Marc Johnson (musician)

Marc Alan Johnson (born October 21, 1953, in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American jazz bass player, composer and band leader. Johnson was born in Nebraska and grew up in Texas. He is married to the Brazilian jazz pianist and singer Eliane Elias.[1]

Marc Johnson
Birth nameMarc Alan Johnson
Born (1953-10-21) October 21, 1953
Omaha, Nebraska, U.S.
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Musician, producer
InstrumentsDouble bass
LabelsVerve, ECM, JMT, Milestone, Blue Note, Concord
Associated actsBill Evans, Bass Desires, Right Brain Patrol, Eliane Elias, Enrico Pieranunzi, John Abercrombie, John Scofield, Bill Frisell, Pat Metheny, Steps Ahead, Charles Lloyd, Toots Thielemans, Stan Getz, Woody Herman, Paul Motian, Peter Erskine, Chet Baker, Michael Brecker, Lyle Mays

Career

At the age of 19, Johnson was working professionally with the Fort Worth Symphony, and while at the University of North Texas, he played in the One O'Clock Lab Band and was also the principal bassist in the NTSU Symphony.

In 1978, Johnson joined pianist Bill Evans in what would be Evans's last trio. Johnson toured and recorded with Evans until the death of the pianist in 1980.[1] In 2007 he released the tribute album Something For You—a tribute to Evans—together with his wife, pianist Eliane Elias.[2]

His credits since then include albums with Joe Lovano, Michael Brecker, Stan Getz, Bob Brookmeyer, Gary Burton, John Abercrombie, Bill Frisell, Pat Metheny, Eliane Elias, Enrico Pieranunzi, Joey Baron, Philly Joe Jones, Jack DeJohnette, Peter Erskine, Paul Motian and many others. He has also appeared as a leader of his own bands, starting with Bass Desires, a quartet that featured Bill Frisell and John Scofield on electric guitar, with Peter Erskine on drums, which gained international recognition following two ECM recordings in the mid-1980s. He also recorded two albums of his group Right Brain Patrol for JMT Records, followed by his Sound of Summer Running release on Verve. His ECM release Shades of Jade was featured in Time's October 17, 2005, issue "5 CDs That Really Swing", as one of the five top jazz releases of the season. It was selected by the Chicago Tribune as one of the 10 best jazz recordings of 2005 and also received the Danish Music Award for Best Foreign Release in 2005. It features his wife Eliane Elias on piano, Joe Lovano on tenor saxophone, John Scofield on guitar and Joey Baron on drums.[1]

As a follow up to Shades of Jade, in 2012, the ECM recording Swept Away was released. This album is a collaboration with pianist/composer Eliane Elias. It includes Joe Lovano on tenor saxophone and Joey Baron on drums. The music consists of all original compositions. As a producer, Johnson won two Grammy Awards for co-producing Eliane Elias' albums Made in Brazil (2016) and Dance of Time (2017) on Concord Records.

Discography

As leader

With John Abercrombie & Peter Erskine

With Enrico Pieranunzi

  • Deep Down (Soul Note, 1987)
  • The Dream Before Us (IDA, 1992)
  • Untold Story (IDA, 1994)
  • Racconti Mediterranei (Egea, 2000)
  • Play Morricone (CAM Jazz, 2001)
  • Trasnoche (Egea, 2003)
  • Current Conditions (CAM Jazz, 2003)
  • Play Morricone 2 (CAM Jazz, 2004)
  • Ballads (CAM Jazz, 2006)
  • Live in Japan (CAM Jazz, 2007)
  • As Never Before (CAM Jazz, 2008)
  • Yellow & Blue Suites (Challenge, 2008)
  • Dream Dance (CAM Jazz, 2009)

As sideman

With John Abercrombie

With Eliane Elias

With Peter Erskine

  • Motion Poet (Denon, 1988)
  • Sweet Soul (Novus/RCA, 1991)
  • Behind Closed Doors Vol. 1 (Fuzzy Music, 1998)

With Bill Evans

With Stan Getz

With Jimmy Gourley

  • No More (Musica, 1981)
  • The Jazz Trio (Bingow, 1983)
  • The Left Bank of New York (Uptown, 1986)

With Woody Herman

  • Jazz Jamboree 77 Vol. 2 (Polskie Nagrania Muza, 1977)
  • Chick, Donald, Walter & Woodrow (Century, 1978)
  • Road Father (Century, 1978)

With Andy LaVerne

  • Plays the Music of Chick Corea (Jazzline, 1988)
  • Frozen Music (SteepleChase, 1989)
  • True Colors (Jazz City 1988)

With John Lewis

  • The John Lewis Album for Nancy Harrow (Finesse, 1981)
  • Kansas City Breaks (Finesse, 1982)
  • Slavic Smile (Baystate, 1983)
  • J.S. Bach Preludes and Fugues from the Well Tempered Clavier Book 1 (Philips, 1985)
  • The Bridge Game Vol. 2 Based On the Well Tempered Clavier Book 1 (Philips, 1986)
  • The Garden of Delight Delaunay's Dilemma (EmArcy, 1988)
  • Vol. 3 Preludes and Fugues Based On the Well Tempered Clavier Book 1 (Philips, 1989)

With Pat Martino

With Lyle Mays

  • Lyle Mays (Geffen, 1986)
  • Street Dreams (Geffen, 1988)
  • The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher & The Tale of Two Bad Mice (Windham Hill, 1988)
  • Fictionary (Geffen, 1993)
  • The Ludwigsburg Concert (Jazzhaus, 2015)

With Wolfgang Muthspiel

  • Air, Love & Vitamins (Quinton, 2004)
  • Real Book Stories (Quinton, 2001)
  • Perspective (Amadeo, 1996)

With Enrico Pieranunzi

  • No Man's Land (Soul Note, 1990)
  • In That Dawn of Music (Soul Note, 1993)
  • The Night Gone by (Alfa, 1996)
  • The Chant of Time (Alfa, 1997)
  • Jazz Roads (CAM Jazz, 2002)
  • Les Amants (Egea, 2004)
  • Deep Down (Soul Note, 2012)
  • Live at the Village Vanguard (CAM Jazz, 2013)

With John Scofield

  • Meant to Be (Blue Note, 1991)
  • The John Scofield Quartet Plays Live (Jazz Door, 1993)
  • Steady Groovin' (Blue Note, 2000)

With Toots Thielemans

  • Ne Me Quitte Pas (Milan, 1987)
  • Only Trust Your Heart (Concord Jazz, 1988)
  • Do Not Leave Me (Stash, 1989)
  • The Brasil Project (Private Music, 1992)
  • The Brasil Project Vol. 2 (Private Music, 1993)

With others

See also

References
  1. "Marc Johnson Biography". All About Jazz. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  2. Prasad, Anil (2008). "Marc Johnson: Underpinning genius". InnerViews.org. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
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