He is a tenor saxophonist born in Memphis, Tennessee who
began performing with The Mar-Keys, previously The Royal Spades, in the
late 1950s/early 1960s and in 1961 they saw success with the hit "Last
Night".This was the
beginning of a long and extremely successful career in music and for the
next few years he performed with most of the artists signed to Stax and
Volt Records, including touring Europe with Otis Redding in 1967.After teaming up with the Mark-Kays
trumpeter Wayne Jackson in 1969 and being joined by several other horn
players, they became known as The Memphis Horns and soon they were sought
after to tour and record on a national and international level. Throughout his long recording career
he has worked with hundreds, if not thousands, of the top acts in the field
of music including The Bar-Kays, Booker T & The MGs, The Box-Tops,
Bonnie Bramlett, Canned Heat, Clarence Carter, Johnny Cash, Buzz Cason,
Cinderella, Joe Cocker, Steve Cropper, Dr. John, Dave Edmunds, Yvonne
Elliman, En Vogue, Eddie Floyd, Aretha Franklin, Waylon Jennings, George
Jones, Albert King, Mark Knopfler, Lenny Kravitz, Nicolette Larson, Jerry
Lee Lewis, Nick Lowe, Lonnie Mack, The Manhattan Transfer, Herbie Mann,
Memphis Slim, Ronnie Milsap, Mink DeVille, Marti Pellow, Wilson Pickett,
Primal Scream, John Prine, James & Bobby Purify, Bonnie Raitt, Keith
Richards, Johnny Rivers, Doug Sahm, Sam & Dave, Carly Simon, Percy
Sledge, The Staple Singers, Joe Tex, B.J. Thomas, Irma Thomas, Rufus Thomas,
Tanya Tucker and Ike Turner. Understandably I can't mention them all but some of his
singles include the Grammy Award winning "Funny How Time Slips
Away" by Lyle Lovett and Al Green, "Disco Duck" by Rick
Dees, "Cracklin' Rose" by Neil Diamond, "Knock on Wood"
by Eddie Floyd, "Respect" by Aretha Franklin, "Let's Stay
Together" by Al Green, "Theme from Shaft" by Isaac Hayes, "City
of New Orleans" by Willie Nelson, "Suspicious Minds" by Elvis
Presley, "Roll With It" by Steve Winwood, "Angel of
Harlem" by U2 and the list goes on.In the same vein his albums include titles such as his
own Flame Out and Horns for Everything as a member of The
Memphis Horns, Hot Water by Jimmy Buffett, In the Blues with EC,
Vol. 1 by Eric Clapton, Minute by Minute by The Doobie Brothers,
Damn Right, I've Got the Blues by Buddy Guy, Storm Front by
Billy Joel, Friends by B.B. King, After Hours by Gary Moore, Shotgun
Willie by Willie Nelson, Memphis Record by Elvis Presley, Soul
Album by Otis Redding, Stephen Stills 2 by Stephen Stills, Mercury
Falling by Sting, Mud Slide Slim & The Blue Horizon by James
Taylor, Finer Things by Steve Winwood and Crossing by Paul
Young.In latter years The
Memphis Horns mainly comprised himself and Wayne Jackson and throughout the
1980s/90s they were often heard performing with the Robert Cray Band they
still record and perform under that name today.
