Includes news, biography, tour dates, discography, audio and video, images, press and games. As of 2003, Kenny G was named the 25th-highest selling artist in America. While Kenny G's entry into the smooth jazz market remains popular with the. Kenny G's Popular Guide To Unpopular Music. Kenny G's Large List of Avant Links (needs updating but basically works).
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Contents. Early life Kenny G was born in Seattle, Washington. His mother was from, Canada. His family was, and he grew up in Seattle's neighborhood, which is a center of the city's Jewish community. He came into contact with the saxophone when he heard a performance on.
Kenny G Miracles The Holiday Album Best Selling Holiday Album of All Time Amazon.com. Kenny G's 1994 album of economically arranged standards, which also happens to include Brahms's 'Lullaby' and his own 'The Chanukah Song,' pales in comparison to his other holiday record, the highly creative and memorable Faith.
He started playing saxophone, a alto, in 1966 when he was 10 years old. Kenny G attended Whitworth Elementary School, and the, all in his home city of Seattle. When he entered high school he failed at his first attempt to get into the jazz band but tried again the following year and earned first chair. His Franklin High School classmate Robert Damper (piano, keyboards) plays in his band.
In addition to his studies while in high school, he took private lessons on the saxophone and clarinet from Johnny Jessen, once a week for a year. He was also on his high school golf team. He has been a fan of the sport since his elder brother, Brian Gorelick, introduced him to it when he was ten. Career Early career Kenny G's career started with a job as a sideman for 's in 1973; he was 17 and still in high school. He continued to play professionally while studying for a in accounting at the University of Washington in Seattle, and graduated. He played with the band Cold, Bold and Together before becoming a credited member of The Fusion.
He began his solo career after his period with Lorber. 1980s: Early success and breakthrough with Duotones Kenny G signed with as a solo artist in 1982, after label president heard his rendition of ABBA's 'Dancing Queen'.
Kenny G Christmas Cd
He released his with the help of. The album received warm reviews from critics. He achieved success quite early on, with both and, his second and third studio albums respectively, achieving in the United States. At that time he collaborated with on many tracks, such as the single, which was released in 1985 and went on to chart. His fourth studio album, sold over five million copies in the U.S.
Kenny G Christmas Songs
It featured the songs ', with reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single ', which featured vocals from, charted at No. 15 on the Hot 100, and No. 2 on the Adult Contemporary charts in 1987. Kenny G worked in the mid-to-late 1980s with jazz and R&B artists such as,.
The 1987 hit-single ', a duet with that featured G as a guest saxophonist, peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, and No. 5 on R&B/Hip-Hop songs. His first live album, titled, included popular songs, among which 'Going Home' achieved great success in the People's Republic of China.
G has collaborated with a wide variety of artists, such as,. Influenced by saxophonist, his albums are usually classified as. 1990s: Worldwide acclaim with Breathless, Miracles and The Moment Kenny G has worked on several film soundtracks, including. The song 'Theme for Dying Young', written for that movie, was nominated for a. G co-wrote the soundtrack of The Bodyguard, starring and, and performed his own song 'Waiting for You' as well as his single 'Even If My Heart Would Break'. His music was also included in. His sixth studio album, was released in 1992, and went on to become the best-selling instrumental album ever, with over 15 million copies sold worldwide, selling 12 million copies in the United States alone.
The album included many hits such as ', the recipient of the for the and which charted in the Billboard Year-End Hot 100. ' charted at No. 27 on the Adult Contemporary, and ', a collaboration with, peaked at No. 25 on the Hot 100. His first holiday album, sold over 13 million copies, making it the most successful Christmas album to date. He also performed the 'National Anthem of the United States' at the closing ceremony at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, on July 17, 1994. Kenny G in 1998 Kenny G earned a place in the in 1997 for playing the longest note ever recorded on a saxophone.
Kenny G Instrumental Christmas Music
Using, Kenny G held an E-flat for 45 minutes and 47 seconds at J&R Music World in New York City. The same year, his song ', from the album, was remixed by and and released to dance clubs in the U.S. The mixes went to No.1 on the chart in April 1997, Kenny G's second holiday album, is the selling 2 million units according to Nielsen/SoundScan.
The singles taken from the album, the traditional ', reached No. 7 on the Hot 100. 2000s: Continued popularity In February 2000, Kenny G was invited to the White House and performed for state governors and members of the Clinton Cabinet. He released his eight studio album, in 2002. The album featured R&B singer, and included singles 'One More Time', a duet with. On, he collaborated with friends and colleagues, lead singer of,. It includes covers such as, and 's, a collaboration with.
The album is certified Gold in the US. Kenny G playing in Shanghai in 2007 2006 saw the release of Kenny G's eleventh studio album featuring renditions of 's songs, the love theme from Shakespeare's, the Secret Garden's hit song, and 's, as well as the Chinese ballad. Kenny G was named the 25th highest-selling artist in America by the, with 48 million albums sold in the U.S. As of July 31, 2006. In October 2009, Kenny G appeared with the band in an promotion of their album by soloing during 'I'm Your Daddy'. Kenny G said he knew nothing of Weezer before the performance. Though some music critics thereby rejoined in the common criticism of his work, the unlikely combination was fairly well received by AOL's magazines and Popeater.com.
2010s: Projects His 2010 album is strongly influenced by R&B, featuring and his long-time collaborator. It garnered positive reviews from critics. In February 2011 Kenny G appeared in the ad for called 'Release the Hounds.' Kenny G later starred in a short as Head of Riot Suppression for a luxury Prison. G made an appearance in the music video for pop star Katy Perry's single ' as Uncle Kenny. On October 8, 2011 episode of, G performed alongside band on the song 'Houdini.'
Kenny G hosts a radio show alongside Sandy Kovach on in Orlando, Florida. G's 14th studio album, was announced on October 28, 2014. According to G, the album was inspired by Cannonball Adderley's bossa nova recordings, Paul Desmond, and Stan Getz. The album was released in January 2015. It helped Kenny G get back to the Billboard 200, at number 86.
He started The Brazilian Tour for the album, traveling throughout North America and many countries in Asia later in the year. Kenny G became embroiled in controversy when he posted Twitter images of his visit to the site of the, which the PRC government has declared illegal, saying, 'I wish everyone a peaceful and positive conclusion to this situation'. The feed provoked an immediate angry reaction from the Chinese foreign ministry. G issued a clarification, 'I don't really know anything about the situation and my impromptu visit to the site was just part of an innocent walk around Hong Kong.I only wanted to share my wish for peace for Hong Kong and for all of China as I feel close to and care about China very much.'
In February 2017, Kenny G was satirized by in the program '. At the end of the scene, Kenny G appears as a janitor. Popularity in China Kenny G has recorded Chinese songs, such as ' (茉莉花) or ' (月亮代表我的心). His music is noticeably popular in China.
Since 1989, Kenny G's recording 'Going Home' from the album has become an unconventional mega-hit throughout China: It has become the unofficial national closing song for businesses such as food courts, outdoor markets, health clubs, shopping malls and train stations throughout the country. Many businesses begin piping the music over their loudspeakers shortly before closing at night. Television stations also play the song before ending their evening broadcasts at night. Many Chinese, when asked, say they associate the song with the need to finish their activity or business and go home (although they may not even know the name of the song or its artist). Criticism Kenny G has attracted significant criticism from mainstream jazz musicians and enthusiasts.
Stated that he was a 'pop' saxophonist, 'but was not really an advanced player, even in that style', adding that he had 'major rhythmic problems' and that his 'harmonic and melodic vocabulary was extremely limited, mostly to pentatonic based and blues-lick derived patterns'. Metheny believes that the main reason why Kenny G has become unpopular and easy to attack by accomplished jazz musicians is due to the 'fact that he sells an enormous amount of records while not being anywhere near a really great player in relation to the standards that have been set on his instrument over the past sixty or seventy years'. Once stated in an interview with Jazziz magazine: 'When all these jazz guys get in a tizzy over Kenny G, they need to leave Kenny alone. He's not stealing jazz. The audience he has wouldn't be caught dead at a real jazz concert or club. It's not like some guy says, ‘You know, I used to listen to Miles, 'Trane and Ornette. And then I heard Kenny G, and I never put on another Miles record.'
It's a completely different audience.' Kenny G's 1999 single ' was criticized in its overdubbing of 's classic recording. The primary criticism is that a revered recording by an artist such as Armstrong, known especially for improvisation, should not be altered, especially by a musician whose range and depth of understanding of classic jazz was already in question. Some columnists counter the criticism by suggesting that Kenny G's recording would expose a wider audience to classic jazz, though the overall response to his recording tended to be extremely negative.
Equipment Kenny G plays the soprano, alto and tenor saxophones. He has created his own line of saxophones called 'Kenny G Saxophones'.
Personal life Kenny G married Lyndie Benson in 1992, and the couple had two sons. In January 2012, Benson-Gorelick filed for legal separation. Kenny G filed for divorce in August 2012. Kenny G built a house in in 1996 which he sold in 1999 to. Kenny G now lives in. He is an avid golfer and has a of +0.6.
He has participated in the tournament seven times as of 2007 and teamed with to share the AT&T pro-am title in 2001 with the team of and Jerry Chang. In the rankings of Top 100 in Music, according to golf handicap indexes of major musicians, he was first in 2006 and second in 2008. He is a member at in. Kenny G is an and has a seaplane that he flies regularly.
He was also an early investor in the coffee house chain.