Bob James biography
Robert McElhiney James (born December 25, 1939) is a jazz keyboardist, arranger and producer.
Biography
During the 1970s, Bob James played a major role in establishing the smooth jazz genre. "Angela", the instrumental theme from the sitcom
Taxi, is probably Bob James' most well-known work to date. He is also well-known for the smooth jazz classics "Nautilus" and "Westchester Lady", the latter from the album
Bob James Three.
For their first joint album release, One on One, Earl Klugh and Bob James received a Grammy award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance of 1981. James is the founding member of contemporary jazz supergroup Fourplay and is a Yamaha Artist.
James also received a Grammy award for his collaboration with David Sanborn on the 1986 album "Double Vision"
Very influenced by pop and movie music, James has often featured soloists who add a jazz touch to his sound (most notably Grover Washington, Jr.). In 1962, James began recording a bop-ish trio set for Mercury. Three years later, his album for ESP was quite avant-garde, with electronic tapes used for effects. After a period with Sarah Vaughan (1965-1968), he became a studio musician, appearing with Stanley Turrentine and Milt Jackson on the 1972 album Cherry and with Turrentine on his following album Don't Mess with Mister T. (1973), and that same year was arranging and working as a producer for CTI. In 1974, James recorded his first purely commercial effort as a leader; he later made big-selling albums for his own Tappan Zee label, Columbia, and Warner Bros., including collaborations with Earl Klugh and David Sanborn.
Legacy
James is recognized as one of the progenitors of smooth jazz. His music has also had a profound effect on the history of hip hop music, having been sampled often. Two of James' songs - "Nautilus" from 1974's
One and "Take Me to the Mardi Gras" from 1975's
Two - are among the most sampled in hip hop history. "Nautilus" has been most famously sampled in Eric B. & Rakim's "Follow the Leader", Run-D.M.C.'s "Beats to the Rhyme", Ghostface Killah's "Daytona 500" and Jeru the Damaja's "My Mind Spray" amongst many others and the notes of "Nautilus'" bassline were played on a keyboard for Slick Rick's "Children's Story". According to whosampled.com, "Nautilus" and "Take Me to Mardi Gras" have been sampled in thirty-two and forty-three hip-hop recordings, respectively. The first four measures of "Mardi Gras" (a Paul Simon original) includes a bell and drum groove that is one of hip hop's fundamental breakbeats.Crash Crew's "Breaking Bells (Take Me To The Mardi Gras)", Run-D.M.C.'s "Peter Piper", LL Cool J's "Rock the Bells", the Beastie Boys' "Hold it Now, Hit it", Missy Elliott's "Work It," Will.i.am's "I Got it from my Mama,", "This Is Me (Urban Remix)" by girl group Dream for their debut album
It Was All a Dream, "I Want You" from Common's
Finding Forever, and most recently "Take It Back" from Wu-Tang Clan's
8 Diagrams.
Biography from 
, the free encyclopedia.
It may not have been reviewed by a professional editor, and recent changes may not show up straight away. See the latest version of this article. Used under licence. Subject to disclaimers.