Representative Albums: "The First Decade," "Spectrum," "Quality Time"
Biography
A versatile soloist influenced by Michael Brecker on tenor, Bob Mintzer gained experience playing with Deodato, Tito Puente (1974), Buddy Rich, Hubert Laws, and the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra (1977). In addition to leading his own bands starting in 1978, Mintzer worked with Jaco Pastorius, Mike Mainieri, Louie Bellson, Bob Moses, and the American Saxophone Quartet. He has guested with several philharmonic orchestras and led a fine big band in New York since the mid-'80s. Mintzer, a member of the Yellowjackets since 1991 (where his bass clarinet in particular adds a great deal of color to the group), recorded regularly for DMP for a decade before moving to TVT for 1998's Quality Time. Homage to Count Basie followed in fall 2000. Live at MCG, which featured vocalist Kurt Elling, and Old School New Lessons, both of which were benefit albums for the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild in Pittsburgh, PA, appeared in 2004 and 2006, respectively. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
Bob Mintzer (born January 27, 1953), originally from New Rochelle, New York, is a jazzsaxophonist, composer, arranger and big band leader based in Los Angeles. After graduating from the Interlochen Arts Academy in 1970, Mintzer made his mark as a soloist, mainly on the tenor saxophone and the bass clarinet. He is also proficient on flute, EWI, and other saxophones and clarinets. He is a member of the jazz rock band the Yellowjackets, but among jazz fans is even better known for his inspiring big band work since the early 1980s in the Word of Mouth Big Band and then as the leader of the Grammy Award winning Bob Mintzer Big Band. He has been particularly successful in exploring new instrumental colorations (making frequent use of woodwinds doubling) and extending the big band concept into the funk and Latin domains, while never compromising on its jazz heritage.
Mintzer plays Selmer Mark VI saxophones fitted with Freddy Gregory mouthpieces. He uses Vandoren V16 reeds for the tenor sax, and Bari plastic reeds on his soprano sax and bass clarinet. He also plays an AkaiEWI (electronic wind instrument), an older model of the 1000 series. For recording with Yellowjackets, Mintzer prefers a Sennheiser 441 microphone.
Grammy Nominations
Mintzer has been nominated for thirteen Grammy Awards both for his solo work and big band recordings (Art of the Big Band, Departure, Homage to Count Basie, One Music, and Only in New York) and his work with the Yellowjackets (Blue Hats, Club Nocturne, Dreamland, Greenhouse, Like a River, Live Wires, Mint Jam, Runferyerlife, Time Squared). Homage to Count Basie won the Grammy in the best large ensemble category for the 44th Annual Grammy Awards, 2001
Before starting his own big band, Mintzer was a featured soloist and arranger with the big band of Buddy Rich. His son, Paul, graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy. His nephew, Ross, performs in the band Remington(Band).
Discography
Bob Mintzer - with The Yellowjackets
Greenhouse, 1991;
Live Wires, 1992;
Like a River, 1993;
Runferyerlife, 1994;
Collection, 1995;
Dreamland, 1995;
Blue Hats, 1997;
Club Nocturne, 1998;
Priceless Jazz Collection, 1998;
The Best of Yellowjackets, 1999;
Mint Jam, 2002;
Time Squared, 2003;
Peace Round, 2003;
Altered State, 2005;
Twenty Five, 2006
Lifecyle featuring Mike Stern, 2008
Bob Mintzer Big Band
Incredible Journey, 1985;
Camouflage, 1986;
Spectrum, 1988;
Urban Contours, 1989;
Art of the Big Band, 1991;
Departure, 1993;
Only in New York, 1994;
Techno Pop, 1994;
The First Decade, 1995;
Big Band Trane, 1996;
Live, 1996;
Latin from Manhattan, 1998;
Homage to Count Basie, 2000;
Gently, 2003;
Live at MCG with Special Guest Kurt Elling, 2004
Old School: New Lessons featuring Kurt Elling, 2006
