John Steven "Pip" Doheny (born December 17, 1953), is a

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 ...

tenor saxophonist and band leader, who also plays flute, clarinet, and alto saxophone. Born in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, Doheny studied with prominent Canadian saxophonist and bandleader

Fraser MacPherson John Fraser MacPherson CM (10 April 1928 – 27 September 1993) was a Canadian jazz musician from Saint Boniface, Manitoba. MacPherson moved to Victoria, British Columbia, as a child. He learned piano, clarinet, and alto and tenor saxophones ...

, whom he credits as a major influence. He spent his early career in the 1970s primarily in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada, playing in local rhythm and blues bands and strip clubs, as well as spending large parts of each year on exhaustive road trips to taverns throughout rural

and

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. By the late 1970s and into the mid 1980s he was appearing as a sideman with artists such as

Albert Collins Albert Gene Drewery, known as Albert Collins and the Ice Man (October 1, 1932 – November 24, 1993),Skeely, Richard. "Albert Collins: Biography" Allmusic.com. was an American electric blues guitarist and singer with a distinctive guitar style. ...

Doug and the Slugs Doug and the Slugs are a Canadian pop music group formed in 1977 in Vancouver, British Columbia. The band enjoyed a number of Canadian top 40 hits in the 1980s, most notably "Too Bad" (1980), "Who Knows How To Make Love Stay" (1982), "Making It W ...

the Coasters The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. Beginning with "Searchin'" and " Young Blood" in 1957, their most memorable songs were written by the songwriting and producing ...

the Platters The Platters was an American vocal group formed in 1952. They are one of the most successful vocal groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound bridges the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the new burgeoning genre. The ac ...

the Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

, and

Buddy Knox Buddy Wayne Knox (July 20, 1933 – February 14, 1999) was an American singer and songwriter, best known for his 1957 rock hit song, "Party Doll". Biography Knox was born in the tiny farming community of Happy, Texas, United States, and learne ...

. In the late 1980s he relocated to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

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, Canada, and then

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 ...

, working with the bands of Lloyd Williams,

Solomon Burke Solomon Vincent McDonald Burke (born James Solomon McDonald, March 21, 1936 or 1940 – October 10, 2010) was an American singer who shaped the sound of rhythm and blues as one of the founding fathers of soul music in the 1960s. He has been ...

, Danny B, and Kenny Margolis. The 1990s saw Doheny doing extensive touring and studio work, both with jazz ensembles and pop groups, including

Bell Biv Devoe Bell Biv DeVoe, also known as BBD, is an American music group from Boston, Massachusetts, formed from members of New Edition, consisting of Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins and Ronnie DeVoe. The band is best known for their debut album, the multi-pl ...

. He released his first CD as a leade
One Up, Two Back
in 2002, featuring his band the John Doheny Quintet, and vocalist Colleen Savage. In 2003 he relocated to

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

to pursue a master's degree in jazz history at

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

. Doheny is noted as a colorful raconteur (no small accomplishment in a city like New Orleans). A 2002 interview with him can be foun
here
courtesy of smoothjazz.com, which includes an explanation of how he came to acquire the middle name "Pip", and an account of his early days as a struggling musician. Doheny is also a jazz historian. He holds an MA in

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 ...

History from Tulane University, as well as a B.mus and B.ed from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He has written articles on

Jelly Roll Morton Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe (later Morton; c. September 20, 1890 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer. Morton was jazz's first arranger, proving that a gen ...

in the popular press, and published in Tulane's Jazz Archivist. He has also achieved notoriety for transcribing the music of

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians and ...

from audio form into written musical scores. Having transcribed the music of Mingus, he adapted the scores to a series of performances entitled 'Mingus Mania,' parts of which appeared on the Bravo television network in the early 1990s as musical interludes. Doheny also composed and performed source music for the soundtrack for the 1998

Bruce Sweeney Bruce Sweeney (born in Sarnia, Ontario) is a Canadian film director. He has spent his career based primarily in Vancouver, British Columbia. Career Sweeney's debut film, '' Live Bait'', won the award for Best Canadian Feature Film at the 1995 Toro ...

fil
Dirty
as well as appearing with his band in the 1997

Brian Dennehy Brian Manion Dennehy (; July 9, 1938 – April 15, 2020) was an American actor of stage, television, and film. He won two Tony Awards, an Olivier Award, and a Golden Globe, and received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Dennehy had roles in ...

TV movi
A Father's Betrayal
Doheny resides in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. While many New Orleans residents were displaced by

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

, Doheny was one of the first to return after the flood waters subsided, and was one of the most enthusiastic and vocal advocates for the rebuilding of New Orleans to its original form, history, and traditions.

Discography

As leader

The Real Cool Killers: Parades and Saints-Independent − 2010 Personnel: *John Doheny (tenor saxophone) *Geoff Clapp (drums) * Rob Kohler (bass) Track list: * Parades and Saints * In the Hive * Cuts and Courts * 1963 * The Split * For Booker Ervin * The Matrix is Not Real * Brother Brown * Cissy Takes a Train * Slightly Stella * Rhythm-a-ning John Doheny presents The Professors of Pleasure, Volume Two-Independent − 2010 Personnel: *John Doheny (tenor and soprano saxophone) *Jim Markway (acoustic and electric bass) *Geoff Clapp (drums)− *Jesse McBride (acoustic and electric piano) *John Dobry (electric guitar) *Allen L. Dejan Jr. (alto, tenor and soprano saxophone) *Andrew Baham (trumpet) Track List: * Don't Know About That * Child Playing * Half Nelson * Nancy with the Laughing Face * Funky B * Beautiful Old Ladies * Elysian Fields * Cautious Optimism * This I Dig of You * Tulane Fight Song John Doheny and The Professors of Pleasure: Tulane University Faculty Quintet − Independent 2007 Personnel: *John Doheny (tenor and alto saxophone) *Fredrick Sanders (piano, Fender Rhodes electric piano, Hammond B-3 organ) *John Dobry (guitar) *Jim Markway (electric and acoustic bass) *Kevin O'Day (drums) Track List: *Jackson Square *Padrino *Cottontail *Your Majesty *The Rainbow People *A Greasy One *Halifax *Big G's Love One Up, Two Back - JDQ Records CD618551 − 2002 Personnel: *John Doheny (tenor sax) *Norm Quinn (trumpet and flugelhorn) *Ridley Vinson or Tony Foster (piano) *Al Johnston (bass) *Stan Taylor (drums) *Colleen Savage (vocals) Track List: *One Up, Two Back *We Knew *Attack of the Killer Chalmations *Player's Inn *Dindi *Killer Chalmations . . Slight Return *Time After Time *Once in a While *Perdido

Appears on the following recordings

*Algiers-Colleen Savage-Savage Records (2011) *Hot Air Volume 3. CBC Radio Compilation. CBC Records. HACD0052 (2002) *Martin Ferr - Dubious - Independent Cassette - 001 (1995) *

Poison (Bell Biv DeVoe album) ''Poison'' is the debut studio album from American R&B/ hip hop group Bell Biv DeVoe, released March 20, 1990 on MCA Records. The album peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. By April 1995, it was certified quadruple-platinum in s ...

-MCA Records (1990) *Terraced Garden - Within - Melody And Menace Records LP - CT - 1960 (1988) *Downtown Kenny Brown and the Pervaders - Willin' and Ready - Razor Records/Blue Wave Records LP - 017 (1982) *Albert Collins - When The Welfare Turns Its Back On You - Sonnet Records - LP - 14107 (1979) *Douglas College Night Band - It's Just Talk-CD- DC 1007 (1998) *VCC Jazz Orchestra - Revelation-Cassette (1995) *VCC Jazz Orchestra - Let Me Off Uptown-Cassette (1993) Original compositions, "If I Only Had A Brain" and "Uncle Jim's Blues", to the soundtrack of the 1998 Bruce Sweeney film ''Dirty''

External links

*
Biography at vancouverjazz.comArticle at Tulane University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Doheny, John 1953 births Living people American jazz composers American male jazz composers Jazz musicians from New Orleans American jazz tenor saxophonists American male saxophonists Musicians from Seattle 21st-century American historians American male non-fiction writers Tulane University alumni 21st-century American saxophonists 21st-century American male musicians Historians from Washington (state) Historians from Louisiana 21st-century American male writers