Dave Koz is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
smooth jazzSmooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
saxophonistThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
.
Life and career
Dave Koz was born on March 27, 1963 in Encino, California.
Koz attended William Howard Taft High School in
Woodland HillsWoodland Hills is a district in the city of Los Angeles, California.Woodland Hills is located in the southwestern area of the San Fernando Valley, east of Calabasas and west of Tarzana, with Warner Center in its northern section...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
performing on saxophone as a member of the school jazz band. He later graduated from UCLA with a degree in mass communications in 1986, and only weeks after his graduation, decided to make a go of becoming a professional
musicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. Within weeks of that decision, he was recruited as a member of
Bobby CaldwellBobby Caldwell is an American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who, despite a prolific musical output over his 30-year career, is still best known for his 1978 hit single "What You Won't Do for Love". While he has always maintained a devoted fan base in the United States, a legendary...
's tour. For the rest of the 1980s, Koz served as a
session musicianSession musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
in several bands, toured with
Jeff LorberJeff Lorber is an American Grammy Award-nominated keyboardist, composer, and record producer.After leading his own group, The Jeff Lorber Fusion, he went on to pioneer the smooth jazz genre....
. Koz was a member of
Richard MarxRichard Noel Marx is an American adult contemporary and pop/rock singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He had a string of hit singles in the late 1980s and 1990s, including "Endless Summer Nights", "Right Here Waiting", "Now and Forever", and "Hazard"...
's band and toured with Marx throughout the late 1980s. He also played in the house band of
CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
' short-lived
The Pat Sajak ShowThe Pat Sajak Show is an American late-night television talk show which aired on CBS from January 9, 1989 to April 13, 1990.-Cast:The show was hosted by Pat Sajak, best known as host of the game show Wheel of Fortune...
, with
Tom ScottTom Scott is an American saxophonist, composer, arranger, conductor and bandleader of the west coast jazz/jazz fusion ensemble The L.A. Express.-Biography:Scott was born in Los Angeles, California...
as
bandleaderA bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
.
In 1990, Koz decided to pursue a solo career, and began recording for
Capitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. His albums there include
Lucky Man,
The Dance, and
Saxophonic.
Saxophonic was nominated for both a
Grammy AwardA Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
and an NAACP Image Award.
In 1994, Koz began hosting a syndicated radio program,
The Dave Koz Radio Show (formerly
Personal Notes), featuring the latest music and interviews with who's who in the genre. Dave co-hosted of
The Dave Koz Morning Show With Pat Prescott on
94.7 The WaveKTWV is a commercial radio station located in Los Angeles, California, broadcasting to the Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside–San Bernardino and Ventura County areas on 94.7 FM. KTWV airs a hybrid Smooth AC radio format branded as "94.7 The Wave"...
, a
smooth jazzSmooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
station in
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
for six years. He decided to leave the show in January 2007 and was replaced by
Brian McKnightBrian McKnight is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, producer, and R&B/Pop musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist who plays nine instruments: piano, guitar, bass guitar, drums, percussions, trombone, tuba, flugelhorn and trumpet....
.
In 2002, Koz started a record label, Rendezvous Entertainment, with Frank Cody and Hyman Katz.
In an April 2004 interview with
The AdvocateThe Advocate is an American LGBT-interest magazine, printed monthly and available by subscription. The Advocate brand also includes a web site. Both magazine and web site have an editorial focus on news, politics, opinion, and arts and entertainment of interest to LGBT people...
, Koz came out publicly as a gay man. Later the same year, he was named by
PeopleIn 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine as one of their "50 Hottest Bachelors" in their June issue.
In 2006, Koz was selected to host a syndicated afternoon show for Broadcast Architecture's new Smooth Jazz Network. The show, based in Los Angeles, is broadcast on other Smooth Jazz stations across the country. Koz and
Ramsey LewisRamsey Emmanuel Lewis, Jr. is an American jazz composer, pianist and radio personality. Ramsey Lewis has recorded over 80 albums and has received seven gold records and three Grammy Awards so far in his career.-Biography:...
are the only two Smooth Jazz personalities to host two different syndicated shows during the week.
Capitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
/
EMIThe EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
's "Forever Cool" (2007) features Koz in a new arrangement of "Just in Time" with the voice of the late
Dean MartinDean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
.
Koz has promoted annual Dave Koz & Friends Jazz Cruises since 2005.
Koz is the host of a weekly half-hour television series named
Frequency put on by Fast Focus. Koz interviews musicians on the show such as
Earth, Wind & FireEarth, Wind & Fire is an American soul and R&B band formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1969 by Verdine and Maurice White. Also known as EWF, the band has won six Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards. They have been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of...
,
Jonathan ButlerJonathan Butler is a singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music is often classified as R&B, jazz fusion or worship music.-Biography:...
, and
Kelly SweetKelly Sweet is an adult contemporary singer with classical and jazz styles currently living in Los Angeles, CA.-Biography:...
. At the end of each interview, he plays along with the musician, adding some of his saxophone
riffThe Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
s to one of their hit songs.
Koz was also the bandleader on
The Emeril Lagasse ShowThe Emeril Lagasse Show is a weekly talk show starring Emeril Lagasse. It aired on Sundays at 5:00PM Eastern on Ion Television. The program originally premiered on April 18, 2010, airing at 8:00PM....
. The band,
Dave Koz & The Kozmos, featured
Jeff GolubJeff Golub is an American jazz guitarist.- Biography :Jeff Golub is a contemporary jazz guitarist with 11 solo albums and 3 CD's as the leader of the instrumental band "Avenue Blue"...
(guitar),
Philippe SaissePhilippe Saisse is a French Grammy Award-nominated Smooth Jazz and New Age music keyboardist, producer and arranger.He was born in Marseille and raised in Paris. After studying at the Conservatoire de Paris he won a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music. He became the protege of Gary Burton...
(keyboards), Conrad Korsch (bass guitar), and
Skoota WarnerSkoota Warner is an American musician and was the former drummer from rock band Ra. Warner is currently working on The Emeril Lagasse Show on The ION Network, Hot Tuna, G.E. Smith, Screaming Headless Torsos, KIF, Patrick Stump, Cyndi Lauper and completing his solo record due to be released early...
(drums).
Koz plays a Yamaha silver alto sax (YAS-62S) with a #7 Beechler metal mouthpiece, a Yamaha straight silver Soprano sax (YSS-62S) or a vintage Conn curved soprano sax with a #8 Couf mouthpiece, and a Selmer Mark 6 Tenor sax with a Berg-Larsen 90/2 hard rubber mouthpiece. As for reeds, he uses size 3 Rico Plasticover.
On September 22, 2009, Koz received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In October 2010, Koz performed "Start All Over Again" in a
Desperate HousewivesDesperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
season 7 episode
Let Me Entertain You"Let Me Entertain You" is the 139th episode of the ABC television series Desperate Housewives. It is the fifth episode of the show's seventh season and was broadcast on October 24, 2010.-Plot:...
, alongside singer Dana Glover.
Albums
| Year |
Album details |
Peak chart
positions |
| Hot 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
|
Jazz
|
| 1990 |
Dave Koz Dave Koz is the 1990 debut album by Dave Koz. It was released on Capitol Records in 1990. Koz himself co-wrote eight of the 11 tracks, as well as having a reworking of the Richard Marx hit Endless Summer Nights....
|
129 |
|
| 1993 |
Lucky Man Lucky Man is the second studio album of saxophone player Dave Koz.It was released by Capitol Records on June 21, 1993.The album peaked at number 2 on Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart....
|
176 |
— |
| 1996 |
Off the Beaten Path -Personnel:* Dave Koz - Saxophones, Vocal* Greg Adams - Trumpet* Kenny Aronoff - Drums, Percussion* Gregg Arreguin - Guitars* Sweet Pea Atkinson - Background Vocal* Phil Ayling - Tin Whistle* Sir Harry Bowen - Background Vocal* Lenny Castro - Percussion...
|
182 |
— |
| Live in Trinidad |
_ |
— |
| 1997 |
December Makes Me Feel This Way December Makes Me Feel This Way is the fourth studio album by saxophone player Dave Koz. Koz's first holiday album was released by Capitol Records on September 23, 1997...
|
|
— |
| 1999 |
The Dance -Personnel:* Dave Koz - Saxophones* Gloria Agustus - Background Vocal* Marc Antoine - Spanish Guitar* Burt Bacharach - Piano* Glen Ballard - Keyboards* David Benoit - Piano* Wayne Bergeron - Flugelhorn, Trumpet* Chris Botti - Trumpet...
[A] |
190 |
3 |
| 2001 |
A Smooth Jazz Christmas A Smooth Jazz Christmas is the sixth studio album by saxophone player Dave Koz. Koz's second holiday album was released by Capitol Records on September 25, 2001...
[B] |
140 |
3 |
| 2002 |
Golden Slumbers: A Father's Lullaby |
— |
— |
| 2003 |
Saxophonic Saxophonic is the seventh studio album by saxophone player Dave Koz. It was released by Capitol Records on October 7, 2003. The album peaked at number 2 on Billboard Jazz Albums chart.-Track listing:-Personnel:* Dave Koz - Saxophones...
(2003) |
— |
2 |
| 2005 |
Golden Slumbers: A Father's Love |
— |
— |
| 2007 |
At the Movies At the Movies is the eighth studio album by saxophone player Dave Koz. It was released by Capitol Records on January 30, 2007. The album peaked at number 2 on Billboard Jazz Albums chart.-Track listing:-Personnel:* Dave Koz - Saxophones...
|
8 |
2 |
| Memories of a Winter's Night Memories of a Winter's Night is the compilation album by saxophone player Dave Koz.Koz's third holiday album contains tracks from previous holiday albums and new tunes...
|
— |
7 |
| 2008 |
Greatest Hits |
184 |
3 |
| 2010 |
Hello Tomorrow -Personnel:* Dave Koz - Saxophones, Vocal* Herb Alpert - Trumpet* John Burk - Guitar* Jonathan Butler - Guitar, Vocal* Tim Carmon - Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer* Lenny Castro - Percussion* Brian Culbertson - Keyboards, Trombone* David Delhomme - Keyboards...
|
104 |
1 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. |
- A. "The Dance" also peaked at #67 on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues/Hip Hop Albums.
- B. "Smooth Jazz Christmas" also peaked at #2 on Billboard's Holiday Albums.
Singles
| Year |
Single |
Chart Positions |
| U.S. Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
|
U.S. Adult Contemporary The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
|
Jazz |
| 1990 |
"Emily" |
— |
— |
— |
| 1991 |
"Castle of Dreams" |
— |
13 |
— |
| "Nothing But the Radio On" |
— |
20 |
— |
| 1993 |
"You Make Me Smile "You Make Me Smile" is a Smooth jazz song by American saxophonist Dave Koz. The song appeared in his second album Lucky Man released in 1993.-Chart performance:...
" |
— |
20 |
— |
| "Faces of the Heart (ABC Daytime ABC Daytime is a programming block on the ABC Network which has historically encompassed soap operas, game shows and talk shows.-Schedule:...
's General HospitalGeneral Hospital is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest-running American soap opera currently in production and the third longest running drama in television in American history after Guiding Light and As the World Turns....
Theme Song) |
— |
— |
— |
| 1994 |
"Lucky Man" |
— |
— |
— |
| 1999 |
"Together Again "Together Again" is an instrumental by American Smooth jazz saxophonist Dave Koz, from his 1999 album The Dance.-Chart performance:Though the song failed to feature in a major charts, the album The Dance charted number two in Contemporary jazz albums also in Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums...
" |
— |
— |
— |
| 2000 |
"Careless Whisper" (featuring Montell Jordan Montell Jordan is a former American R&B singer-songwriter and record producer. Jordan became the main solo male artist on its Def Soul imprint until leaving the label in 2003. Of his live performances it is often regarded that he is a rock oriented musician, with Jordan even going as far as to...
) |
— |
— |
30 |
| "Know You by Heart" |
— |
— |
26 |
| 2006 |
"Somewhere/Summer of '42" |
— |
— |
— |
| 2007 |
"The Pink Panther Theme" |
— |
— |
27 |
| "It Might Be You "It Might Be You" is a popular song with music written by Dave Grusin, and lyrics written by Alan and Marilyn Bergman. It was performed by singer/songwriter Stephen Bishop in the 1982 film, Tootsie, starring Dustin Hoffman and Jessica Lange....
" |
— |
— |
— |
"White Christmas"White Christmas" is an Irving Berlin song reminiscing about an old-fashioned Christmas setting. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the version sung by Bing Crosby is the best-selling single of all time, with estimated sales in excess of 50 million copies worldwide.Accounts vary as...
" |
— |
— |
22 |
| 2008 |
"Life in the Fast Lane" |
— |
— |
1 |
| "White Christmas" (rechart) |
— |
— |
14 |
| 2010 |
"And Then I Knew" |
— |
— |
13 |
| "Put The Top Down" |
— |
— |
1 |
| 2011 |
"Starting Over Again" |
— |
— |
1 |
| "Anything's Possible" |
— |
— |
1 |
Compilation appearances
External links
- Dave Koz official website
- The Dave Koz Radio Show
- The Dave Koz & Friends Cruise
- The beauty of coming out, by Dave Koz Personal essay in The Advocate
The Advocate is an American LGBT-interest magazine, printed monthly and available by subscription. The Advocate brand also includes a web site. Both magazine and web site have an editorial focus on news, politics, opinion, and arts and entertainment of interest to LGBT people...
- Audio interview recorded February 2007
- Dave Koz discography at Discogs
Discogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
.
- Listen to Dave Koz radio show online - A partial list of radio stations carrying the Dave Koz radio show, with scheduled broadcast times and streaming links.
- Interview Saxophonist Dave Koz Warns People of the "American Idol Mentality"