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Was the Baker Street solo the one that kicked if off?

36K views 73 replies 31 participants last post by  JL 
#1 ·
Was the Baker Street solo the one that kicked off the 80's sax solo fad, or were there others?
 
#3 ·
Was there an 80s sax solo fad? I wasn't aware there was ever a time when sax solos weren't used in pop.
 
#6 ·
What? You didn't like gated snare on two and four, unvaried for three minutes at a time?:shock:

Like it or not, the 80s were the last heyday for recordings and $$$.
 
#12 ·
Pete Thomas wrote:
"This happened in the 70s, 60s, 50s, 40s, 30s, 20s etc..."

edit: I messed up the quotes somehow. I've now corrected it, above.

Here's my response:

Exactly. If you want to hear how to play the sax, you need to go back further than the '80s. In fact, imo (it's an OPINION, folks), you'd do well to ignore the '80s altogether.

luteman, there were TONS of sax solos in the late '60s, early '70s. Sonny Stitt, Dexter Gordon, Sonny Rollins, Jackie MaClean, Gene Ammons, Stanley Turrentine, Zoot Sims, and the list goes on, were soloing like crazy. I know, because I saw them doing it. Of course, those guys are all gone now, except for Sonny Rollins (long may he live).

If you go back a ways further, you can find plenty of recordings of jump blues, blues, swing, and 'old school' R&B sax players.
 
#13 ·
Go on John - post more of those great youtube videos!!! You know you wanna!!:D I loved the last couple
 
#14 ·
I think some people are lumping sax playing and sax solos together.

Like the above post that mentioned all those greats as well as the person who through Kenny G in there.

These are instrumental songs/ artists by nature and not really the same as where "the sax solo from baker street" fits.

I'd agree that there were definitely "stand alone" sax solos before it. But Baker Street is the one the sticks out for sure.
 
#71 ·
Baker Street 1978
Harden My Heart 1981

So Harden My Heart is the poor man's Baker Street. Or should that be "poor woman's" ?

EDIT: I wrote the above in haste last night - in so much haste that I didn't notice that there were three more pages after the one I was on…
 
#17 ·
luteman, and everyone, sorry I messed up on the quotes and now luteman has continued it. Pete Thomas didn't say what luteman quoted above (about it starting in the '80s). Luteman said that. I really apologize for that and don't mean to misquote anyone.

Back on topic, ok, I didn't realize you were talking only about top 40. Guess I should have when you mentioned Baker St, of course. I don't know much about top 40 radio. I avoid it like the plague....I think there are much better sources for sax music, but that's just me.
 
#24 ·
This is the rock and roll list. And whoevever said about no sax solos, "NOW", is certainly right, but we do get a lot of sax in the new smooth jazz genre.
There is some sight address that was posted on SOTW, where a guy puts up mp3s of all the rockandroll solos from the 80's and gives them a letter grade with short rationalizaion for the grade. It's interesting.
 
#18 ·
We need John Laughter to put the definitive word on this. John? You out there?
 
#19 ·
"Pop sax" did become quite prolific in the '80's" Baker St." and George Michael's "Careless Whisper" certainly started a few people off. Both very simple but very effective.
Also high profile bands like Roxy Music and Spandau Ballet, Dexy's Midnight Runners had sax players,-- I'm talking UK of course.
BF
 
#20 ·
Gary, maybe this will help. This is both U.S. and U.K. hits. If admin wants to delete this due to the length I will certainly understand since I do not know how much memory it will take up. I just copied and pasted the listings so some items may be out of line on the page. And if anyone sees any errors please let me know. We want to give credit to the correct players. For a complete listing of hits from 1955-2005, send an email to JSAXL@aol.com

1980 (the numbers indicate the chart position)

£3 BAGGY TROUSERS-MADNESS LEE "KIX" THOMPSON BARITONE

#3 BIGGEST PART OF ME-AMBROSIA ERNIE WATTS TENOR

#10 COOL CHANGE-LITTLE RIVER BAND BILL HARROWER TENOR

#10 (£/CAN) ECHO BEACH-MARTHA AND THE MUFFINS
ANDY HAAS ALTO

#1 (£2) FUNKYTOWN-LIPPS, INC. DALE MENDENHALL TENOR

£1 GENO-DEXY'S MIDNIGHT RUNNERS J. B. BLYTE TENOR
STEVE "BABYFACE" SPOONER ALTO

#18 GIVE IT ALL YOU GOT-CHUCK MANGIONE
CHRIS VADALA TENOR

#5 I'M COMING OUT-DIANA ROSS ? TENOR
with horn section
LARRY WILLIAMS or EDDIE DANIELS- per Gio Washington-Wright

£39 INHERIT THE WIND-JAZZ CRUSADERS BOBBY WOMACK (vocal) WILTON FELDER TENOR

#1 (£14) IT'S STILL ROCK AND ROLL TO ME-BILLY JOEL RICHIE CANNATA ALTO

#17 JOJO-BOZ SCAGGS ADRIAN TAPIA ALTO

#6 (£58) LATE IN THE EVENING- PAUL SIMON DAVE TOFANI & GERRY NIEWOOD SAX SECTION w/ BRASS

#10 LET ME LOVE YOU TONIGHT PURE PRAIRIE LEAGUE DAVID SANBORN ALTO

£11 LET'S HANG ON-THE DARTS NIGEL TRUBRIDGE TENOR

#3 (£33) LITTLE JEANNIE-ELTON JOHN
JIM HORN TENOR

#24 MIDNIGHT ROCKS-AL STEWART BRYAN SAVAGE ALTO

(£4) MIRROR IN THE BATHROOM-BEAT SAXA TENOR

#10 MORE LOVE-KIM CARNES RAPHAEL RAVENSCROFT ALTO &
TENOR

#5 ON THE RADIO-DONNA SUMMER GARY HERBIG ALTO

#5 REAL LOVE-DOOBIE BROTHERS CORNELIUS BUMPUS TENOR

#28 THE SEDUCTION-JAMES LAST BAND DAVID SANBORN ALTO

#18 TOGETHER-TIERRA BOBBY NAVARRETE TENOR

#5 TOO HOT-KOOL & THE GANG
RONALD "KHALIS" BELL aka KHALIS BAYYAN TENOR

£6 TOM HARK-PIRANHAS ZOOT ALORS TENOR

#7 YOU MAY BE RIGHT-BILLY JOEL RICHARD CANNATA TENOR

#13 YOU'RE THE ONLY WOMAN-AMBROSIA ERNIE WATTS ALTO

#26 WHY ME-STYX STEVE EISEN ALTO


1981


#17 AIN'T EVEN DONE WITH THE NIGHT JOHN COUGAR DAVID WOODFORD TENOR

#1 ALL MY ROWDY FRIENDS ARE COMING OVER TONIGHT
HANK WILLIAMS JR. JERRY MCKINNEY TENOR

#1 (£7) ARTHUR'S THEME-CHRISTOPHER CROSS ERNIE WATTS ALTO

#2 (£1) BEING WITH YOU-SMOKEY ROBINSON JOEL C.PESKIN ALTO

#18 COME GO WITH ME-BEACH BOYS JOEL C.PESKIN ALTO

#8 GIVING IT UP FOR YOUR LOVE-
DELBERT MCCLINTON ROBERT HARWELL TENOR

#7 HARD TO SAY-DAN FOGELBERG TOM SCOTT TENOR

#33 HE CAN'T LOVE YOU-MICHAEL STANLEY BAND CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

#39 I CAN TAKE CARE OF MYSELF-BILLY VERA LON PRICE TENOR with SAX/BRASS SECTION

#3 I DON'T NEED YOU-KENNY ROGERS "REV" DAVE BORUFF ALTO

#19 I MISSED AGAIN-PHIL COLLINS DON MYRICK TENOR

£4 IT MUST BE LOVE-MADNESS LEE "KIX" THOMPSON TENOR

£1 JEALOUS GUY-ROXY MUSIC ANDY MACKAY ALTO

#2 (£34) JUST THE TWO OF US-GROVER WASHINGTON, JR. with BILL WITHERS GROVER WASHINGTON, JR. TENOR

#24 ONE STEP CLOSER-DOOBIE BROTHERS CORNELIUS BUMPUS TENOR

#9 SAME OLD LANG SYNE-DAN FOGELBERG MICHAEL BRECKER SOPRANO

#17 SAY GOODBYE TO HOLLYWOOD-BILLY JOEL RICHIE CANNATA TENOR

#16 SUPER FREAK-RICK JAMES DANIEL LE'MELLE TENOR

#5 THERE'S NO GETTING OVER ME-RONNIE MILSAP RONALD EADES ALTO

#11 THIS LITTLE GIRL-GARY "U.S." BONDS CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

#16 TOUCH ME WHEN WE'RE DANCING-CARPENTERS BOB MESSENGER TENOR

#4 (£45) URGENT-FOREIGNER JR. WALKER TENOR

£50 WAITING ON A FRIEND-ROLLING STONES SONNY ROLLINS TENOR

#15 (£55) WE'RE IN THIS LOVE TOGETHER-
AL JARREAU LON PRICE ALTO

£8 WILL YOU-HAZEL O'CONNER WESLEY MAGOOGAN ALTO

1982

#12 BOBBIE SUE-OAK RIDGE BOYS ? TENOR
John, On the CD package, horn credits are listed under "The Muscle Shoals Horns," including Ronnie Eades (Baritone Sax) and Harvey Thompson (Tenor and Alto Sax). Thank you for your interest in The Oak Ridge Boys!
The Oak Ridge Boys International Fan Club

#21 BIG FUN-KOOL & THE GANG
DENNIS "DEE TEE" THOMAS ALTO
RONALD "KHALIS" BELL aka KHALIS BAYYAN TENOR

#23 DADDY'S HOME-CLIFF RICHARD ? TENOR
Hi John,
Yes I managed to open your email and have been reading it with great interest. Looks like a mammoth project!

I did not play on the original recording of Daddy's Home by Cliff Richard, although I did play on a later live version in 1990. I think the original solo sax may have been Howie Casey or Mel Collins.
Regards
Ray Beavis
5/18/2007

£18 DO IT TO THE MUSIC−RAW SILK BERT REID ? TENOR

#7 (£9) DO YOU BELIEVE IN LOVE-HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS JOHNNY COLLA TENOR

#16 FIND ANOTHER FOOL-QUARTERFLASH RINDY ROSS ALTO

£17 FOOL IF YOU THINK IT'S OVER- ? TENOR
ELKIE BROOKS-CD credits list MARTIN DOBSON and GARY BARNACLE. Hi John......pretty sure it must have been Gary. Don't think I did any sessions for Elkie untill '86-'87 when I did a couple of tracks on an album called "No more the Fool" one track (which I did a tenor solo on) was called "Break the Chain" and the other which was Alto I can't remember.
Best Wishes, Martin 4/6/07.

#23 FORGET ME KNOTS-PATRICE RUSHEN GERALD ALBRIGHT ALTO

#3 (£49) HARDEN MY HEART-QUARTERFLASH RINDY ROSS ALTO

#1 (£8) I CAN'T GO FOR THAT (NO CAN DO)-DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES CHARLIE DECHANT ALTO

£10 I'LL BE SATISFIED-SHAKIN STEVENS BARITONE with SAX/BRASS SECTION
RAY BEAVIS (ts), JOHN "IRISH" EARL (bs),
DICK HANSON (trp), CHRIS GOWER (tb)

#11 (£26) IT'S RAINING AGAIN-SUPERTRAMP JOHN HELLIWELL TENOR

#40 LET IT BE ME-WILLIE NELSON JON MARETT TENOR

#10 LOVE IS IN CONTROL-DONNA SUMMER ERNIE WATTS TENOR

#37 LOVE PLUS ONE-HAIRCUT ONE HUNDRED PHIL SMITH SOPRANO

#1 (£6) MANEATER-DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES CHARLIE DECHANT TENOR

#9 ONLY THE LONELY-MOTELS MARTY JOURARD ALTO

£5 OUR HOUSE-MADNESS LEE "KIX" THOMPSON TENOR

#21 OUT OF WORK- GARY "U.S." BONDS CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

£3 PAPA'S GOT A BRAND NEW PIGBAG-PIGBAG ? ALTO
Members; JAMES JOHNSTONE - ALTO SAX & GUITAR & OLLIE MOORE - TENOR SAX
"It was alto. I can't remember who played it.. either me or a guy called Brian Clarke who was in a band called After Tonight. Maybe both…! Hope that helps. Cheers"
Jem
9/7/07

#19 PERSONALLY-KARLA BONOFF PHIL KENZIE ALTO

£18 POISON ARROW-ABC STEPHEN SINGLETON ALTO

£9 RIO-DURAN DURAN ANDY HAMILTON TENOR

#13 (£50)SHOULD I DO IT-POINTER SISTERS COOL T (TREVOR LAWRENCE) TENOR

#14 TAKE ME TO HEART-QUARTERFLASH RINDY ROSS ALTO

#15 THE ONE YOU LOVE-GLEN FRY ERNIE WATTS TENOR
JIM HORN (last solo) TENOR

#5 YOU SHOULD HEAR HOW SHE TALKS ABOUT YOU-MELISSA MANCHESTER (saxes per CD credits) TREVOR LAWRENCE, JAY SCOTT, LARRY WILLIAMS, TOM SAVIANO. (soloist unk) ALTO

#13 WAITING ON A FRIEND-ROLLING STONES SONNY ROLLINS TENOR

AUS#1 WHAT ABOUT ME-MOVING PICTURES ANDREW THOMPSON ALTO

#1 (£45) WHO CAN IT BE NOW?-MEN AT WORK GREG HAM TENOR

1983

#1 (£3) AFRICA-TOTO JIM HORN TENOR

£3 CRY JUST A LITTLE BIT-SKAKIN STEVENS RAY BEAVIS TENOR

#17 (UK) GARDEN PARTY-MEZZOFORTE (Mezzoforte's sax player during the time Garden Party was released is KRISTINN SVAVARSSON but there are guest sax players on the album: BILL ELDRIDGE and MARTIN DOBSON) KRISTINN SVAVARSSON TENOR
9/5/2008

"Hi!
During the time my brother Kristinn played with the group Mezzoforte, he played all the sax solos (i.e. soprano alto and tenor). The additional sax players only played in the background.
Kind regards,
Eddie Svavarsson"
Nacka Big Band
http://www.nackabigband.com/

#29 GOLD-SPANDAU BALLET STEVE NORMAN TENOR

#15 HEART TO HEART-KENNY LOGGINS DAVID SANBORN ALTO

#33 IT MUST BE LOVE-MADNESS LEE "KIX" THOMPSON TENOR

#29 MAKE LOVE STAY-DAN FOGELBERG AL GARTH SOPRANO

#14 (£2) MODERN LOVE-DAVID BOWIE STEVE ELSON BARITONE

#31 MY KIND OF LADY-SUPERTRAMP JOHN HELLIWELL TENOR

#7 (£63) ONE ON ONE-DARYL HALL & JOHN OATES
CHARLIE DECHANT ALTO

#7 OUR HOUSE-MADNESS LEE "KIX" THOMPSON TENOR

#3 OVERKILL-MEN AT WORK GREG HAM SOPRANO

#25 POISON ARROW-ABC STEPHEN SINGLETON ALTO

#14 RIO-DURAN DURAN ANDY HAMILTON TENOR

#3 (£25) SHE WORKS HARD FOR THE MONEY-DONNA SUMMER GARY HERBIG TENOR

#33 THE BORDER-AMERICA RAPHAEL RAVENSCROFT ALTO

#2 TIME (CLOCK OF THE HEART)-CULTURE CLUB STEVE GRAINGER TENOR

#4 (£1) TRUE-SPANDAU BALLET STEVE NORMAN TENOR

#3 (£4) UNION OF THE SNAKE-DURAN DURAN ANDY HAMILTON SOPRANO

#29 WHAT ABOUT ME-MOVING PICTURES ANDREW THOMPSON ALTO

1984

#29 ALIBIS-SERGIO MENDES ERNIE WATTS TENOR

CAN#2 BLACK STATIONS, WHITE STATIONS-MARTHA & THE MUFFINS MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR
RANDY BRECKER TRUMPET

#8 (£8) BLUE JEAN-DAVID BOWIE
BORNEO HORNS w/ LENNY PICKETT (solo) TENOR

#1 (£6) CARIBBEAN QUEEN-BILLY OCEAN JEFFREY SMITH ALTO

#16 (£21) DANCE HALL DAYS-WANG CHUNG MEL COLLINS ALTO SOLO with SAX SECTION

#2 (£4) DANCING IN THE DARK-BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

#15 (£56) DON'T ANSWER ME-ALAN PARSONS PROJECT
MEL COLLINS TENOR

£15 GET OUT OF YOUR LAZY BED-MATT BIANCO RONNIE ROSS BARITONE

£23 HALF A MINUTE-MATT BIANCO RONNIE ROSS BARITONE

£9 NELSON MANDELA-THE SPECIALS ANDY ADERINTO TENOR

#7 GLAMOROUS LIFE-SHEILA E LARRY WILLIAMS ALTO

#6 HEART OF ROCK & ROLL-HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS JOHNNY COLLA TENOR

#6 I WANT A NEW DRUG-HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS JOHNNY COLLA TENOR

#13 IT'S A MIRACLE-CULTURE CLUB STEVE GRAINGER TENOR

£25 MR. SOLITAIRE-ANIMAL NIGHTLIFE BILLY CHAPMAN TENOR

#7 ON THE DARK SIDE-JOHN CAFFERTY MIKE ANTUNES TENOR

#34 ONLY WHEN YOU LEAVE-SPANDAU BALLET STEVE NORMAN TENOR

#10 (£15) SOME GUYS HAVE ALL THE LUCK-ROD STEWART GARY HERBIG (per GH) ALTO
2/18/07 - "I played the alto sax solo on Rod Stewart's "Some Guys Have All The Luck." Gary Herbig
JIMMY "Z" ZAVALA is also on the CD credits.

#15 THE CURLY SHUFFLE- JUMP 'N THE SADDLE TOM TRINKA TENOR

#15 YOU CAN'T GET WHAT YOU WANT(TILL YOU KNOW WHAT YOU WANT)
JOE JACKSON-horn section w/ tenor solo. Saxes-TONY AIELLO and JOE JACKSON; Trumpet-MICHAEL MORREALE

1985

#12 A LOVE BIZARRE-SHEILA E EDDIE M ALTO
#1 (£1) CARELESS WHISPER-WHAM!/GEORGE MICHAEL STEVE GREGORY TENOR

#8 FORTRESS AROUND YOUR HEART-STING BRANFORD MARSALIS SOPRANO

#3 (£51) FREEWAY OF LOVE-ARETHA FRANKLIN CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

#1 HURT-JUICE NEWTON JON JOYCE TENOR

CAN#12 HURTS TO BE IN LOVE- GINO VANNELLI TOM SAVIANO ALTO

#3 (£26) IF YOU LOVE SOMEBODY SET THEM FREE STING BRANFORD MARSALIS TENOR

#9 I'M GOIN DOWN-BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

£1 I'M YOUR MAN-WHAM
(saxes per CD creits) DAVID BAPTISTE, STEVE HAMILTON,
ANDY HAMILTON (soloist unk) ALTO

#12 JUST A GIGOLO/I AIN'T GOT NOBODY-DAVID LEE ROTH EDGAR WINTER SAX SECTION

#18 KEEPING THE FAITH-BILLY JOEL SAX/HORN SECTION
MARK RIVIERA (alto sax), Michael Brecker (tenor sax), Ronnie Cuber (bari sax), (John Gatchell and Joe Shepley (trumpet)

£11 LIPSTICK, POWDER AND PAINT-SHAKIN STEVENS RAY BEAVIS TENOR

#1 LOST IN THE FIFTIES TONIGHT-RONNIE MILSAP JIM HORN TENOR

#15 LOVE THEME FROM ST. ELMO'S FIRE-DAVID FOSTER "REV" DAVE BORUFF ALTO

£1 MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE-SHAKIN STEVENS RAY BEAVIS TENOR

#3 NEVER SURRENDER-COREY HART ANDY HAMILTON TENOR

#15 ONE OF THE LIVING-TINA TURNER TIMMY CAPPELLO TENOR

#1 (£4) ONE MORE NIGHT-PHIL COLLINS DONALD MYRICK ALTO

#20 ROCK AND ROLL GIRLS-JOHN FOGERTY STEVE DOUGLAS TENOR

#25 ROCKIN' AT MIDNIGHT-HONEYDRIPPERS KEITH EVANS TENOR

#1 (£1) SAVING ALL MY LOVE FOR YOU-WHITNEY HOUSTON KIRK WHALUM TENOR

#5 (£19) SMOOTH OPERATOR-SADE STUART MATTHEWMAN TENOR

#31 TENDER YEARS-JOHN CAFFERTY MIKE ANTUNES TENOR

#1 (£12) THE HEAT IS ON-GLEN FREY DAVID WOODFORD TENOR

#22 TOUGH ALL OVER-JOHN CAFFERTY MIKE ATUNES TENOR

£13 YEH YEH-MATT BIANCO RONNIE ROSS BARITONE

#2 YOU BELONG TO THE CITY-GLEN FRY BILL BERGMAN ALTO

#2 (£3) WE DON'T NEED ANOTHER HERO (THUNDERDOME)-TINA TURNER TIM CAPPELLO TENOR

#7 (£11) WHO'S ZOOMIN' WHO-ARETHA FRANKLIN CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

#5 WOULD I LIE TO YOU-EURYTHMICS MARTIN DOBSON TENOR

1986

£2 ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS-DAVID BOWIE DON WELLER BARITONE
? TENOR
CD credits per http://www.discogs.com/release/571300
Saxophone (Baritone)-Andy Mackintosh, Don Weller, Gordon Murphy
Saxophone (Solo)-Don Weller
Saxophone (Tenor)-Gary Barnacle, Paul Weimer, Willie Garnett

£14 BECAUSE I LOVE YOU-SHAKIN STEVENS ? ALTO
Note from the UK-Tony Hall (tenor) and Sid Phillips (bari) are listed on the vast majority of LPs I have seen recently.(Steve Marshall)

#1 BOP-DAN SEALS JIM HORN ALTO

£14 BREAKING UP MY HEART-SHAKIN STEVENS RAY BEAVIS TENOR

#16 (£8) CAPTAIN OF HER HEART-DOUBLE CHRISTIAN OSTERMEIER SOPRANO

#2 (£45) DANGER ZONE-KENNY LOGGINS DAVID WOODFORD TENOR

#14 (£12) DIGGING YOUR SCENE-BLOW MONKEYS NEVILLE HENRY TENOR

#8 FRENCH KISSIN'- DEBORAH HARRY CRISPIN CIOE ALTO

£49 HEART OF ROCK & ROLL-HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS
JOHNNY COLLA TENOR

£22 HELLO DARLING-TIPPA IRIE RAY CARLESS TENOR

#3 (£3) HIP TO BE SQUARE-HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS STEPHEN "DOC" KUPKA BARITONE
JOHNNY COLLA TENOR

#9 (COUNTRY) HOMECOMING'63-KEITH WHITLEY ? TENOR
CD credits for saxophone list JIM HORN and DENNIS SOLEE.

#1 (£5) HOW WILL I KNOW-WHITNEY HOUSTON PREMIK RUSSELL TUBBS TENOR

#3 I'M YOUR MAN-WHAM ANDY HAMILTON ALTO

£12 IT'S ALRIGHT (BABY'S COMING BACK) EURTHYMICS MARTIN DOBSON SAXES
DAVE PLEWS TRUMPET

£3 LESSONS IN LOVE-LEVEL 42 GARY BARNACLE TENOR

#4 (£5) LIVING IN AMERICA-JAMES BROWN CRISPIN CIOE ALTO

£18 PRETTY IN PINK-PSYCHEDELIC FURS TENOR
The 1981 recording made #43. The movie film version reached #18. The 1981 sax player was Duncan Kilburn. The film version would have been Mars Wiliams.

#1 ROCK ME AMADEUS-FALCO GARY BARNACLE TENOR

£8 SHOUT-LULU & THE LUVERS JIMMY SMITH (solo) TENOR
RONNIE ROSS ? BARITONE

#4 TAKE ME HOME TONIGHT-EDDIE MONEY PAUL HANSON ALTO

#4 (£68) TALK TO ME-STEVIE NICKS BARNEY WILENS ALTO

£5 THORN IN MY SIDE-EURYTHMICS JIMMY ZAVALA TENOR

#2 TYPICAL MALE-TINA TURNER TIMMY CAPPELLO TENOR

#5 (£51) WHAT YOU NEED-INXS KIRK PENGILLY TENOR

#2 (£1) WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH,
THE TOUGH GET GOING-BILLY OCEAN ? ALTO
"I SAW THIS ON TV ONCE IN THE MID-80'S AND MARC RUSSO WAS THE SOLOIST. SOUNDS LIKE HIM ON THE RECORD TO ME TOO." Gio Washington-Wright

£8 WONDERFUL LIFE-BLACK MARTIN GREEN ALTO

£26 YOUR LATEST TRICK-DIRE STRAITS MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR Intro by RANDY BRECKER TRUMPET
(Concert tour tenor solo by Chris White)

#18 YOU'RE A FRIEND OF MINE-CLARENCE CLEMONS & JACKSON BROWNE CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

1987

#1 AT THIS MOMENT-BILLY VERA & THE BEATERS JERRY PETERSON ALTO

£16 BORN TO RUN(LIVE)-BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN CLARENCE CLEMONS ? TENOR

#21 CANDY-CAMEO MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR

£1 CHINA IN YOUR HANDS-T'PAU GARY BARNACLE ALTO
Per Carol Decker, GARY BARNACLE played on the hit single. The album sax player's name is unknown but he was a session player in the states.

#15 DON'T MAKE ME WAIT FOR LOVE-LENNY WILLIAMS (vocal) KENNY G TENOR

£2 GOT MY MIND SET ON YOU-GEORGE HARRISON JIM HORN TENOR

#1 (£6) I'VE HAD THE TIME OF MY LIFE-BILL MEDLEY & JENNIFER WARNES GARY HERBIG TENOR

#14 I WANNA GO BACK-EDDIE MONEY (CD credits show DANNY HULL or HALL, PAUL HANSON and EDDIE MONEY) ALTO

#1 LOST IN EMOTION-LISA LISA & CULT JAM ? TENOR

#10 ONE HEARTBEAT-SMOKEY ROBINSON KENNY G SOPRANO

#4 (£11) ONLY IN MY DREAMS-DEBBIE GIBSON JEFF SMITH TENOR

£13 ROADBLOCK-STOCK AITKEN WATERMAN GARY BARNACLE ALTO

£3 ROCKIN' AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE-MEL SMITH & KIM WILDE PETE THOMAS TENOR & SOPRANO

£8 RUNNING IN THE FAMILY-LEVEL 42 KRYS MACH TENOR

#4 (£22) SONGBIRD KENNY G SOPRANO

£8 SWEETEST SMILE-BLACK MARTIN GREEN SOPRANO

£10 WALK THE DINOSAUR-WAS (NOT WAS) DAVE MCMURRAY TENOR

#1 WALKIN' A BROKEN HEART-DON WILLIAMS JIM HORN TENOR

#5 (£11) WHEN SMOKIE SINGS-ABC STEPHEN SINGLETON TENOR

#3 YOU GOT IT ALL-JETS (per L.P.credits) JOHN PARIS and DAVEY PAYNE TENOR

1988

#11 DO YOU LOVE ME-THE CONTOURS THOMAS "BEANS" BOWLES TENOR

£11 DON'T BLAME IT ON THAT GIRL-MATT BIANCO ED CALLE TENOR

#2 (£50) ENDLESS SUMMER NIGHTS-RICHARD MARX "REV" DAVE BORUFF ALTO

£24 FIESTA-THE POGUES JEM FINER ALTO
I can't remember who played it. Either me or a guy called Brian Clarke who was in a band called After Tonight. Maybe both . . .!
Hope that helps.
cheers
Jem 9/7/2007

#1 (£9) FOOLISH BEAT-DEBBIE GIBSON JEFF SMITH TENOR

#1 (£3) GET OUTTA MY DREAMS, GET INTO MY CAR-BILLY OCEAN JEFF SMITH TENOR

#1 GOT MY MIND SET ON YOU-GEORGE HARRISON JIM HORN TENOR

#2 (£4) HANDS TO HEAVEN-BREATHE JAMIE TALBOT ALTO

#1 HOLD ON TO THE NIGHTS-RICHARD MARX DAVE KOZ ALTO

#4 HUNGRY EYES-ERIC CARMAN GARY HERBIG TENOR

#3 (£41) I'LL ALWAYS LOVE YOU-TAYLOR DAYNE RICHIE CANNATA TENOR

#1 (£25) KOKOMO-BEACH BOYS JOEL C. PESKIN ALTO

£26 LIKE DREAMERS DO-MICA PARIS COURTNEY PINE TENOR

#7 (£24) NEVER TEAR US APART-INXS KIRK PENGILLY ALTO

#3 (£25) NEW SENSATION-INXS KIRK PENGILLY ALTO

#1 (£53) ROLL WITH IT-STEVE WINWOOD ANDREW LOVE TENOR

#1 SEASONS CHANGE-EXPOSE STEVE GROVE TENOR

#3 (£17) SHE'S LIKE THE WIND-PATRICK SWAYZE & WENDY FRASER GARY HERBIG TENOR

#25 SMALL WORLD (part 2)-HUEY LEWIS & THE NEWS STAN GETZ TENOR

#10 SOME KIND OF LOVER-JODY WATLEY LARRY SCHNEIDER TENOR

£3 SOMEWHERE IN MY HEART-AZTEC CAMERA SONNY JONZUN ALTO

#16 SPY IN THE HOUSE OF LOVE-WAS (NOT WAS) ? TENOR
CD credits list David McMurray, David Was, John Weiss and Larry Williams. Consensus says McMurray.

#16 THE TWIST-FAT BOYS with CHUBBY CHECKER ? TENOR

#13 TRUE LOVE-GLENN FREY CHRIS (CHRISTIAAN) MOSTERT TENOR

#2 (£9) WAITING FOR A STAR TO FALL-BOY MEETS GIRL ANDY SNITZER ALTO

#32 WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD-LOUIS ARMSTRONG KENNY G SOPRANO

1989

#4 (£45) ANGELIA-RICHARD MARX MARC RUSSO ALTO

#1 BABY COME TO ME-REGINA BELLE PREMIK RUSSELL TUBBS SOPRANO

#10 (£17) CRY-WATERFRONT ? TENOR

#8 (£74) DREAMIN'-VANESSA WILLIAMS SCOTT MAYO TENOR

#8 (£48) END OF THE INNOCENCE-DON HENLEY
WAYNE SHORTER SOPRANO

#1 (£24) FOREVER YOUR GIRL-PAULA ABDUL (saxes per CD credits) TROY WILLIAMS
and EDDIE M (soloist unk) ALTO

#11 (£23) GET ON YOUR FEET-GLORIA ESTEFAN MIKE SCAGLIONE ALTO

#1 GIRL I'M GONNA MISS YOU-MILLI VANILLI MEL COLLINS SOPRANO

#14 IKO IKO-THE BELLE STARS MIRANDA JOYCE and CLARE HIRST SAX SECTION

£10 PACIFIC 202-808 STATE GRAHAM MASSEY SOPRANO

#15 (£5) THE BEST-TINA TURNER EDGAR WINTER TENOR

#13 SILHOUETTE KENNY G SOPRANO

#17 SOUL PROVIDER-MICHAEL BOLTON KENNY G TENOR

£51 THIS OLD HEART OF MINE-
ROD STEWART with RONALD ISLEY ? TENOR
CD credits for ATLANTIC CROSSING list Memphis Horns.
Positively ANDREW LOVE per Gio Washington-Wright.

#7 (£10) WALK THE DINOSAUR-WAS (NOT WAS) DAVE MCMURRAY TENOR

#5 (£53) WITH EVERY BEAT OF MY HEART-TAYLOR DAYNE JOEL C. PESKIN TENOR
 
#21 ·
Gary, maybe this will help. This is both U.S. and U.K. hits. If admin wants to delete this due to the length I will certainly understand since I do not know how much memory it will take up. I just copied and pasted the listings so some items may be out of line on the page. And if anyone sees any errors please let me know. We want to give credit to the correct players. For a complete listing of hits from 1955-2005, send an email to JSAXL@aol.com
Thanks a lot, John! Good to hear from you. We appreciate it!
 
#25 ·
.
The 1970s pre-Baker Street. I'l let you all decide if there was a sudden upsurge in sax solos brought on by "Baker Street":

1970

#39 COME RUNNING-VAN MORRISON JACK SCHROER ALTO COLLIN TILTON TENOR

#9 DOMINO-VAN MORRISON (per album credits)-
VAN MORRISON (ts), JACK SCHROER (as, bs, ss),
KEITH JOHNSON (trumpet)

#4 DO YOU SEE MY LOVE-
JR. WALKER & THE ALLSTARS JR. WALKER TENOR

#4 GET READY-RARE EARTH GIL BRIDGES TENOR

#21 GOTTA HOLD ON TO THIS FEELING-
JR. WALKER & THE ALLSTARS JR. WALKER TENOR

#13 LONG AS I CAN SEE THE LIGHT-
CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL JOHN FOGERTY TENOR

#25 SUGAR SUGAR-WILSON PICKETT ? SAX SECTION w/ BRASS
The CD titled "A Man And A Half: Best Of Wilson Pickett" lists the following personnel but I could not confirm the players on this specific hit; Charles "Packy" Axton, King Curtis, Charles Chalmers, Andrew Love (tenor saxophone), Floyd Newman (baritone saxophone) and Clarence Satchel (saxophone).

#13 SUPER BAD-JAMES BROWN ROBERT "CHOPPER" McCOLLOUGH TENOR

#7 THE LETTER-JOE COCKER with LEON RUSSELL
BOBBY KEYS TENOR

£11 THE WEAVER';S ANSWER-FAMILY JIM KING TENOR

1971

#35 ALL DAY MUSIC-WAR CHARLES MILLER TENOR

#1 (£2) BROWN SUGAR-ROLLING STONES BOBBY KEYS TENOR

#1 (£6) IT';S TOO LATE-
CAROLE KING (per L.P. credits) CURTIS AMY SOPRANO

#4 MERCY MERCY ME (THE ECCOLOGY)-
MARVIN GAYE (per CD credit) WILD BILL MOORE TENOR

#2 RAINY DAYS AND MONDAYS-CARPENTERS BOB MESSENGER TENOR

#2 WHAT';S GOING ON-MARVIN GAYE ELI FONTAINE ALTO

#28 WILD NIGHT-VAN MORRISON JACK SCHROER TENOR
Sounds like the sax was played through an effects unit which altered the tone.

1972

#10 BANG A GONG (GET IT ON)-T. REX IAN MCDONALD BARITONE

#8 HONKY CAT-ELTON JOHN
JEAN LOUIS CHAUTEMPS and ALAIN HATOT SAX SECTION

#1 ME AND MRS. JONES-
BILLY PAUL LEON "ZACH" ZACHERY ALTO

#3 OH, BABE, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY?-
HURRICANE SMITH FRANKIE HARDCASTLE ALTO

#1 SUPERSTITION-STEVIE WONDER TREVOR LAWRENCE TENOR
STEVE MADAIO TRUMPET

#7 THE WORLD IS A GHETTO-WAR CHARLES MILLER ALTO

£23 WHO WAS IT-HURRICANE SMITH FRANKIE HARDCASTLE ALTO

1973

£1 ANGEL FINGERS-
WIZZARD NICK PENTELOW, MIKE BURNEY, ROY WOOD SAX SECTION

#14 DON';T LET ME BE LONELY TONIGHT-
JAMES TAYLOR MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR

#31 ECSTASY-OHIO PLAYERS CLARENCE "SATCH" SATCHELL TENOR

#1 (£13) FRANKENSTEIN-EDGAR WINTER GROUP
EDGAR WINTER ALTO

#29 FUNKY STUFF-KOOL & THE GANG SAX/BRASS SECTION
RONALD "KHALIS" BELL aka KHALIS BAYYAN (tenor sax), DENNIS "DEE TEE" THOMAS (alto sax), ROBERT "SPIKE" MICKENS (trumpet)

Pt 2 More Funky Stuff
Ronald "Khalis" Bell aka Khalis Bayyan (solo) Tenor
Per Tia Sinclair, Business Manager, Gang Touring, Inc. f/s/o Kool & The Gang

#5 HELLO IT';S ME-TODD RUNDGREN MICHAEL BRECKER SOPRANO

£4 I WISH IT COULD BE
CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY-WIZZARD NICK PENTELOW TENOR
MIKE BURNEY or ROY WOOD BARITONE

#4 JUST YOU N'; ME-CHICAGO WALT PARAZADER SOPRANO

#1 LET';S GET IT ON-MARVIN GAYE ERNIE WATTS ALTO

#15 ME AND BABY BROTHER-WAR CHARLES MILLER ALTO

#13 MONEY-PINK FLOYD DICK PARRY TENOR

#16 MY MUSIC-LOGGINS & MESSINA JON CLARKE BARITONE
AL GARTH TENOR
£10 PYJAMARAMA-ROXY MUSIC ANDY MACKAY ALTO
£1 SEE MY BABY JIVE-
WIZZARD NICK PENTELOW, MIKE BURNEY, ROY WOOD
SAX SECTION with ALTO and BARITONE solos.

£3 SORROW-DAVID BOWIE DAVID BOWIE ALTO

#4 YOUR MAMA DON';T DANCE-
LOGGINS & MESSINA JON CLARKE BARITONE
AL GARTH TENOR

#16 (£10) WALK ON THE WILD SIDE-LOU REED RONNIE ROSS BARITONE

1974

#2 DO IT ('TIL YOU';RE SATISFIED)-
B.T. EXPRESS BILL RISBROOK ALTO

#29 FUNKY STUFF-KOOL & THE GANG
DENNIS "DEE TEE" THOMAS TENOR w/ HORN SECTION

#6 HOLLYWOOD SWINGING-KOOL & THE GANG SAX/BRASS SECTION
RONALD "KHALIS" BELL aka KHALIS BAYYAN (tenor sax), DENNIS "DEE TEE" THOMAS (alto sax), ROBERT "SPIKE" MICKENS (trumpet)
Per Tia Sinclair, Business Manager, Gang Touring, Inc. f/s/o Kool & The Gang

#2 JAZZMAN-CAROLE KING TOM SCOTT TENOR

£15 LAUGHTER IN THE RAIN-NEIL SEDAKA JIM HORN ALTO

#5 (£34) MOCKINGBIRD-CARLY SIMON & JAMES TAYLOR MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR

#5 OH MY MY-RINGO STARR- TOM SCOTT TENOR

#31 PAPA DON';T TAKE NO MESS-JAMES BROWN ? ALTO
CD credits-
SAINT CLAIR PINCKNEY-TENOR, DAVID SANBORN-ALTO, PEE WEE ELLIS-BARI, MACEO PARKER-ALTO, EDDIE DANIELS-REEDS, JOE FARRELL-TENOR, DAVID TOFANI-REEDS, FRANK VICARI-TENOR

#1 PLEASE MR. POSTMAN-CARPENTERS BOB MESSENGER TENOR
DOUG STRONG BARITONE

£17 SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES-
BRYAN FERRY CHRIS MERCER TENOR

#4 (£15) THE BITCH IS BACK-ELTON JOHN LENNY PICKET TENOR

£3 THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD-LULU DAVID BOWIE ALTO

#6 (£1) WATERLOO-ABBA CHRISTER EKLUND TENOR

#1 WHATEVER GETS YOU THROUGH THE NIGHT- BOBBY KEYS TENOR
JOHN LENNON with THE PLASTIC ONO NUCLEAR BAND and ELTON JOHN (backing vocal)

#39 (WE';RE GONNA) ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK-
BILL HALEY AND HIS COMETS-repopularized due to tv';s "HAPPY DAYS" JOEY D';AMBROSIA TENOR

1975

#35 BLOODY WELL RIGHT-SUPERTRAMP JOHN HELLIWELL TENOR

#23 BORN TO RUN-BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN CLARENCE CLEMONS TENOR

#10 CUT THE CAKE-AVERAGE WHITE BAND
ROGER BALL & MALCOLM "MOLLY" DUNCAN SAX SECTION

#4 EXPRESS-B.T. EXPRESS BILL RISBROOK ALTO w/HORN SECTION

#5 HOW SWEET IT IS (TO BE LOVED BY YOU)
JAMES TAYLOR DAVID SANBORN ALTO

£38 I DO, I DO, I DO, I DO, I DO-
ABBA ULF ANDERSSON SAX SECTION

#39 IF I EVER LOSE THIS HEAVEN-
AVERAGE WHITE BAND MALCOLM "MOLLY" DUNCAN TENOR

#12 IT';S A MIRACLE-BARRY MANILOW-
ARTIE KAPLAN & STAN SCHWARTZ TENOR/BARITONE

#1 LAUGHTER IN THE RAIN-NEIL SEDAKA JIM HORN ALTO

#1 (£6) LISTEN TO WHAT THE MAN SAID-WINGS
TOM SCOTT SOPRANO

£2 LOVE IS THE DRUG-ROXY MUSIC ANDY MACKAY SAX SECTION

#7 LOW RIDER─WAR CHARLES MILLER ALTO

#3 MIRACLES-JEFFERSON STARSHIP IRV COX TENOR

#22 OPERATOR-MANHATTAN TRANSFER MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR

#1 (£6) PICK UP THE PIECES-
AVERAGE WHITE BAND MALCOLM "MOLLY" DUNCAN TENOR

#5 POETRY MAN-PHOEBE SNOW ZOOT SIMS TENOR

#33 SWEET STICKY THING-
OHIO PLAYERS CLARENCE "SATCH" SATCHELL ALTO

#28 (£18) YOUNG AMERICANS-DAVID BOWIE DAVID SANBORN ALTO

1976

£17 DANCE THE BODY DANCE-
OSIBISA TEDDY OSEI TENOR
MAC TONTOH TRUMPET

#29 DID YOU BOOGIE (WITH YOUR BABY)-
FLASH CADILLAC & THE CONTINENTAL KIDS
DWIGHT BEMENT (behind Wolfman Jack';s narration) TENOR

#15 I DO, I DO, I DO, I DO, I DO-
ABBA ULF ANDERSSON SAX SECTION

£1 (IF PARADISE IS) HALF AS NICE-AMEN CORNER ? SOPRANO

£4 LET';S STICK TOGETHER-
BRYAN FERRY CHRIS MERCER TENOR

#30 LOVE IS THE DRUG-ROXY MUSIC ANDY MACKAY SAX SECTION

#40 QUEEN OF MY SOUL-
AVERAGE WHITE BAND MALCOLM "MOLLY" DUNCAN TENOR

#7 SHE';S GONE-
DARYL HALL & JOHN OATS JOE FARRELL SOPRANO
(may have been a TENOR played through a synthesizer or digitizer to take it up an octave to sound like a SOPRANO)

#1 SILLY LOVE SONGS-WINGS ? TENOR
CD saxophone credits-NORMAN RAY, THADEUS RICHARD, BILLY PUITT, HOWIE CASEY

#40 STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS-
PAUL SIMON MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR

#7 SUMMER-WAR CHARLES MILLER ALTO

£17 SUNSHINE DAY-OSIBISA TEDDY OSEI TENOR

#13 TAKING IT TO THE STREETS-
THE DOOBIE BROTHERS ANDREW WHITE TENOR

#12 THERE';S A KIND OF HUSH (ALL OVER THE WORLD)-
CARPENTERS BOB MESSENGER TENOR
JIM HORN BARITONE

#1 (£5) TONIGHT';S THE NIGHT-ROD STEWART
JERRY JUMONVILLE TENOR

£1 UNDER THE MOON OF LOVE-SHOWADDYWADDY- JEFF DALY ? TENOR
Plas Johnson and Daly were credited as guest players on this recording. Plas Johnson states that he did not perform on this recording.

#20 YOUNG HEARTS RUN FREE-CANDI STATON MICHAEL BRECKER TENOR

1977

#26 ARIEL-DEAN FRIEDMAN GEORGE YOUNG TENOR

£1 CHANSON D';AMOUR-
MANHATTEN TRANSFER JAY MIGLIORI TENOR
"Hi John, I believe that the sax player was Jay Migliori and that he was playing a tenor sax."
Best wishes,
Russ Paris, Webmaster

The Manhattan Transfer Fan Club
http://www.tmtfanclub.com
Also confirmed by Stuart Colman.

£6 DADDY COOL/THE GIRL CAN';T HELP IT
THE DARTS NIGEL TRUBRIDGE TENOR

£14 DANCIN'; IN THE MOONLIGHT (IT';S CAUGHT ME IN THE SPOTLIGHT)-THIN LIZZY JOHN HELLIWELL TENOR

#18 DAZZ-BRICK JIMMY BROWN ALTO

#11 JUST REMEMBER I LOVE YOU-FIREFALL DAVID MUSE ALTO

#1 (£1) WHEN I NEED YOU-LEO SAYER BOBBY KEYS TENOR

#15 (£29) GIVE A LITTLE BIT-SUPERTRAMP JOHN HELLIWELL ALTO

£5 NATIVE NEW YORKER-ODYSSEY MICHAEL BRECKER ? TENOR

#22 SAVE IT FOR A RAINY DAY-
STEPHEN BISHOP RAY PIZZI TENOR

#1 SIR DUKE-STEVIE WONDER
TREVOR LAURENCE (ts) HANK REDD (as) SAX SECTION w/ BRASS

#9 SMOKE FROM A DISTANT FIRE-
SANFORD/TOWNSEND BAND OTIS HALE TENOR
JON CLARKE SOPRANO

#8 (£31) YEAR OF THE CAT-AL STEWART PHIL KENZIE ALTO

1978

#28 ALMOST SUMMER-CELEBRATION CHARLES LLOYD TENOR

#2 (£3) BAKER STREET-GERRY RAFFERTY RAPHAEL RAVENSCROFT ALTO
 
#29 ·
Wow, those lists were a great walk down memory lane, as I've played many of those tunes. Used to do Baker Street in a duo (w/acoustic guitarist) on Front Street in Lahaina, Maui., and it was our "big tune", with plenty of sax soloing (as the guitarist just sang & played rhythm), we also did some Springsteen & Steely Dan, & more.

But there was always lots of saxophones in pop/rock, in fact a lot of the 50s/60s stuff had mainly sax solos. Many of the "acid rock" bands, including Hendrix, the Doors, Traffic, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, & other "classic rock" bands of that time, used saxes. Also, Top 40 radio used to have stuff like Stan Getz, Acker Bilk, etc., back in the day....

A lot of singer/songwriters also used sax solos, from Laura Nyro, Joni Mitchell, & Carole King, to Kenny Rankin, Michael Franks, & Paul Simon...

Also, many of the jammin rock bands (precursor to "jam bands") like Loggins & Messina, Jesse Colin Young, Marshall Tucker Band, Firefall, Hall & Oates, etc., all had lots of sax (& flute) soloing. And I think the solo on "She's Gone" is actually a Saxello, not a soprano or effected tenor...

Too bad the 90s kinda put a squelch on sax solos (& even guitar solos in rock)....
 
#35 ·
Baker Street was from the 70s and it made sax playing cool. There was plenty of sax about before and after this though a lot of it in pop was rock n roll revivalists which continued through the 80s. In the UK we had Shakin' Stevens, Huey Lewis & the News were big and Joe Jackson did a jive album with Pete Thomas. Madness were huge and Spandau Ballet eventually featured sax too. I'm not sure any of these guys did so because of Baker St.

In the 60s and 70s there were many bands with a horn section. Often they didn't do so well in the charts. There were fusion bands like Keef Hartley's, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Colosseum and their predecessor Graham Bond Organisation.

Pacific, Gas & Electric was one of the many bands that featured a horn section. The tenor player was called Michael Brecker who had something a successful career doing sessions with a great many people. For me his playing on the theme to Local Hero was about as iconic as Baker St.

For me it was Kenny G who kick started my interest in sax playing. It was probably the first sax tune to feature in the charts for some time. It was so different to all the synthetic pop that was around it stood out. I know a lot of people who listened to Kenny G in the early days and from there went looking for jazz. I doubt many would admit it now.
 
#36 ·
Baker Street was from the 70s and it made sax playing cool.
OK, we've heard from plenty of players who remember the 60s and/or the 70s, as well as John Laughter's discography, all of which supports that sax playing was always there, as well as popular. I would like to see what kind of empirical evidence backs up this repeated opinion that there was a dearth of sax solos in the pre-Baker Street era and that Baker Street made it suddenly cool. Suddenly cool? For who?

Just because there were some people who were unaware of everything else that was going on at the time and what had gone on before, and for whom Baker Street was an epiphany, doesn't mean that it was a universal wake up call.
 
#38 ·
I don't really know how to answer Gary. After Baker St a whole bunch of sax solos with that echo chamber buzz sound got on top 40 radio. Maybe it's just a matter of perception, but things did change for the better for sax leading up to Kenny G. No matter what you think of the G man, he is probably the top selling instrumentalist in human history, and no one will ever match him. That is good for the sax.
 
#40 ·
I don't know, I have to agree with some of the others, that Baker Street, which as pointed out, doesn't really have a sax "solo", but is just a sax line, as many tunes previously had plenty of, from Springsteen to all the blues cats, to 50s/60s boogie-woogie-ish rock.

In terms of true pop, I think Phil Woods' great solo, which drove that Billy Joel tune to #1, may have been a major moment, but I'd have to look back chronologically to see if necessarily upped the number of sax solos on Top 40 tunes. I know the Doobie Brothers added a sax to their sound around that time, but probably had more to do with Michael McDonald's influence, etc.

I think while a spike here or there may have occurred, sax has pretty much been present in much of popular music, that is, until the last twenty years or so.... And yes, Kenny G's popularity certainly did open the doors for instrumental saxophone music, and many sax players getting record deals. The fact none have come anywhere close to his success pretty much affirms that his "stardom" was based on a number of other unique factors, directly & indirectly attributable to him, aside from strictly sax-based instrumental music.
 
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