Samuel Leroy Taylor, Jr. (July 12, 1916 – October 5, 1990), Sam Taylor Biography ''

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

'' known as Sam "The Man" Taylor, was 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 m ...

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

, and blues

tenor saxophonist The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while t ...

. Taylor was born in Lexington, Tennessee, United States. He attended

Alabama State University Alabama State University (ASU) is a public historically black university in Montgomery, Alabama. Founded in 1867, ASU is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. History Alabama State University was founded in 1867 as the ...

, where he played with the Bama State Collegians. He later worked with

Scatman Crothers Benjamin Sherman Crothers (May 23, 1910 – November 22, 1986), known professionally as Scatman Crothers, was an American actor and musician. He is known for playing Louie the Garbage Man on the TV show '' Chico and the Man'', and Dick Hal ...

, Cootie Williams,

Lucky Millinder Lucius Venable "Lucky" Millinder (August 8, 1910 – September 28, 1966) was an American swing and rhythm-and-blues bandleader. Although he could not read or write music, did not play an instrument and rarely sang, his showmanship and musical ...

, Cab Calloway,

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

Buddy Johnson Woodrow Wilson "Buddy" Johnson (January 10, 1915 – February 9, 1977) was an American jump blues pianist and bandleader active from the 1930s through the 1960s. His songs were often performed by his sister Ella Johnson, most notably " Since I ...

, Louis Jordan and Big Joe Turner. Taylor was one of the most requested session saxophone players in New York recording studios in the 1950s. He also replaced

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

as the house bandleader on

Alan Freed Albert James "Alan" Freed (December 15, 1921 – January 20, 1965) was an American disc jockey. He also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts, helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout Nor ...

's radio series, ''Camel Rock 'n Roll Dance Party'', on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

. Taylor played the saxophone solo on Turner's "

Shake, Rattle and Roll "Shake, Rattle and Roll" is a song, written in 1954 by Jesse Stone (usually credited as Charles Calhoun, his songwriting name). The original recording by Big Joe Turner is ranked number 127 on the ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's list of The 500 Grea ...

". He also played on "Harlem Nocturne"; on " Money Honey", recorded by Clyde McPhatter and the Drifters in 1953; and on "

Sh-Boom "Sh-Boom" (sometimes referred to as "Life Could Be a Dream") is an early doo-wop song by the R&B vocal group The Chords. It was written by James Keyes, Claude Feaster, Carl Feaster, Floyd F. McRae, and William Edwards, members of The Chords, a ...

" by the

Chords Chord may refer to: * Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously ** Guitar chord a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning * Chord (geometry), a line segment joining two points on a curve * Chord ( ...

. During the 1960s, he led a five-piece band, the Blues Chasers. In the 1970s, he frequently played and recorded in Japan. Taylor died in 1990 in Crawford Long Hospital, in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, at the age of 74.

Discography

* ''Blue Mist'' (

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

), 1955 * ''Music with the Big Beat'' (MGM), 1956 * ''Out Of This World'' (MGM), 1956 * ''Rockin' Sax and Rollin' Organ'', with Dick Hyman (MGM), 1957 * ''Jazz for Commuters'' ( MetroJazz), 1958 * ''More Blue Mist'' (MGM), 1959 * ''Mist of the Orient'' (MGM) E4066, 1962 * ''In Japan'' (MGM) SMM-1019 * ''The Bad and the Beautiful'' (Moodsville), 1962 * ''Misty Mood'' (

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

), 1962 * ''It's a Blue World'' (Decca), 1963 * ''Watermelon Man'', with Frank Hunter and the Huntsmen ( Epic), 1963 * ''Somewhere in the Night'' (Decca), 1964 * ''A Musical Portrait of Ray Charles'', with Leroy Holmes and his Orchestra (MGM) * ''Love You Tokyo'' (

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

), GW-7001 C.M.P. Nov. 1967 * ''Ima Wa Shiawasekai'' (Crown) GW-7002 C.M.P. Dec. 1968 * ''Hana to Namida'' (Crown) GW-7005 Dec. 1969 * ''Koga Melodies: Best Collection'' (

Pony Canyon , also known by the shorthand form , is a Japanese mass media publishing company founded on October 1, 1966. The company publishes mainly physical home media on compact discs, including music, films and TV shows and video games. It is affi ...

), c. 1970 * ''Eternal Standard'' (Pony Canyon), c. 1971 * ''Bokyo Shiretokoryojo'' (Crown) GW-7015 C.M.P. Nov. 1971 * ''Hit Melodies From Shi Retoko to Nagasaki'' (Crown) GW-7055 C.M.P., July 1973 * ''Onna No Sadame'' (Crown), GW-7070 C.M.P., Nov. 1974 * ''The Blue Mood of Sam Taylor'' (MCA) MCA-9050-511974 * ''Song of Street'' (Crown), GW-20051-52, 1975 * ''Mood Tenor Sax'', with Yokouchi Shoji, Kosugi Jinsan Three (Crown), GW-20139-40, 1975 * ''Sam (The Man) Taylor Vol. 1'' (Crown), GW-20239-40, 1978 * ''Standard Best Collection Vols. I & II'' (Japan), 1999 * ''Bluesy Sam Taylor'' (Polydor), SMP-2004 * ''Blue Light Yokohama'' (Polydor), SMP-2043

As sideman

With The Chords *''

'' (Cat), 1954 With Ruth Brown *'' Ruth Brown'' (Atlantic), 1957 *'' Miss Rhythm'' (Atlantic), 1959 With

Freddy Cole Lionel Frederick Cole (October 15, 1931 – June 27, 2020) was an American jazz singer and pianist whose recording career spanned almost 70 years. He was the brother of musicians Nat King Cole, Eddie Cole, and Ike Cole, father of Lionel Cole, a ...

*'' Waiter, Ask the Man to Play the Blues'' (Dot), 1964 With Al Hibbler *'' After the Lights Go Down Low'' (Atlantic), 1957 With Langston Hughes *'' Weary Blues'' (MGM), 1958 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 ...

*''

The Birth of a Band! ''The Birth of a Band!'' is an album by Quincy Jones that was released by Mercury with performances by Zoot Sims, Clark Terry, Harry Edison, and Phil Woods.

'' (Mercury), 1959 *''

Quincy Plays for Pussycats ''Quincy Plays for Pussycats'' is an album by Quincy Jones featuring sessions recorded between 1959 and 1965 which was released on the Mercury label.Matsubayashi, KMercury Records Collection: SR-61050: Quincy Plays For Pussycats / Quincy Jones/re ...

'' (Mercury, 1959-65 965

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Sam 1916 births 1990 deaths People from Lexington, Tennessee American male saxophonists Jump blues musicians Jazz-blues saxophonists Alabama State University alumni 20th-century American saxophonists 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians

Discography

As sideman

See also

References