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Christian McBride (born May 31, 1972) is an American jazz bassist, composer and arranger. He has appeared on more than 300 recordings as a sideman, and is an eight-time Grammy Award winner.
Christian McBride | |
|---|---|
 McBride at the 2009 Detroit Jazz Festival | |
| Background information | |
| Born | May 31, 1972 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US |
| Genres | Jazz, jazz fusion, big band |
| Occupation | Musician |
| Instrument(s) | Double bass, bass guitar |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels | Verve, Warner Bros., Ropeadope, Mack Avenue |
| Website | www |
McBride has performed and recorded with a number of jazz musicians and ensembles, including Freddie Hubbard, McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Joe Henderson, Diana Krall, Roy Haynes, Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, Eddie Palmieri, Joshua Redman, and Ray Brown's "SuperBass" with John Clayton, as well as with pop, hip-hop, soul and classical musicians like Sting, Paul McCartney, Celine Dion, Isaac Hayes, The Roots,[1] Queen Latifah, Kathleen Battle, Renee Fleming, Carly Simon, Bruce Hornsby, and James Brown.
Early life
editMcBride was born in Philadelphia on May 31, 1972.[2] After starting on bass guitar, McBride switched to double bass. He is a graduate of the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts, and studied at the Juilliard School.[3]
Later life and career
edit
McBride was heralded as a teen prodigy when he joined saxophonist Bobby Watson's group, Horizon, at the age of 17. From age 17 to 22, McBride played in the bands of older musicians such as Watson, Freddie Hubbard, Benny Golson, George Duke, Milt Jackson, J. J. Johnson and Hank Jones, as well as his peers such as Roy Hargrove, Benny Green, and Joshua Redman. In 1996, jazz bassist Ray Brown formed a group called SuperBass with McBride and fellow Brown protégé John Clayton. The group released two albums: SuperBass: Live at Scullers (1997) and SuperBass 2: Live at the Blue Note (2001).
McBride was a member of saxophonist Joshua Redman's Quartet in the early 1990s with pianist Brad Mehldau and drummer Brian Blade. McBride began leading his own groups in 1995 after the release of his debut album Gettin' to It (Verve). Saxophonist Tim Warfield, pianists Charles Craig and Joey Calderazzo, and drummers Carl Allen and Greg Hutchinson are among the musicians who played in McBride's early groups. From 2000 to 2008, McBride led his own ensemble, the Christian McBride Band, with saxophonist Ron Blake, pianist/keyboardist Geoffrey Keezer, and drummer Terreon Gully. The band released two albums: Vertical Vision (Warner Bros., 2003) and Live at Tonic (Ropeadope, 2006).
In 1996, McBride contributed to the AIDS benefit album Offbeat: A Red Hot Soundtrip produced by the Red Hot Organization.
McBride primarily plays double bass, but he is equally adept on bass guitar. He played both on the album The Philadelphia Experiment, which included keyboardist Uri Caine and hip-hop drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson.[4] Other projects have included tours and recordings with the Pat Metheny Trio, the Bruce Hornsby Trio, and Queen Latifah. Like Paul Chambers, McBride can solo by playing his bass arco style.
In 2006, McBride was named to the position of Creative Chair for Jazz with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, taking over from Dianne Reeves. He was signed to a two-year contract that was renewed for an additional two years. He was succeeded by Herbie Hancock in 2010.[5]
McBride performed with Sonny Rollins and Roy Haynes at Carnegie Hall on September 18, 2007, in commemoration of Rollins' 50th anniversary of his first performance there.[6] McBride was also tapped by CBS to be a producer for the tribute to Rollins on the 2011 Kennedy Center Honors broadcast.
In 2008, McBride joined John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Kenny Garrett and Vinnie Colaiuta in a jazz fusion supergroup called the Five Peace Band. They released an album in February 2009 and completed their world tour in May of that year, as Brian Blade took over for Vinnie Colaiuta as drummer in Asia and some US concerts. The album Five Peace Band Live won the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group
In 2011 McBride released his first big band album, The Good Feeling, for which he won the Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance.
McBride leads five groups: Inside Straight, featuring alto/soprano saxophonist Steve Wilson, vibraphonist Warren Wolf, pianist Peter Martin and drummer Carl Allen; a trio featuring pianist Christian Sands and drummer Jerome Jennings; his 18-piece big band; an experimental group called A Christian McBride Situation with pianist/keyboardist Patrice Rushen, turntablists DJ Logic and Jahi Sundance, saxophonist Ron Blake and vocalist Alyson Williams;[7] and the New Jawn, featuring trumpeter Josh Evans, saxophonist Marcus Strickland, and drummer Nasheet Waits.
In March 2016, McBride was named artistic director of the Newport Jazz Festival, succeeding the festival's founder and artistic director, George Wein.
Personal life
editChristian is married to jazz singer and educator Melissa Walker. Walker, with contributions by McBride, leads the Jazz House Kids, a jazz school in their home town of Montclair, New Jersey.[9] Each summer, they both appear at the Montclair Jazz Festival, along with student ensembles led by the instructors, professional ensembles composed of instructors, and guest acts.
McBride shared the story of his first encounters with Freddie Hubbard in "The Gig" and his relationship with James Brown in "Mr. Soul On Top" on The Moth Radio Hour, a radio show and podcast devoted to story-telling.[10]
James Moody Jazz Festival
editMcBride curates and advises the annual James Moody Jazz Festival.
Discography
editAs leader
edit| Year | Title | Label | Personnel/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Gettin' to It | Verve | |
| 1995 | Number Two Express | Verve | |
| 1998 | A Family Affair | Verve | |
| 2000 | SciFi | Verve | |
| 2000 | The Philadelphia Experiment | Ropeadope | |
| 2002 | Vertical Vision | Warner Bros. | |
| 2005 | Live at Tonic | Ropeadope | |
| 2009 | Kind of Brown | Mack Avenue | |
| 2011 | The Good Feeling | Mack Avenue | Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album |
| 2011 | Conversations with Christian | Mack Avenue | |
| 2013 | People Music | Mack Avenue | |
| 2013 | Out Here | Mack Avenue | |
| 2015 | Live at the Village Vanguard | Mack Avenue | Grammy Award for Best Improvised Jazz Solo |
| 2017 | Bringin' It | Mack Avenue | Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album |
| 2018 | Christian McBride's New Jawn | Mack Avenue | |
| 2020 | The Movement Revisited | Mack Avenue | |
| 2020 | For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver | Mack Avenue | Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album |
| 2021 | Live at the Village Vanguard | Mack Avenue | |
| 2023 | Prime | Mack Avenue | |
| 2024 | But Who's Gonna Play the Melody? | Mack Avenue | with Edgar Meyer |
Compilations
edit- It's Christmas on Mack Avenue (Mack Avenue, 2014)
As sideman
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ Dan DeLuca (April 12, 2009). "Late night with the Roots". Archived from the original on April 16, 2009.
- ^ Carroll, Daniel John (January 13, 2015), McBride, Christian, Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.A2276046
- ^ Yanow, Scott. "Christian McBride: Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved January 2, 2011.
- ^ Alder, David R. "Philadelphia Experiment". AllMusic. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
- ^ "Christian McBride bio" (PDF). Los Angeles Philharmonic. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 26, 2008. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
- ^ "Garnegie Hall official website". Carnegiehall.org. Archived from the original on June 16, 2010. Retrieved July 17, 2011.
- ^ "Newport Jawn: PostGenre Interview with Christian McBride". Postgenre.org. July 26, 2021.
- ^ "Jazz Night in America: The Radio Program". NPR.
- ^ Kaufman, Joanne. "At Home With: Christian McBride; A Jazz Musician’s Sanctuary.", The New York Times, September 11, 2024. Accessed September 12, 2024. "Christian McBride, the nine-time Grammy-winning jazz bassist, was collaborating with an assistant to set out breakfast for his manager, his publicist, a reporter and a photographer in the dining room of his home in Montclair, N.J. It became clear that improvisation would be on the menu."
- ^ "The Moth | Stories | The Gig". Themoth.org.
External links
edit- Official website
- 'Ep. 29: Featuring 6-time Grammy Award winning bassist Christian McBride' Interview by Tigran Arakelyan
- "Industry Q&A with Christian McBride ", Jazzfuel.com, 26 November 2019.
- Mack Avenue Artist Page
- Chris M. Slawecki, "Christian McBride Throws Down", AllAboutJazz, May 23, 2006. Retrieved September 28, 2007
- David Miller, "Live at Tonic", AllAboutJazz.com, May 21, 2006. Retrieved August 11, 2007
- Donald True Van Deusen, "Christian McBride: Bass Beautiful" AllAboutJazz, October 6, 2004 Retrieved August 11, 2007
- Todd S. Jenkins, "The Philadelphia Experiment", AllAboutJazz.com, July 1, 2001. Retrieved August 11, 2007
- Nate Chinen, "A Situation Is Brewing, Acoustic and Fierce", New York Times, June 28, 2007. Retrieved March 8, 2009
- Christian McBride Band MySpace Page
- Conversation With Christian McBride, 10/01/2007
- Christian McBride telling a story entitled "The Gig" on The Moth podcast
- Conversation with Christian McBride - State of Mind, April 2006
- Interview with Christian McBride for the NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Oral History Program July 18, 2015