John Isley

"The design team at Cannonball has delivered an instrument worthy of the lineage of the classic American saxophone begun by CG Conn and King. The Stone Series is the first modern-design saxophone to offer the focus, compactness of sound, and projection of a classic Selmer with the body, resonance and sheer power like that of the big bore American horns. Without any compromises of control, intonation or most importantly, SOUND. The Cannonball is truly a joy to play, in every possible way. From jazz to funk to rock & roll, it's all there. As a lifelong Selmer Balanced Action and MK VI player, I was skeptical of the ability of a modern saxophone to offer anything comparable to my classic Selmers. The best endorsement I can offer is that Cannonball is now all I play, period. Play one, buy one, fall in love with one, or two or three.. I did." ~ John Isley

New York Horns: The Movin' Out Tour Band

Bio

I was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, but spent the first 14 years of my life with my grandparents, Boyd and Joy Isley, in the small town of Whitsette, about halfway between Greensboro and Burlington. My earliest musical experiences were with my record player and the eclectic collection of LPs and 45s in our house - everything from John Phillip Sousa marching band recordings to symphonic recordings of Brahms and Beethoven to "Mony Mony" by Tommy James & the Shondells. I was also fascinated with anything that made NOISE. If you owned a piano, guitar, organ, harmonica, etc., and I was in your house, it got messed with. I was obsessed with making sounds and I know I drove my family to distraction. (What fun!) I also got a heavy dose of singing in our local church. On Sunday afternoons after church, I would ride my bike up the road to hear the gospel sounds coming from the local Baptist church. I remember being completely mesmerized by the music created there, and I still love gospel music in the Southern black tradition.

I attended Gibsonville Elementary School, and in 6th grade I was told I could take home economics, wood-working shop, or band. Given my propensity for noisemaking, band was the obvious choice. Joyce Thee was my band director, and she would remain so until I left high school. In retrospect, I credit her with giving me the strong musical foundation that has served me so well. Through McLeansville Middle School and on through Eastern Guilford High School, every waking moment was given over to exploring, listening to, talking about, or practicing music. In high school I played in the concert band and marching band, and I was the last freshman to be admitted to the Jazz Stage Band. During my sophomore and junior years, I won spots in the NC all-state concert band and wind ensembles, respectively. At about this time I also began to study saxophone and jazz techniques with Scott Adair, a saxophonist, piano player, and Greensboro legend. By then I knew that a career in music was the only choice for me.

During my junior year of high school I decided to audition for UNC-Greensboro's highly regarded music program. I wanted to get an idea of what I would need to work on to be admitted after graduation. After I completed my audition, I was asked to meet with the dean of the school of music. He offered me the opportunity to skip my senior year of high school and attend college early. He didn't have to ask twice - I started UNC-Greensboro in the fall of 1984. Around this same time, a friend would get me into Don Forney's nightclub, Yenrofs, to listen and occasionally sit in and play. Within a couple of months, I had a steady Friday-to-Sunday gig there with my trio that lasted for several months - my first professional gig as a leader. (I also would play a few polka gigs at a local German restaurant with none other than pianist Ben Folds.)

I spent many Monday nights at the Somewhere Else Tavern jam session. During this period I studied with Neill Clegg, who was my saxophone and jazz improvisation professor at UNC-G, and who is probably, to this day, my biggest musical influence. (Neill is now an Associate Professor of Music at Greensboro College.) I consider Neill the main reason I am as successful as I am today. He had lived in New York for 10 years or so, relocated back to Greensboro, and wound up teaching at UNC-G. My conversations with Neill about the New York music scene (and the wonderful, colorful stories of life in the Big Apple) and his ultimate support and belief in my abilities would eventually be a key reason for my relocation to New York City. Neill taught me how to teach myself, the gift of a truly great educator.

After promptly failing out of UNC-G after two semesters, in the fall of 1985 I got a call to go on the road with Hank Rush and the Fantastic Showmen, a beach-music band doing the hotel-and-club circuit throughout the Southeast. It was an eye-opening experience for a 17-year-old kid but one of the best times of my life. Ten months of one-nighters in a touring van would follow. (Talk about road chops - I learned to sleep standing up!) I am forever grateful to the guys in the Showmen, who averaged twice my age, for teaching me the ropes of touring life without leaving me tied up in a garbage bag on the side of the road somewhere!

In 1986 I was accepted to the Jazz & Contemporary Music program at the New School for Social Research in New York City, prompting me to leave the Showmen and relocate Manhattan. Over the next four years I would study with George Coleman, Lawrence Feldman, Joe Lovano, David Liebman, Lenny Pickett, Ralph Bowen, Hal Galper, Kenny Werner, Reggie Workman, Arnie Lawrence, Cecil McBee, and many others.

I graduated with a BFA in Jazz Studies in 1990. From time to time I would return to North Carolina to visit Neill and to teach. I was a guest clinician at the John Coltrane Society's summer jazz workshop series in Winston-Salem from 1989 until 1992, and I have guest lectured at Greensboro College on several occasions. From 1989 until 1992 I was also director of the theory curriculum and a teacher of saxophone, arranging and ensemble studies at the Harbor School for the Performing Arts in New York City.

In 1995 I began studies for my Master's degree at Queens College (City University of New York), where I was fortunate enough to study with the great Jimmy Heath and Sir Roland Hanna. I graduated with an MA in Jazz Performance in 1996. During my time at Queens, I was asked to write an arrangement for saxophone quartet of one of Jimmy�s pieces, "Trane Connections." This arrangement was premiered by my saxophone quartet at the Downbeat Hall of Fame induction and 70th birthday celebration for Jimmy Heath at Merkin Hall in the spring of 1996. That year also saw the release of "Music of Multiple Minds," a CD of my compositions recorded with my band, Group Therapy, comprised of players I had worked with while on tour with Joe Gallant & the Illuminati.

In 1997 I cofounded the acclaimed New York Horns with my trumpet-playing friend and business partner, Chris Anderson. Our EP "Tunnel Vision" and one single from it, "Miles From Chicago," went on to be two of MP3.com's most popular downloads (#1 Acid Jazz single), and the single ranked 18th in total plays for 1999. Over 3 million copies of NYH tracks went into circulation as a result of exposure on MP3.com. Our writing, performing, and recording skills have been used by Sony Music, J Records, Skin Tight, the Hudson River Rats, Bernard Purdie's All-Stars, Music Playground, Nia Monet, Matt Marshak, the Todd Wolfe Blues Projekt, the Kevin Kline Band, and many others. Our exposure on MP3.com led to NYH being asked to join the writing team at Beach Street Music. Through that relationship, I have seen my original music placed on national television shows such as "Sally Jesse Raphael," "The Maury Povich Show," "The Montel Williams Show," and "Crossing Over with John Edwards," as well as "ABC Sports," "ABC News, and "CBS Sports."

Throughout my career, I have been fortunate enough to perform with some truly talented, inspiring artists and musicians. I have been a featured performer with They Might Be Giants; drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie's Jazz All-Stars; blues guitarists Matt "Guitar" Murphy and Todd Wolfe; vocalists Mary Wilson, The Four Tops, The Temptations, The O'Jays, The Spinners, Sister Sledge, Little Anthony & the Imperials, and Franki Valli; percussionist Ray Mantilla; bassist Reggie Workman; the bands Professor Crewcut, Iguazu, Joe Gallant & the Illuminati, the Tony Trischka band, the Marc Elliot Band, The Stingers, the Kevin Kline Band and Skin Tight; and composer Jose Halac. I presented the world premier of the composition for saxophone and percussion ensemble "Superball."

My recording credits include New York Horns ("Tunnel Vision"), Joe Gallant & Illuminati ("Live," volumes 1 & 2, and "Terrapin"), The Kevin Kline Band ("Live From West Street"), Claire & Rusty Cloud ("Dream Come True"), Quinn Lemley ("Cocktails With a Twist" and "Dance or Die"), Penelope Tobin ("When"), Urban Survival ("Urban Survival" and "Storry Hill"), The Jim Donica Band, Mystic Pilgrims ("Mystic Pilgrims"), The ODB ("The ODB"), Billy Eric ("Of Near & Distant Lands"), and Group Therapy ("Music of Multiple Minds"). I also recorded the hit house-dance single and instrumental remix, "Inspiration," with Arnold Jarvis and Kerry Chandler for Freetown Records (London).

Other credits include recording for the hit Nickelodeon cartoon "Dora the Explorer", the Bill Cosby cartoon "Little Bill" and the films "Moanin' For Momma" (with Isaac Hayes) and "BYOB" (Kevin Shinall), as well as writing and arranging for J Records, Sony Music, the Liberty Baptist Church, Joe Gallant & the Illuminati, Group Therapy, MD Blessing, Bob Duncan, Skin Tight, New York Horns, and the Razin' Cane Saxophone Quartet. I also scored the independent short film "BYOB" (no relation to above) for filmmaker Ken Threet and Stygian Hour Productions in New York. My saxophone playing has also been heard on dozens of local and national radio and television jingles.

In 1992 I toured the United States and Canada with Richard O'Brien's "Rocky Horror Picture Show," and in 1996 I did the U.S. and Canadian tour of "Five Guys Named Mo." I became a regular sub on the hit Broadway musical "Movin' Out" in 2003, which led to my being asked to perform with the first national tour of that show beginning in January 2004. I returned to Movin' Out in 2007 for the second national tour of the US and Canada. 2008 saw my return to New York where I was became a regular presence in the pits at "Hairspray," "Grease," and later at "Hair."

In 2007 I co-produced and mixed a CD for Anibal Rojas, a fantastic multi-instrumentalist and saxophone player. It has received excellent reviews including one in Jazz Times which you can read here. While on tour in 2008, I produced, arranged, orchestrated recorded and mixed Matthew Friedman and Kyle Martin's Stories in Lights which you can hear examples of here. I am currently working on a solo CD release of my own as well as a number of other projects in the studio as a producer, writer and engineer.

After a multi-year hiatus to work on other projects individually, I'm thrilled to announce that New York Horns is reunited once more! Chris and I will be producing a lot more music this coming year, so stay tuned!

Visit John Isley's official Website.

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