Greg Osby
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Osby performing in 2008
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| Background information | |
| Born | (1960-08-03) August 3, 1960 (age 63) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Genres | Free jazz, free funk, M-Base |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, record label owner |
| Instrument(s) | Saxophone |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Labels | JMT, Blue Note, Inner Circle Music |
| Website | www |
Greg Osby (born August 3, 1960[1]) is an American saxophonist and composer.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Osby studied at Howard University, then at the Berklee College of Music.[1] He moved to New York City in 1982, where he played with Jaki Byard, Jim Hall, Muhal Richard Abrams, Andrew Hill, Jack DeJohnette, Dizzy Gillespie, and Herbie Hancock.[2] In 1985, he joined DeJohnette's group Special Edition.[2] With Geri Allen, Steve Coleman, Gary Thomas, and Cassandra Wilson, he was a founding member of the M-Base Collective.[3]
Osby began recording albums under his own name for JMT Records in the mid-1980s, then signed with Blue Note in 1989.[2] In 2007, he formed his own label, Inner Circle Music.[2] He gave exposure to young pianist Jason Moran,[4] who appeared on most of Osby's 1990s albums, including Further Ado, Zero, Banned in New York and Symbols of Light, a double quartet featuring the addition of a string quartet to the band.[5]
He has also played with Phil Lesh and Friends, and he has toured with the Dead, a reincarnation of the Grateful Dead.[6] He received the Playboy Magazine Jazz Artist of the Year award for 2004 and 2009.[7]
Nate Chinen, writing for The New York Times, called Osby "a mentor and a pacesetter, one of the sturdier bridges between jazz generations," and stated that he has "a keen, focused tone on alto saxophone and a hummingbird's phrasing, an equilibrium of hover and flutter."[8]
| Recording date | Title | Label | Year released | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987-05, 1987-06 |
Greg Osby and Sound Theatre | JMT | 1987 | |
| 1988-05 | Mindgames | JMT | 1988 | |
| 1989-07 | Season of Renewal | JMT | 1989 | |
| 1990-10, 1990-11 |
Man-Talk for Moderns Vol. X | Blue Note | 1991 | |
| 1993? | 3-D Lifestyles | Blue Note | 1993 | |
| 1995? | Black Book | Blue Note | 1995 | |
| 1996? | Art Forum | Blue Note | 1996 | |
| 1997? | Further Ado | Blue Note | 1997 | |
| 1997-12 | Banned in New York | Blue Note | 1998 | Live |
| 1998-01 | Zero | Blue Note | 1998 | |
| 1998-12 | Friendly Fire | Blue Note | 1999 | with Joe Lovano, Jason Moran, Cameron Brown, Idriss Muhammad |
| 1999-04 | Inner Circle | Blue Note | 2002 | with Stefon Harris, Jason Moran, Tarus Mateen, Eric Harland |
| 1999-05 | New Directions | Blue Note | 2000 | with Stefon Harris, Jason Moran, Mark Shim |
| 1999-09 | The Invisible Hand | Blue Note | 2000 | with Gary Thomas, Andrew Hill, Jim Hall, Scott Colley, Terri Lyne Carrington |
| 2001-01 | Symbols of Light (A Solution) | Blue Note | 2001 | with Jason Moran, Scott Colley, Marlon Browden, Nioka Workman, Judith Insell, Marlene Rice, Christian Howes |
| 2003-01 | St. Louis Shoes | Blue Note | 2003 | |
| 2004-01 | Public | Blue Note | 2004 | Live |
| 2005-02 | Channel Three | Blue Note | 2005 | with Jeff "Tain" Watts, Matt Brewer |
| 2008-08 | 9 Levels | Inner Circle Music | 2008 | |
| 2023-10 | Minimalism | Inner Circle Music | 2023 | with Tal Cohen, João Barradas, Nimrod Speaks, Adam Arruda, Viktorija Pilatovic, Alessandra Diodati |
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With Franco Ambrosetti
With Uri Caine
With Gary Thomas
With Andrew Hill
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With others
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Years given are for the recording(s), not first release, unless stated otherwise. | |
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| Live albums |
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| International |
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| National |
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