Wilton Felder
Wilton Felder | |
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Wilton Felder in 1978
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Background information | |
Birth name | Wilton Lewis Felder |
Born | Houston, Texas, United States |
August 31, 1940
Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. |
Genres | Jazz, R&B |
Instruments | Saxophone, bass |
Years active | Late 1950s–2015 |
Associated acts | The Crusaders |
Notable instruments | |
Saxophone, Bass |
Wilton Lewis Felder (August 31, 1940 – September 27, 2015) was an American saxophone and bass player, and is best known as a founding member of The Jazz Crusaders, later known as The Crusaders.
Biography
He was born in Houston, Texas, in 1940.[1] Felder, Wayne Henderson, Joe Sample, and Stix Hooper founded the group while in high school in Houston. The Jazz Crusaders evolved from a straight-ahead jazz combo into a pioneering jazz-rock fusion group, with a definite soul music influence. Felder worked with the original group for over thirty years, and continued to work in its later versions, which often featured other founding members.
Felder also worked as a West Coast studio musician, mostly playing electric bass, for various soul and R&B musicians, and was one of the in-house bass players for Motown Records, when the record label opened up operations in Los Angeles in the early 1970s. He played on recordings by The Jackson 5 such as "I Want You Back" and "The Love You Save", as well as for Marvin Gaye and Grant Green. He also played bass for soft rock groups like America and Seals and Crofts. Also of note was his contribution to the John Cale album, Paris 1919, and Billy Joel's Piano Man and Streetlife Serenade albums. He was one of three bass players on Randy Newman's Sail Away (1972) and Joan Baez' Diamonds & Rust. Felder also anchored albums from Joni Mitchell and Michael Franks.
His solo album, Secrets, which prominently featured Bobby Womack on vocals, reached No. 77 in the UK Albums Chart in 1985.[2] This album featured the minor hit, "(No Matter How High I Get) I'll Still be Looking Up to You", sung by Womack and Alltrinna Grayson.
Felder played a King Super 20 tenor sax with a metal 105/0 Berg Larsen mouthpiece. He also used Yamaha saxes. He played a Fender Precision bass, and also played Aria bass guitars.
He died on September 27, 2015, aged 75.[3]
Discography
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- Bullitt (Pacific Jazz, 1969)
- We All Have a Star (MCA, 1978)
- Inherit the Wind (MCA, 1980)
- Gentle Fire (MCA, 1983)
- Secrets (MCA, 1985)
- Love Is a Rush (MCA, 1987)
- Nocturnal Moods (PAR, 1991)
- Forever, Always (PAR, 1992)
- Lets Spend Some Time (BCS, 2005)
With John Cale
- Paris 1919 (Reprise, 1972)
With Dizzy Gillespie
- Free Ride (Pablo, 1977) composed and arranged by Lalo Schifrin
- Welcome Home (World Pacific Jazz, 1968)
With Milt Jackson
- Memphis Jackson (Impulse!, 1969)
With Shuggie Otis
- Here Comes Shuggie Otis (Epic, 1970)
- Freedom Flight (Epic, 1971)
With Grant Green
- Shades of Green (Blue Note, 1971)
- Live at The Lighthouse (Blue Note, 1972)
With John Klemmer
- Constant Throb (Impulse!, 1971)
- Waterfalls (Impulse!, 1972)
- Magic and Movement (Impulse!, 1974)
With Charles Kynard
- Reelin' with the Feelin' (Prestige, 1969)
With Carmen McRae
- Can't Hide Love (Blue Note, 1976)
With Joni Mitchell
- For the Roses (Asylum, 1972)
- Court and Spark (Asylum, 1974)
- The Hissing of Summer Lawns (Asylum, 1975)
With Jimmy Smith
- Root Down (Verve, 1972)
References
- ↑ IMDb.com
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ William Michael Smith, "Legendary Crusaders Sax Man Wilton Felder Passes Away", Houston Press, September 27, 2015