. He recorded and toured the Uni ...

, Andrew Hill, Jack DeJohnette, Dizzy Gillespie, and

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

. In 1985, he joined DeJohnette's group Special Edition. With

Geri Allen Geri Antoinette Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. In addition to her career as a performer and bandleader, Allen was also an associate professor of music at the University of Pittsburgh ...

, Steve Coleman, Gary Thomas, and

Cassandra Wilson Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female Jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed wi ...

, he was a founding member of the M-Base Collective. Osby began recording albums under his own name for

JMT Records JMT Records (an acronym of Jazz Music Today) was a German record label founded by Stefan Winter. It was based in Munich, Germany, specialized in contemporary jazz, and operated from 1985 until 1995. History JMT released debut albums by Steve Col ...

in the mid-1980s, then signed with

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical c ...

in 1989. In 2007, he formed his own label, Inner Circle Music. He gave exposure to young pianist

Jason Moran Jason Moran may refer to: * Jason Moran (criminal) (1967–2003), Australian mobster * Jason Moran (musician) Jason Moran (born January 21, 1975) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator involved in multimedia art and theatrical inst ...

, who appeared on most of Osby's 1990s albums, including ''Further Ado'', ''Zero'', ''

Banned in New York ''Banned in New York'' is a live album by saxophonist Greg Osby recorded at Sweet Basil in New York City in 1997 for the Blue Note label. The album was recorded by Osby on a MiniDisc recorder placed on a table in front of the band. Reception ...

'' and ''Symbols of Light'', a double quartet featuring the addition of a string quartet to the band. He has also played with

Phil Lesh and Friends Phil Lesh and Friends is an American rock band formed and led by Phil Lesh, former bassist of the Grateful Dead. Phil & Friends is not a traditional group in that several different lineups of musicians have played under the name, including gr ...

, and he has toured with the Dead, a reincarnation of the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

. He received the ''

Playboy Magazine ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

'' Jazz Artist of the Year award for 2004 and 2009. Nate Chinen, writing for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', called Osby "a mentor and a pacesetter, one of the sturdier bridges between jazz generations," and stated that he has "a keen, focused tone on alto saxophone and a hummingbird's phrasing, an equilibrium of hover and flutter."

Discography

As leader

As sideman

;With

Franco Ambrosetti Franco Ambrosetti (born 10 December 1941) is a jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist and composer. He was born in Lugano, Switzerland; his father, Flavio, was a saxophonist who once played opposite Charlie Parker.Movies Too'' (Enja, 1988) * ''

Music for Symphony and Jazz Band ''Music for Symphony and Jazz Band'' is an album by the trumpeter/flugelhornist and composer Franco Ambrosetti which was recorded in 1990 and released on the Enja label the following year.

'' (Enja, 1991) – recorded in 1990 ;With

Uri Caine Uri Caine (born June 8, 1956, Philadelphia, United States) is an American classical and jazz pianist and composer. Biography Early years The son of Burton Caine, a professor at Temple Law School, and poet Shulamith Wechter Caine, Caine began ...

* ''

Cipher Syntax ''Cipher Syntax'' is an album by Strata Institute, an M-Base group led by saxophonists Greg Osby and Steve Coleman, recorded in 1988 and released on the JMT label.The Goldberg Variations'' (

Winter & Winter Winter & Winter is a record label in Munich, Germany that specializes in jazz, classical and improvised music. It was founded by Stefan Winter following the demise of his JMT Records label. Since 1997 Winter & Winter has released records by Da ...

, 2000) ;With Gary Thomas * '' By Any Means Necessary'' (JMT, 1989) * '' Pariah's Pariah'' (Winter & Winter, 1998) ;With Andrew Hill * 1989: '' Eternal Spirit'' (Blue Note, 1989) * 1990: '' But Not Farewell'' (Blue Note, 1991) ;With others *

Cecil Brooks III Cecil Brooks III (born 1959) is an American jazz drummer and record producer who has worked with Arthur Blythe, Russell Gunn, John Hicks, Andrew Hill, Etta Jones, Roseanna Vitro, Marvin Peterson, and Jimmy Ponder. A native of the Homewood n ...

, '' The Collective'' (Muse, 1989) *

Terri Lyne Carrington Terri Lyne Carrington (born August 4, 1965) is an American jazz drummer, composer, producer, and educator. She has played with Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Clark Terry, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Joe Sample, Al Jarreau, Yellowjackets, and ma ...

, ''

Structure A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...

'' (ACT Music, 2004) * Steve Coleman, '' Drop Kick'' (

Novus Novus ("new" in Latin) may refer to: Companies * Novus Biologicals, a biotech company based in Littleton, Colorado, US * Novus Entertainment, a Canadian telecommunications company * Novus International, an animal health and nutrition company * Nov ...

, 1992) *

Andrew Cyrille Andrew Charles Cyrille (born November 10, 1939) is an American avant-garde jazz drummer. Throughout his career, he has performed both as a leader and a sideman in the bands of Walt Dickerson and Cecil Taylor, among others. AllMusic biographe ...

, '' Low Blue Flame'' (Tum, 2006) – recorded in 2005 * Robin Eubanks, ''

Karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...

'' (JMT, 1991) *

Jimmy Herring Jimmy Herring (born January 22, 1962) is the lead guitarist for the band Widespread Panic. He is a founding member of Aquarium Rescue Unit and Jazz Is Dead and has played with The Allman Brothers Band, Project Z, Derek Trucks Band, Phil Lesh a ...

, ''

Lifeboat Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen ...

'' (Abstract Logix, 2008) *

, '' Soundtrack to Human Motion'' (Blue Note, 1999) – recorded in 1998 * Tineke Postma, '' Sonic Halo'' ( Challenge Records, 2014) * Project Z, '' Lincoln Memorial'' (Abstract Logix, 2005) – recorded in 2002

References

External links

* – official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Osby, Greg 1960 births Living people Musicians from St. Louis Howard University alumni Berklee College of Music alumni American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists African-American musicians African-American jazz musicians African-American saxophonists Avant-garde jazz saxophonists Free funk saxophonists Jazz saxophonists 21st-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from Missouri 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians JMT Records artists Blue Note Records artists Nagel-Heyer Records artists