Kenny Gorelick

Kenny Gorelick born June 5, 1956, better known as Kenny G, who is to me the one number one American saxophonist in your time. His fourth album, Duotones, brought him "breakthrough success" in 1986. Kenny's main instrument is the soprano saxophone, but he also plays the alto saxophone,tenor saxophone, and flute on occasion.

Kenny G. was born in Seattle, Washington. He first came into contact with a saxophone when he heard someone performing with one on The Ed Sullivan Show. He learned how to play by practicing along with records trying to emulate the sounds that he was hearing. At Franklin High School he failed to get into the jazz band when he applied, although was accepted the following year when he tried again. He also played for his high school golf team,a sport which he had loved ever since his older brother, Brian Gorelick, introduced it to him when he was ten years old.

He began his career as a musician when he acquired his first professional job as saxaphone soloist for Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra in 1976 at the age of 17, while studying for a major in accounting at the same time. After he graduated from the University of Washington he played with the funk band Cold, Bold & Together before becoming a credited member of The Jeff Lorber Fusion. He began his solo career after his period with Lorber.

In 1982 Kenny G signed with Arista Records as a solo artist, after being heard by the president of the label, at that time Clive Davis. He has released many solo albums and collaborated with various artists including Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, Natalie Cole, Steve Miller and Aretha Franklin. Influenced by the likes of Grover Washington, Jr., his own albums are usually classified as smooth jazz.

He received success quite early on, with both G Force and Gravity, his second and third studio albums respectively, achieving platinum status in the United States. These sales were topped by his fourth studio album, Duotones, which shifted over five million copies in the U.S. alone. His fifth studio album, Breathless his first holiday album, Miracles, sold over 13 million copies, making it the most successful Christmas album to date.

As of 2003, Kenny G was named the 25th-highest selling artist in America by the RIAA, with 48 million albums sold in the USA as of July 31, 2006. In 1994, Kenny G won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition for Forever in Love.