Tom Coster (born August 21, 1941) is an American keyboardist, composer, and longtime backing musician for

Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound featured ...

Early years

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

-born and San Francisco-raised, Coster played piano and accordion as a youth, continuing his studies through college and a productive five-year stint as a musician in the

U.S. Air Force Band The United States Air Force Band is a United States military bands, U.S. military band consisting of 184 active-duty members of the United States Air Force. It is the Air Force's premier musical organization and is based at Joint Base Anacostia- ...

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Career

Coster has played with and/or composed for many groups and musicians including

The Loading Zone The Loading Zone was an American rock band of the late 1960s and early 1970s. They issued two albums worth of material, with differing band lineups, before disbanding in 1971. Career They were formed in Berkeley, California in 1966 by singer-key ...

Gábor Szabó Gábor István Szabó (March 8, 1936 – February 26, 1982) was a Hungarian American guitarist whose style incorporated jazz, pop, rock, and Hungarian music. Early years Szabó was born in Budapest, Hungary. He began playing guitar at the age ...

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 ...

Third Eye Blind Third Eye Blind is an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1993. After years of lineup changes in the early and mid-1990s, the songwriting duo of Stephan Jenkins and Kevin Cadogan signed the band's first major-label reco ...

, Coryell/Coster/

Smith Smith may refer to: People * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England, Scotland and Ireland ** List of people wi ...

, Claudio Baglioni, Stu Hamm,

Boz Scaggs William Royce "Boz" Scaggs (born June 8, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. An early bandmate of Steve Miller in The Ardells and the Steve Miller Band, he began his solo career in 1969, though he lacked a major hit until h ...

Zucchero Adelmo Fornaciari (; born 25 September 1955), more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero (), is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his elementary teach ...

and Bobby Holiday,

Joe Satriani Joseph Satriani (born July 15, 1956)Prato, Greg"Joe Satriani – Music Biography, Credits and Discography". ''AllMusic''. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved May 28, 2014. is an American guitarist, composer, songwriter, and guitar teacher. Early in his ...

Frank Gambale Frank Gambale (; born 22 December 1958) is an Australian jazz fusion guitarist. He has released twenty albums over a period of three decades, and is known for his use of the sweep picking and economy picking techniques. Recording career Solo ...

, and

Vital Information Steve Smith and Vital Information is an American jazz fusion group led by drummer Steve Smith. The first line-up of Vital Information — Steve Smith (drums), Tim Landers (bass), and Dave Wilczewski (sax) — met in 1971 during their high scho ...

. Coster also produced several solo

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, ...

recordings as a leader for Fantasy, Headfirst, and JVC. Some of Coster's best-known compositions are "

Europa (Earth's Cry Heaven's Smile) "Europa (Earth's Cry Heaven's Smile)" is an instrumental from the Santana album '' Amigos'', written by Carlos Santana and Tom Coster. It is one of Santana's most popular compositions and it reached the top in the Spanish Singles Chart in July ...

", "Flor D'Luna (Moonflower)" and "Dance, Sister, Dance (''Baila Mi Hermana'')" performed by Santana and "The Perfect Date" performed by

Personal life

Coster's son was born in 1966, also called

Tom Coster Tom Coster (born August 21, 1941) is an American keyboardist, composer, and longtime backing musician for Carlos Santana. Early years Detroit-born and San Francisco-raised, Coster played piano and accordion as a youth, continuing his studies ...

, also a keyboardist and composer.

Solo discography and personnel

* ''T.C.'' (Fantasy, 1981) ** Tom Coster - keyboards, Linn-1 drum machine programming ** Joaquin Lievano - guitar **

Randy Jackson Randall Darius Jackson (born June 23, 1956) is an American record executive and television presenter, perhaps best known as a judge on ''American Idol'' from 2002 to 2013. Jackson began his career in the 1980s as a session musician playing bas ...

- bass **

Steve Smith Stephen, Steve, Stevie, or Steven Smith may refer to: Academics * Steve Smith (political scientist) (born 1952), British international relations theorist and senior university manager * Stephen Smith (journalist) (born 1956), American journalist, ...

- drums * ''Ivory Expeditions'' (Fantasy, 1983) ** Tom Coster - keyboards ** Joaquin Lievano - guitar **

- bass **

- drums **

Walter Afanasieff Walter Afanasieff (born Vladimir Nikitich Afanasyev; February 10, 1958), formerly nicknamed Baby Love in the 1980s, is an American record producer and songwriter of Russian-Chinese descent. He was a collaborator with Mariah Carey on her first ...

- additional keyboards **

Tommy Coster Thomas Joseph Coster Jr. (born June 10, 1966) is an American keyboardist and composer. He played on his first song titled "Zulu" with Santana in 1977 receiving his first gold record the following year in 1978. In the following years he co-w ...

- additional keyboards * ''Did Jah Miss Me?!?'' (Headfirst/JVC, 1989) ** Tom Coster - keyboards **

- keyboards **

Jordan Rudess Jordan Rudess (born Jordan Charles Rudes; November 4, 1956) is an American musician, software developer and composer best known as a member of the progressive metal band Dream Theater and the progressive metal supergroup Liquid Tension Experi ...

- keyboards **

Ernie Watts Ernest James Watts (born October 23, 1945) is an American jazz and rhythm and blues saxophonist who plays soprano, alto, and tenor saxophone. He has worked with Charlie Haden's Quartet West and toured with the Rolling Stones. On Frank Zappa's ...

- alto, soprano and tenor saxophones, and Yamaha WX-7 wind driver **

Norbert Stachel Norbert is a Germanic given name, from '' nord'' "north" and ''berht'' "bright". Norbert is also occasionally found as a surname. People with the given name Academia * Norbert Angermann (born 1936), German historian * Norbert A’Campo (born 19 ...

- tenor saxophone **

- acoustic and electric guitars **

- electric bass **

Dennis Chambers Dennis Milton Chambers (born May 9, 1959) is an American drummer. He was inducted into the ''Modern Drummer'' Hall of Fame in 2001. Early life Chambers was born on May 9, 1959. He began drumming at the age of four years, and was gigging in Bal ...

- drums **

Larry Grenadier Larry Grenadier (born February 6, 1966 in San Francisco) is an American jazz double bassist. Early life Grenadier's father, Albert, was a trumpet player, and his two brothers, Phil and Steve, play trumpet and guitar, respectively. Grenadier be ...

- acoustic bass * ''From Me to You'' (Headfirst/JVC, 1990) ** Tom Coster - keyboards **

- keyboards **

Mark Russo Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

- saxophones ** Corrado Rustci - guitar ** Kai-Eckhardt Karpeh - bass ** William Kennedy - drums **

Armando Peraza Armando Peraza (May 30, 1924 – April 14, 2014) was a Latin jazz percussionist and a member of the rock band Santana. Peraza played congas, bongos, and timbales. Biography Early life Born in Lawton Batista, Havana, Cuba in 1924 (although the ...

- congas, bongos **

Jimi Tunnell Jimi Tunnell is an American guitarist and vocalist from Denton, Texas. Although he is known as a guitarist, his career began as a jazz trumpeter. Tunnell has worked with Yukihiro Takahashi, Laurie Anderson, Steps Ahead, and Member's Only. Hi ...

- vocals * ''Gotcha'' (JVC, 1992) ** Tom Coster - keyboards, computer programming, synth and drum programming **

- saxophones **

Chris Camozzi Christopher Allen Camozzi (born November 20, 1986) is an American professional Glory kickboxer and mixed martial artist who competes in the Light heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2006, Camozzi has formerly competed in th ...

- guitar ** Alphonso Johnson - electric and fretless bass **

- drums **

- saxophones * ''Let's Set the Record Straight'' (JVC, 1993) ** Tom Coster - keyboards **

Bob Berg Robert Berg (April 7, 1951 – December 5, 2002) was an American jazz saxophonist. Biography Berg was born in Brooklyn, New York, United States. Berg started his musical education at the age of six when he began studying classical piano. He be ...

- saxophones **

- acoustic and electric guitars ** Alphonso Johnson - electric and fretless bass **

- drums ** Raul Rekow - congas, bata, vocals ** Karl Perazzo - congas, bongos **

- drums **

- Producer, keyboards and synth * ''The Forbidden Zone'' (JVC, 1994) ** Tom Coster - keyboards, synthe bass **

- tenor saxophone **

Scott Henderson Scott Henderson (born August 26, 1954) is an American jazz fusion and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Tribal Tech. Tribal Tech Henderson formed Tribal Tech with bass player Gary Willis in 1984. Under the direction of Hende ...

- guitars **

Jeff Andrews Jeffrey J. Andrews (born January 27, 1959) is an American former professional baseball player and current coach. He was the pitching coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2008, having been fired after one season at the position. Andrews spent each of ...

- electric bass ** Alphonso Johnson - electric and fretless bass **

- drums ** Raul Rekow - congas, bata, chekere, vocal chant ** Karl Perazzo - timbales, congas, miscellaneous percussion **

- Producer * ''

Interstate '76 ''Interstate '76'' is a vehicular combat video game for Microsoft Windows. It was developed and published by Activision and released on March 28, 1997. Plot The game opens in the Southwestern United States in an alternate history of the year 1 ...

'' Soundtrack (w/Bullmark) (Activision, 1996) ** Tom Coster - keyboards **

Arion Salazar Third Eye Blind is an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1993. After years of lineup changes in the early and mid-1990s, the songwriting duo of Stephan Jenkins and Kevin Cadogan signed the band's first major-label recor ...

(Third Eye Blind) - electric bass **

Bryan Mantia Bryan Kei Mantia (born February 4, 1963), known professionally as Brain, is an American rock drummer. He has played with bands such as Primus, Guns N' Roses, Praxis, and Godflesh, and with other performers such as Tom Waits, Serj Tankian, Bil ...

(Primus) - drums & percussion **

Jon Bendich Jon is a shortened form of the common given name Jonathan, derived from "YHWH has given", and an alternate spelling of John, derived from "YHWH has pardoned".Dave Schul Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * Dave (film), ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * Dave (musical), ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital ...

(Curveball) - * ''From the Street'' (JVC, 1996) ** Tom Coster - keyboards, synth bass **

Bob Malach Bob Malach (born August 23, 1954) is an American jazz saxophonist. Malach learned several reed instruments in his youth, and played with Philadelphia soul bands such as The Stylistics and The O'Jays while still a teenager. He played in the big b ...

- tenor saxophone **

Michael Brecker Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as both performer and composer. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Berklee College of M ...

- tenor saxophone **

Dean Brown Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

- rhythm guitar **

Steve Cardenas Stephen Antonio Cardenas (born May 29, 1974) is an American martial artist, musician, and actor. Cardenas is best known for playing the character Rocky DeSantos, which was the second Red Power Ranger in ''Mighty Morphin Power Rangers'' and eventu ...

- lead guitar **

- drums **

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 ...

- percussion ** Stu Hamm - electric bass **

Mark Isham Mark Ware Isham (born September 7, 1951) is an American musician and film composer. A trumpeter and keyboardist, Isham works in a variety of genres, including jazz and electronic. He is also a film composer, having worked on numerous films and t ...

- trumpet and cornet **

Tim Landers Timothy Gerard Landers (born November 1, 1956) is an American bassist best known for his contribution to the 1970s-80s jazz-fusion genre and his work with Al Di Meola, Billy Cobham, and Gil Evans. Landers is a session musician and was a membe ...

- electric and acoustic bass **

- Producer

References

External links

All About Jazz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coster, Tom American jazz organists American male organists Santana (band) members Keytarists Living people 1941 births Musicians from Detroit Jazz musicians from Michigan 21st-century organists American male jazz musicians 21st-century American keyboardists Vital Information members 20th-century American keyboardists Fantasy Records artists JVC Records artists United States Air Force Band musicians United States military musicians