Jerome Najee Rasheed (born November 4, 1957,
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 ...
), known professionally as Najee, 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 ...
-
Smooth Jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of commercially-oriented crossover jazz and easy listening music that became dominant in the mid 1970s to the early 1990s.
History
Smooth jazz is a commercially oriented, crossover jazz which came to prominence in the 19 ...
saxophonist and flautist.
Early life
Najee was born in the lower west side of Manhattan in New York City and lived his teenage years in Queens, New York. His father died at a young age, and Najee and siblings were raised by his mother Mary Richards. His mother was an important figure and supporter throughout his life and musical career.
Najee's musical pursuits began in grade school at age eight, where he began playing the clarinet, but he had a deep desire to play saxophone. He was influenced at this age by listening to his mother's recordings of Miles Davis and other legendary American jazz artists. A pivotal moment in his life came when he made the decision to become a professional jazz musician. In high school, Najee began to study jazz as a student at the
Jazzmobile
Jazzmobile, Inc. is based in New York City, and was founded in 1964 by Daphne Arnstein, an arts patron and founder of the Harlem Cultural Council and Dr. William "Billy" Taylor. It is a multifaceted, outreach organization committed to bringing "A ...
program (co-founded by
Dr. Billy Taylor) where he honed his skills on tenor saxophone and flute under the direction of
Jimmy Heath
James Edward Heath (October 25, 1926 – January 19, 2020), nicknamed Little Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band
A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually co ...
,
Frank Foster and
Ernie Wilkins
Ernest Brooks Wilkins Jr. (July 20, 1922 – June 5, 1999) was an American jazz saxophonist, conductor and arranger who spent several years with Count Basie. He also wrote for Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, and Dizzy Gillespie. He was musical direc ...
. At age 16, Najee studied flute at the Manhattan School of Music Preparatory Division, where he took lessons with Harold Jones, flautist from the
New York Philharmonic Orchestra
The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...
.
Najee draws his inspiration from saxophonists
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...
,
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz saxophonist, band leader and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of bebop, a form ...
,
Yusef Lateef
Yusef Abdul Lateef (born William Emanuel Huddleston; October 9, 1920 – December 23, 2013) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and prominent figure among the Ahmadiyya Community in America.
Although Lateef's main instruments ...
,
Joe Henderson
Joe Henderson (April 24, 1937 – June 30, 2001) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. In a career spanning more than four decades, Henderson played with many of the leading American players of his day and recorded for several prominent l ...
,
Grover Washington Jr.
Grover Washington Jr. (December 12, 1943 – December 17, 1999) was an American jazz-funk and soul-jazz saxophonist. Along with Wes Montgomery and George Benson, he is considered by many to be one of the founders of the smooth jazz genre.
He wr ...
,
Ronnie Laws as well as flautists
Hubert Laws
Hubert Laws (born November 10, 1939) is an American flutist and saxophonist with a career spanning over 40 years in jazz, classical, and other music genres. Laws is one of the few classical artists who has also mastered jazz, pop, and rhythm- ...
and
James Galway
Sir James Galway (born 8 December 1939) is an Irish virtuoso flute player from Belfast, nicknamed "The Man with the Golden Flute". He established an international career as a solo flute player. In 2005, he received the Brit Award for Outstan ...
. Najee began his career as a teenager performing in local bands in the New York City area. After high school, Najee's first world tour was with a band from New York City called “Area Code”.
The band spent two years performing on military bases in Europe, Iceland, Greenland, Central America, Caribbean, and the United States on behalf of the USO . Upon his return from the USO World Tour, Najee went on the road in the summer of 1978 with legendary vocalist
Ben E. King
Benjamin Earl King (né Nelson; September 28, 1938 – April 30, 2015) was an American soul and R&B singer and record producer. He is best known as the singer and co-composer of " Stand by Me"—a US Top 10 hit, both in 1961 and later i ...
("Stand By Me"). After touring with Ben E. King, Najee and his brother Fareed attended New York City's
Bronx Community College
The Bronx Community College of the City University of New York (BCC) is a public community college in the Bronx, New York City. It is part of the City University of New York system.
History
The college was established in 1957 through the eff ...
for two semesters. Both were music majors under the tutelage of
Valerie Capers
Valerie Capers (born May 24, 1935) is an American pianist and composer who is most well known for her contributions in jazz.
Early life
Capers was born in New York City to a musical family that introduced her to classical and jazz music. Her f ...
. The following year both brothers auditioned and were admitted to the
New England Conservatory
The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on Hu ...
of Music in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
. Najee was a performance and composition major. He also studied with legendary
Joe Allard (1st clarinetist for Toscanini). At the Conservatory Najee studied and performed with
George Russell and
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 ...
big bands.
Career
![NAJEE](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Najee.jpg)
After his studies at the New England Conservatory, Najee returned to New York City in the early 1980s. In 1983 he and his brother Fareed toured with legendary vocalist
Chaka Khan
Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...
(Ain’t Nobody Tour). In 1986, he released his debut album, entitled ''Najee's Theme'' (EMI/Capitol).
The album earned Najee a Grammy Award Nomination for Best Jazz Album. In 1987, Najee accepted an opportunity to open on the "
Tasty Love" tour with R&B singer
Freddie Jackson
Frederick Anthony Jackson (born October 2, 1956) is an American singer. Originally from New York, Jackson began his professional music career in the late 1970s with the California funk band Mystic Merlin. Among his well–known R&B/soul hits are ...
. In 1988, Najee's second album “Day By Day” was released and went platinum. “Day By Day” was produced by several producers including legendary producer Barry Eastmond (Freddie Jackson,
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...
,
Anita Baker
Anita Denise Baker (born January 26, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. She is one of the most popular singers of soulful ballads, especially renowned for her work during the height of the quiet storm period in the 1980s. Starting her career ...
and
Billy Ocean
Leslie Sebastian Charles, (born 21 January 1950), better known by his stage name Billy Ocean, is a British recording artist who had a string of R&B international pop hits in the 1970s and 1980s. He was the most popular British R&B singer-son ...
). In 1990, “Tokyo Blue” was released. This album was produced by Najee's brother Fareed, and is one of his most successful recordings to date. ''Tokyo Blue'' and ''Day By Day'' led to Najee winning two
Soul Train Awards
The Soul Train Music Awards is an annual music awards show which previously aired in national broadcast syndication, and honors the best in African-American culture, music and entertainment. It is produced by the makers of ''Soul Train'', the pro ...
for Best Jazz Artist in 1991 and 1993.
In 1992, Najee's next album ''Just an Illusion'' (EMI/Capitol). This album was produced by several producers, including
Arif Mardin
Arif Mardin (March 15, 1932 – June 25, 2006) was a Turkish-American music producer, who worked with hundreds of artists across many different styles of music, including jazz, rock, soul, disco and country. He worked at Atlantic Records for ov ...
,
George Duke
George M. Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as a pr ...
, Fareed,
Marcus Miller
William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work as a bassist. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandros ...
and Wayne Brathwaite.
In 1994, Najee toured and was featured on the live recordin
''Live at The Greek''(
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
). The album featured Najee,
Stanley Clarke
Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, film composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jaz ...
,
Billy Cobham
William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian Americans, Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra.
He was indu ...
and
Larry Carlton
Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...
. It was during this time that he made guest appearances with
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
at the (
Montreaux Jazz Festival
The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...
).
Following this collaboration, his next album "Share My World" was released in 1994 and was followed by his tribute to
Stevie Wonder's 1976 classic,
Songs In The Key of Life
''Songs in the Key of Life'' is the eighteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder. A double album, it was released on September 28, 1976, by Tamla Records, a division of Motown. It was recorded primarily at Crys ...
in 1995. The CD was produced by
George Duke
George M. Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as a pr ...
and features
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 ...
, Stanley Clarke, Paul Jackson Jr.,
Sheila E.
Sheila Cecilia Escovedo (born December 12, 1957) better known under the stage name Sheila E., is an American percussionist and singer. She began her career in the mid-1970s as a percussionist and singer for The George Duke Band. After leaving t ...
and
Patrice Rushen
Patrice Louise Rushen (born September 30, 1954) is an American jazz pianist and R&B singer. She is also a composer, record producer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and music director.
Her 1982 single "Forget Me Nots" received a Grammy Awar ...
among others. His CD ''Morning Tenderness'' was released in 1998, and went #1 on the contemporary jazz charts. Also within the same year ''The Best of Najee'' was released, (Blue Note Records/Capitol) and he once again toured on behalf of the USO for the troops in the
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
:
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.
In 1998, Najee performed at
Nelson Mandela's birthday celebration in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, along with Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan. Najee was also a special guest of President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
to perform at the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
. This event hosted President
Jerry Rawlings
Jerry John Rawlings (22 June 194712 November 2020) was a Ghanaian military officer and politician who led the country for a brief period in 1979, and then from 1981 to 2001. He led a military junta until 1992, and then served two terms as the de ...
of the Republic of
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
. Najee spent three years touring (2000-2003) with
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
and appeared on Prince's albums ''Rainbow Children'' and ''One Night Alone''.
In 2003, Najee released ''Embrace'' which was produced by his brother Fareed, featuring guest artists
Roy Ayers
Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer, vibraphone player, and music producer. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at Pol ...
and
BeBe Winans
Benjamin "BeBe" Winans (born September 17, 1962) is an American gospel and R&B singer. He is a member of the noted Winans family, most members of which are also gospel artists. Winans has released nine albums, seven with his sister CeCe Winans, C ...
. ''My Point of View'' was his follow-up in 2005 featuring his good friend and vocalist
Will Downing
Wilfred "Will" Downing (born November 29, 1963) is an American singer and songwriter. He is married to singer Audrey Wheeler, who was a member of the R&B group Unlimited Touch.
Biography
Downing enrolled in Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, ...
. In 2006, Najee won an NAACP Image Award for "Best Jazz Artist". His 2007 album ''Rising Sun'', featured singer
Phil Perry
Philip Eugene Perry (born January 12, 1952) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, musician and a former member of the soul group, The Montclairs, from 1971 to 1975. He was also known for performing the opening song to Disney’s sitcom, ''Goof ...
and ''Mind Over Matter''. In 2009, he released “Mind Over Matter”, with a collaboration that featured vocalist
Eric Benét
Eric Benét Jordan (born October 15, 1967) is an American R&B/neo soul singer-songwriter and actor, who has received a total of four Grammy nominations to date for his musical work.
Biography
Early life
Benét was born on October 15, 1966 ...
and producer
Jeff Lorber
Jeffrey H. Lorber (born November 4, 1952) is an American keyboardist, composer, and record producer. After six previous nominations, Lorber won his first Grammy Award on January 28, 2018 for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for '' Prototype' ...
. In 2012, his album ''The Smooth Side of Soul'' was his first release with
Shanachie Records
Shanachie Records is an American, New Jersey-based record label, founded in 1975 by Richard Nevins and Dan Collins. The label is named for the Gaelic word ''seanchaí'' (anglicised as shanachie), an Irish storyteller.
It was previously distribu ...
which featured production from keyboardist and producer Jeff Lorber and saxophonist and producer Darren Rahn. This album featured vocalist
Phil Perry
Philip Eugene Perry (born January 12, 1952) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, musician and a former member of the soul group, The Montclairs, from 1971 to 1975. He was also known for performing the opening song to Disney’s sitcom, ''Goof ...
on the lead single, "Just To Fall In Love", which was produced by Chris “ Big Dog” Davis. The video for "Just To Fall In Love" also features actress
Vanessa Bell Calloway
Vanessa Bell Calloway ( Bell; born March 20, 1957) is an American actress. Beginning her career as a dancer, Bell Calloway became known for her film roles as Princess Imani Izzi in the 1988 comedy ''Coming to America'', as well as for her roles ...
and songstress
N'dambi.
Najee's second release with Shanachie in 2013, "The Morning After - A Musical Love Journey". "The Morning After" earned him an
NAACP Image Award Nomination for "Outstanding Jazz Album" (2014) and a
Soul Train Awards
The Soul Train Music Awards is an annual music awards show which previously aired in national broadcast syndication, and honors the best in African-American culture, music and entertainment. It is produced by the makers of ''Soul Train'', the pro ...
Nomination for "Best Contemporary Jazz Performance" (2014).
The album produced by Demonte Posey, features R&B singer
Meli'sa Morgan
Joyce Melissa Morgan (usually spelled Meli'sa; born December 6, 1964) is an American R&B/Soul singer–songwriter. Morgan had a string of urban contemporary hits from the mid–1980s to the mid–1990s. Most notable include her cover version of ...
and bassist
Brian Bromberg
Brian Bromberg (born December 5, 1960) is an American jazz bassist and record producer who performs on both electric and acoustic instruments.
Biography
Bromberg was born on December 5, 1960, in Tucson, Arizona. His father and brother, David, ...
, with musicians Bill Sharpe on bass, Ray Fuller on guitar, Daniel Powell on drums, Nick Smith on piano and drummer Joel Taylor.
Najee released his third album with Shanachie, entitled: ''You, Me, and Forever'', on June 23, 2015. The album features singer and songwriter
Frank McComb
Frank McComb (born July 15, 1970) is a soul singer and record producer. He has collaborated with Prince, Chaka Khan, Will Smith, Najee, Branford Marsalis, George Duke, Frankie Beverly and Maze, Phyllis Hyman, Gamble and Huff, Patrice Rushen, Lalah ...
, keyboardist James Lloyd from
Pieces of a Dream
Piece or Pieces (not to be confused with peace) may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Games
* Piece (chess), pieces deployed on a chessboard for playing the game of chess
* Pieces (video game), ''Pieces'' (video game), a 1994 puzzle game f ...
, and pianist Robert Damper. ''You, Me, and Forever'' also features musicians from Najee's touring band including: Rod Bonner on keys, Daniel Powell on drums, RaShawn Northington on electric bass, and Chuck Johnson on guitar who is also the lead vocalist on the popular
Ambrosia
In the ancient Greek myths, ''ambrosia'' (, grc, ἀμβροσία 'immortality'), the food or drink of the Greek gods, is often depicted as conferring longevity or immortality upon whoever consumed it. It was brought to the gods in Olympus ...
song "
Biggest Part of Me
"Biggest Part of Me" is a song by American band Ambrosia, from the album '' One Eighty''. Released as a single in 1980, the song reached number one on the ''Radio & Records'' chart and number 3 on both the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and Adult Cont ...
". “You, Me and Forever” was produced by Najee, Chris “Big Dog” Davis and British born bassist Dean Mark. The album is currently available worldwide.
Najee has performed and recorded with vocalists including:
Chaka Khan
Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...
,
Freddie Jackson
Frederick Anthony Jackson (born October 2, 1956) is an American singer. Originally from New York, Jackson began his professional music career in the late 1970s with the California funk band Mystic Merlin. Among his well–known R&B/soul hits are ...
,
Will Downing
Wilfred "Will" Downing (born November 29, 1963) is an American singer and songwriter. He is married to singer Audrey Wheeler, who was a member of the R&B group Unlimited Touch.
Biography
Downing enrolled in Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, ...
,
Phil Perry
Philip Eugene Perry (born January 12, 1952) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, musician and a former member of the soul group, The Montclairs, from 1971 to 1975. He was also known for performing the opening song to Disney’s sitcom, ''Goof ...
,
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
,
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman.
LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul".
She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...
,
Phyllis Hyman
Phyllis Linda Hyman (July 6, 1949 – June 30, 1995) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Hyman is best known for her music during the late 1970s through the early 1990s, some of her most notable songs were "You Know How to Love Me" ...
,
Vesta Williams
Mary Vesta Williams (December 1, 1957 – September 22, 2011) was an American singer-songwriter, who performed across genres such as pop, jazz, adult contemporary and R&B. Originally credited as Vesta Williams, she was simply known as Vesta begin ...
and
Jeffrey Osborne
Jeffrey Linton Osborne (born March 9, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and lyricist. He is the former drummer and lead singer of the American R&B/soul group L.T.D., with whom he began his musical career in 1970.
Biography Earl ...
. He has also recorded and performed with instrumentalists:
Marcus Miller
William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work as a bassist. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandros ...
,
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 ...
,
Stanley Clarke
Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, film composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jaz ...
,
Larry Carlton
Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...
,
Billy Cobham
William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian Americans, Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra.
He was indu ...
,
Charles Earland
Charles Earland (May 24, 1941 – December 11, 1999) was an American jazz organist.
Biography
Earland was born in Philadelphia and learned to play the saxophone in high school. He played tenor with Jimmy McGriff at the age of 17 and in 1960 form ...
,
Paul Jackson Jr. and
George Duke
George M. Duke (January 12, 1946 – August 5, 2013) was an American keyboardist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He worked with numerous artists as arranger, music director, writer and co-writer, record producer and as a pr ...
.
Discography
Studio albums
* 1986 ''
Najee's Theme'' (1986,
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
/
Capitol
A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity.
Specific capitols include:
* United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.
* Numerous ...
)
* 1988 ''Day by Day'' (October 1988, Capitol)
* 1990 ''
Tokyo Blue
''Tokyo Blue'' is Najee's third album, released by Capitol Records in 1990.
Critical reception
Jonathan Widran of AllMusic writes, "Immensely pleasurable, a fun listen from beginning to end."
''Smooth Jazz Therapy'' writes of ''Tokyo Blue'', " ...
'' (February 1990, Capitol)
* 1992 ''Just an Illusion'' (June 1992, Capitol)
* 1994 ''Share My World'' (October 1994, Capitol)
* 1995 ''Najee Plays Songs from the Key of Life: A Tribute to Stevie Wonder'' (November 1995, Capitol)
* 1998 ''Morning Tenderness'' (November 1998,
Polygram
PolyGram N.V. was a multinational entertainment company and major music record label formerly based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1962 as the Grammophon-Philips Group by Dutch corporation Philips and German corporation Siemens, to be a ...
)
* 2003 ''Embrace'' (2003,
N-Coded)
* 2005 ''
My Point of View
''My Point of View'' is the second album by pianist Herbie Hancock. It was released in 1963 on Blue Note Records as BLP 4126 and BST 84126. Musicians featured are trumpeter Donald Byrd, trombonist Grachan Moncur III, tenor saxophonist Hank Mo ...
'' (2005,
Heads Up)
* 2007 ''
Rising Sun'' (2007, Heads Up)
* 2009 ''Mind Over Matter'' (2009, Heads Up)
* 2012 ''The Smooth Side of Soul'' (2012,
Shanachie)
* 2013 ''The Morning After, A Musical Love Journey'' (2013, Shanachie)
* 2015 ''You, Me and Forever'' (2015, Shanachie)
* 2017 ''Poetry In Motion'' (2017, Shanachie)
* 2019 ''Center of the Heart'' (2019, Shanachie)
* 2022 ''Savoir Faire'' (2022, Shanachie)
Live albums
* 1994 ''Live at the Greek'' with Stanley Clarke, Larry Carlton and Billy Cobham (July 1994,
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
)
* 2003 "One Night Alone" Live with Prince
Compilation albums
* 1998 ''Best of Najee'' (
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 co ...
/Capitol)
* 2000 ''Love Songs''
* 2003 ''Classic Masters
Other appearances
* Rainbow Children
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
* Street Life
Will Downing
Wilfred "Will" Downing (born November 29, 1963) is an American singer and songwriter. He is married to singer Audrey Wheeler, who was a member of the R&B group Unlimited Touch.
Biography
Downing enrolled in Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, ...
* Christmas Love and You
Will Downing
Wilfred "Will" Downing (born November 29, 1963) is an American singer and songwriter. He is married to singer Audrey Wheeler, who was a member of the R&B group Unlimited Touch.
Biography
Downing enrolled in Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, ...
* Unconditional Love
Ruben Studdard
Ruben Studdard (born September 12, 1978) is an American singer and actor. He rose to fame as winner of the second season of ''American Idol'' and received a Grammy Award nomination in 2003 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his recording of ...
* Out of A Dream
Brian Simpson
Brian Simpson OBE (born 6 February 1953) is a British Labour Party politician who was Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for North West England.
Born in Leigh, Lancashire, Simpson was educated at the West Midlands College of Education ...
* Truth B Told
Paul Brown
Paul Eugene Brown (September 7, 1908 – August 5, 1991) was an American football coach and executive in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League (NFL). Brown was both the co-founder and first coach of the Clevela ...
* If Only For One Night
Charles Earland
Charles Earland (May 24, 1941 – December 11, 1999) was an American jazz organist.
Biography
Earland was born in Philadelphia and learned to play the saxophone in high school. He played tenor with Jimmy McGriff at the age of 17 and in 1960 form ...
* The Best of Pieces of A dream Vol. 2
Pieces of a Dream
Piece or Pieces (not to be confused with peace) may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Games
* Piece (chess), pieces deployed on a chessboard for playing the game of chess
* Pieces (video game), ''Pieces'' (video game), a 1994 puzzle game f ...
* ''
The Weather Channel Presents: The Best of Smooth Jazz''
* ''Breakin' In Space'' with Key-Matic (1984, Radar Records (US))
* The Best (2004-2017) -
Incognito
Incognito is an English adjective meaning "in disguise", "having taken steps to conceal one's identity".
Incognito may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''Incognito'' (1937 film), a Danish film
* ''Incognito'' (1997 film), an American crime ...
* Bein' Green -
Roberto Tola
Roberto Tola (born August 5, 1966) is an Italian jazz guitarist and composer.
Biography
Tola began studying music when he was just six years old. In 1976 studies cello in the Conservatory of Music in Sassari. Four years later continues his ...
* The Journey Nick Colionne
* New Urban Jazz -
Bob Baldwin
* “D” Tales -
Robert Damper
''Billboard'' charts
''Najee's Theme''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 1
:Top Jazz Albums No. 8
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 12
:The Billboard 200 No. 56
''Day by Day''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 6
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 23
:The Billboard 200 No. 76
''Tokyo Blue''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 1
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 17
:The Billboard 200 No. 63
''Just an Illusion''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 5
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 25
:The Billboard 200 No. 107
''Share My World''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 2
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 23
:The Billboard 200 No. 163
''Songs from the Key of Life''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 6
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 67
''Morning Tenderness''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 2
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 65
''The Best of Najee''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 15
''Love Songs''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 23
''Embrace''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Albums No. 7
:Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums No. 82
''My Point of View''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Album No. 1
''"Rising Sun"''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Album No. 1
''"Mind Over Matter"''
:Top Contemporary Jazz Album No. 2
:Billboard Jazz Album No.4
"Sweet Summer Nights"
:Smooth Jazz Song No. 1
“The Morning After”
:Top Contemporary Album No. 1
“You Me and Forever”
:Smooth Jazz Global Radio No. 1
:“Fly With The Wind” No. 1 most added song
"Poetry In Motion"
"Let's Take It Back" - Featuring Incognito
:Billboard No. 1
:Smooth Jazz Global Radio No. 1
References
External links
Official site
{{Authority control
American jazz soprano saxophonists
American jazz alto saxophonists
American jazz tenor saxophonists
American male saxophonists
American jazz flautists
Smooth jazz saxophonists
Smooth jazz flautists
New Power Generation members
Living people
Heads Up International artists
Musicians from New York City
1957 births
Jazz musicians from New York (state)
21st-century saxophonists
American male jazz musicians
21st-century flautists