Robert Anthony Bunn (born November 18, 1957) is an American bassist, composer, producer, and writer.
Biography
Tony Bunn was born into a musical family and began studying music in grade school. By the age of seventeen he was proficient on woodwind and brass instruments; earning scholarships to Peabody Institute Preparatory Summer Program(s), as well as inclusion in local orchestras for gifted students. He began the study of the bass guitar in high school.
By the age of twenty-two he had toured Europe and played and recorded with several renowned groups, including
Sun Ra
Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific ou ...
,
Harold Ivory Williams
Harold may refer to:
People
* Harold (given name), including a list of persons and fictional characters with the name
* Harold (surname), surname in the English language
* András Arató, known in meme culture as "Hide the Pain Harold"
Art ...
,
Michal Urbaniak
Michal (; he, מיכל , gr, Μιχάλ) was, according to the first Book of Samuel, a princess of the United Kingdom of Israel; the younger daughter of King Saul, she was the first wife of David (), who later became king, first of Juda ...
,
Urszula Dudziak
Urszula Bogumiła Dudziak-Urbaniak (born 22 October 1943) is a Polish jazz vocalist. She has worked with Krzysztof Komeda, Michał Urbaniak (her ex-husband), Gil Evans, Archie Shepp, and Lester Bowie. In 2007, her 1970s song "Papaya" gained wid ...
,
Jean Carne
Jean Carn, also spelled Jean Carne (born Sarah Jean Perkins; March 15, 1947) is an American jazz and pop singer. In mid career, she added a final ''e'' to her name. Carn is a vocalist credited with a five octave vocal range.
Biography
Carn was ...
,
Chuck Brown
Charles Louis Brown (August 22, 1936 – May 16, 2012) was an American guitarist, bandleader and singer known as " The Godfather of Go-Go". Go-go is a subgenre of funk music developed around the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area in the mid-197 ...
, and the legendary
Chuck Berry
Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the " Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and developed rhythm and blues into th ...
. In 1977, he conceived and developed the first modern 5-string bass guitar with luthier
Paul Reed Smith
Paul Reed Smith (born February 18, 1956) is an American luthier and the founder and owner of PRS Guitars, a high-end guitar maker.
Early life
Smith graduated from Bowie High School in 1974. He also attended St. Mary's College of Maryland wh ...
(Most other sources attribute the first modern 5-string bass to an instrument built in 1976 by
Alembic Inc
Alembic is an American manufacturer of high-end electric basses, guitars and preamps. Founded in 1969, the company began manufacturing pre-amps before building complete instruments.
History
The company was founded by Owsley Stanley as a wor ...
for bassist
Jimmy Johnson). Graduating from university in his late twenties, Bunn earned bachelor's degrees in mathematics and computer science. Working with computers and scientific programming, he went on to receive an award from NASA for flight dynamics work on the
Terra satellite
Terra (EOS AM-1) is a multi-national, NASA scientific research satellite in a Sun-synchronous orbit around the Earth that takes simultaneous measurements of Earth's atmosphere, land, and water to understand how Earth is changing and to identify ...
system. Later, aged in his fifties, Bunn returned to music full-time and began producing projects as a bandleader and solo artist. In 2009, he released the ''Small World'' recording (also featuring
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 ...
, Arshak Sirunyan, etc.), receiving international acclaim.
Selected discography
as Leader
* ''
Spirit Moves'' (2007)
* ''
Small World'' (2009)
as a Sideman
with
Arshak Sirunyan
* ''
Journal
A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to:
*Bullet journal, a method of personal organization
*Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period
*Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...
'' (2011)
with
Ray Gaskins
* ''
A Night In The Life
''A Night in the Life'' (subtitled ''Live at the Jazz Standard Vol. 3'') is a live album by saxophonist Frank Morgan which was recorded at the Jazz Standard in 2003 and released on the HighNote label in 2007.
Reception
The review by AllMusic's ...
'' (2009)
with
John Lamkin
* ''
Hot
Hot or the acronym HOT may refer to:
Food and drink
*Pungency, in food, a spicy or hot quality
*Hot, a wine tasting descriptor
Places
* Hot district, a district of Chiang Mai province, Thailand
**Hot subdistrict, a sub-district of Hot Distric ...
'' (1984)
with
Gabrielle Goodman:
* ''
Travelin' Light'' (1993)
* ''
Angel Eyes'' (2003)
with
Michal Urbaniak
Michal (; he, מיכל , gr, Μιχάλ) was, according to the first Book of Samuel, a princess of the United Kingdom of Israel; the younger daughter of King Saul, she was the first wife of David (), who later became king, first of Juda ...
:
* ''
Smiles Ahead'' (1976)
* ''
Heritage
Heritage may refer to:
History and society
* A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today
** Cultural heritage is created by humans
** Natural heritage is not
* Heritage language
Biology
* Heredity, biological inheritance of physica ...
'' (1976)
* ''
Urbaniak'' (1977)
with
Urszula Dudziak
Urszula Bogumiła Dudziak-Urbaniak (born 22 October 1943) is a Polish jazz vocalist. She has worked with Krzysztof Komeda, Michał Urbaniak (her ex-husband), Gil Evans, Archie Shepp, and Lester Bowie. In 2007, her 1970s song "Papaya" gained wid ...
:
* ''
Midnight Rain'' (1977)
with
Sun Ra
Le Sony'r Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993), better known as Sun Ra, was an American jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, and poet known for his experimental music, "cosmic" philosophy, prolific ou ...
:
* ''
Live At Montreux Live at Montreux is the name of live concert releases from Montreux Sounds and Eagle Vision, on CD and/or DVD, by various musicians, usually referring to recordings at the Montreux Jazz Festival:
* James Brown: ''Live at Montreux 1981, Sex Machine'' ...
'' (1976)
* ''
Cosmos
The cosmos (, ) is another name for the Universe. Using the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity.
The cosmos, and understandings of the reasons for its existence and significance, are studied in ...
'' (1976)
References
External links
Profile on Jazz Network Worldwide
Living people
American jazz bass guitarists
American male bass guitarists
1957 births
20th-century American bass guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
American male jazz musicians
{{US-music-bio-stub