Marcus Miller | |
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 Miller performing in 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (1959-06-14)June 14, 1959 (age 66) New York City, U.S. |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1975–present |
| Website | marcusmiller |
William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He has worked with trumpeterMiles Davis, pianistHerbie Hancock, singerLuther Vandross, and saxophonistsWayne Shorter andDavid Sanborn, among others.[1][2][3] He was the main songwriter and producer on three of Davis's albums:Tutu (1986),Music from Siesta (1987), andAmandla (1989). His collaboration with Vandross was especially close; he co-produced and served as the arranger for most of Vandross's albums, and he and Vandross co-wrote many songs, including the hits "I Really Didn't Mean It", "Any Love", "Power of Love/Love Power" and "Don't Want to Be a Fool". Miller also co-wrote the 1988 single "Da Butt" forExperience Unlimited.
William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. was born in theBrooklyn borough of New York City on June 14, 1959.[4] He grew up in a musical family; his father, William Miller, was a church organist and choir director. Through his father, he is a cousin of jazz pianistWynton Kelly.[5] He became classically trained as a clarinetist and later learned to play keyboards, saxophone, and guitar.
Miller began to work regularly in New York City, eventually playing bass and writing music for jazz flautistBobbi Humphrey and keyboardistLonnie Liston Smith. Miller's earliest influences includeJames Jamerson andLarry Graham.[6] He spent approximately 15 years performing as asession musician. During that time he also arranged and produced frequently. He was a member of theSaturday Night Live band between 1979 and 1981.[7][8] He co-wroteAretha Franklin's "Jump To It" along with Luther Vandross,[7] and sang alongside Vandross on the 1986David Bowie single "Underground" from the movieLabyrinth.[9] Miller has played bass on more than 500 recordings, appearing on albums by such artists asMichael Jackson,Beyoncé,Herbie Hancock,Mariah Carey,Eric Clapton,The Crusaders,Wayne Shorter,McCoy Tyner,Frank Sinatra,George Benson,Dr. John, Aretha Franklin,Elton John,Joe Walsh,Jean-Michel Jarre,Grover Washington Jr.,Donald Fagen,Bill Withers,Bernard Wright,Kazumi Watanabe,Chaka Khan,LL Cool J andFlavio Sala.[2][10][11] Miller won the "Most Valuable Player" award (given byNARAS to recognize studio musicians) three years in a row and was subsequently awarded "player emeritus" status and retired from eligibility.
In the mid-1980s, Miller began a solo career as a funk/R&B singer, with the albumsSuddenly (1983) andMarcus Miller (1984). He was the main songwriter, producer and instrumentalist on these albums. He has since then released ten more solo albums, although he has only occasionally sung on these subsequent albums.[citation needed]
Between 1988 and 1990, Miller was the musical director and house band bass player (in the "Sunday Night Band") during two seasons of the late-night TV showSunday Night (also known asNight Music) onNBC, hosted by David Sanborn andJools Holland.[12][13]
As a composer, Miller co-wrote and produced several songs on theMiles Davis albumTutu, including the title track.[14][15] He also composed "Chicago Song" forDavid Sanborn and co-wrote "'Til My Baby Comes Home", "It's Over Now", "For You to Love", and "Power of Love" for Luther Vandross. Miller also wrote "Da Butt", which was featured inSpike Lee'sSchool Daze.[2][10] In addition, he composed and provided spoken vocals on "Burn it Up", which was featured onNajee's 1992 albumJust An Illusion.
In 1997, Miller played bass guitar and bass clarinet in thesupergroup Legends, featuringEric Clapton (guitars and vocals),Joe Sample (piano), David Sanborn (alto sax) andSteve Gadd (drums).[2] It was an 11-date tour of major jazz festivals in Europe. In 2008 Miller formed another supergroup,SMV, with fellow bassistsStanley Clarke andVictor Wooten, for a world tour lasting 18 months.[16] He produced SMV's first release,Thunder.[17] In the summer of 2011, Miller toured alongside Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter celebrating Miles Davis on the 20th anniversary of his death.
In 2017, Miller, along withCommon, headlined thePlayboy Jazz Festival.[18]
Miller hosts a jazz history and influences show calledMiller Time with Marcus Miller on the Real Jazz channel ofSirius XM Holdingssatellite radio system.[19] In addition to his recording and performance career, Miller has established a parallel career as afilm score composer. He has written numerous scores for films, including films directed byReginald Hudlin andChris Rock.[20][21]
Miller speaks French and Spanish, which he started learning in his late 40s. He has been known to speak it fluently during interviews, and has introduced songs such as "Preacher's Kid" – a story about his father, in concerts.[22]
Miller has been nominated for numerousGrammy Awards as a producer forMiles Davis,Luther Vandross,David Sanborn,Bob James,Chaka Khan andWayne Shorter, and has won two Grammys. He won aGrammy Award for Best R&B Song in 1992, for Luther Vandross' "Power of Love" and in 2001 he won forBest Contemporary Jazz Album for his seventh solo instrumental album,M².[23] His 2015 albumAfrodeezia earned a Grammy Award nomination forBest Contemporary Instrumental Album.[24][25][26]
In 2012, Miller was appointed aUNESCO Artist for Peace, supporting and promoting the UNESCO Slave Route Project.
In December 2021,Bass Player magazine awarded Miller a Lifetime Achievement Award.[27]
Miller plays a transparent blonde finish 1977Fender Jazz Bass that was modified by luthierRoger Sadowsky with the addition of a Stars Guitar and later a Bartolini TCT preamp[28] so he could control his sound in the studio.[29]Fender started to produce a Marcus Miller signature Fender Jazz Bass in four-string (made in Japan) and five-string (made in U.S) versions.[30] Later, Fender moved the production of the four-string to their Mexico factory[31] and discontinued both four- and five-string models in 2015. DR Strings also produced a series of Marcus Miller signature stainless-steel strings known as "Fat Beams", which come in a variety of sizes.[32]In 2015, the Korean company Sire Guitars began the production and sale of the Marcus Miller V7, a signature model based on Miller’s previous Fender Jazz bass. They have since expanded their range to include a wider array of body shapes, styles, and price points. Also in 2015,Dunlop began producing Marcus Miller Super Bright bass strings which Miller switched to.[33]
| Year | Title | US | US | US | US | US | UK | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Suddenly | Warner Bros. | ||||||
| 1984 | Marcus Miller | |||||||
| 1993 | The Sun Don't Lie | 93 | 10 | 7 | Dreyfus Jazz | |||
| 1995 | Tales | 12 | 7 | 2[35] | ||||
| 2001 | M² | 2 | 1 | 27 | 6[36] | Telarc | ||
| 2002 | The Ozell Tapes | Dreyfus Jazz | ||||||
| 2005 | Silver Rain | 5 | 2 | 15 | Koch | |||
| 2007 | Free | Dreyfus Jazz | ||||||
| 2008 | Marcus | 191 | 29 | 7 | 3 | Concord | ||
| 2008 | Thunder withSMV | Heads Up | ||||||
| 2012 | Renaissance | 170 | 1 | 1 | 17[37] | Concord | ||
| 2015 | Afrodeezia | 3 | 1 | 6[38] | Blue Note | |||
| 2018 | Laid Black | 1 | 1 | 12[39] |
| Year | Title | US | US | UK | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Dreyfus Night in Paris withMichel Petrucciani,Biréli Lagrène,Kenny Garrett andLenny White | Dreyfus Jazz | |||
| 1996 | Live & More | 8 | 6 | 10[40] | GRP |
| 2002 | The Ozell Tapes Live: The Official Bootleg | 26[41] | Telarc | ||
| 2009 | A Night in Monte Carlo – Live 2009 | 16 | 10 | Dreyfus Jazz |
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot R&B/ Hip-Hop Songs [42] | Smooth Jazz Airplay [43] | Dance Club Songs [44] | Adult R&B Airplay [45] | |||
| 1983 | "Lovin' You" | 55 | — | — | — | Suddenly |
| 1984 | "My Best Friend's Girlfriend" | 53 | — | 36 | — | Marcus Miller |
| 2008 | "Free" (Marcus Miller featuringCorinne Bailey Rae) | — | 9 | — | 19 | Marcus |
| 2012 | "Detroit" (Marcus Miller) | — | 14 | — | — | Renaissance |
| 2019 | "Korogocho" (Kirk Whalum featuring Marcus Miller and Barry Likumahuwa) | — | 5 | — | — | Kirk Whalum –Humanité |
| 2021 | "The City That Never Sleeps" (Philippe Saisse featuring Marcus Miller) | — | 18 | — | — | Philippe Saisse – (Non-album single) |
| 2025 | "On the Road" (Brian Culbertson featuring Marcus Miller andSheila E.) | — | 1 | — | — | Brian Culbertson –Day Trip |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart. | ||||||
Tutu Revisited – Live 2010
TheJamaica Boys
WithMindi Abair
WithJoan Armatrading
WithAztec Camera
WithBee Gees
WithGeorge Benson
WithJonatha Brooke
WithPeabo Bryson andRoberta Flack
WithPeabo Bryson
WithJimmy Buffett
WithJonathan Butler
WithMariah Carey
WithFelix Cavaliere
WithNatalie Cole
WithLinda Clifford
WithMiles Davis
WithWill Downing
WithRoberta Flack
WithMichael Franks
WithWhitney Houston
WithBilly Idol
WithPaul Jabara
WithAl Jarreau andGeorge Benson
WithAl Jarreau
WithDr. John
WithElton John
WithToby Keith
WithChaka Khan
WithBen E. King
WithJulian Lennon
WithCheryl Lynn
WithRichard Marx
WithMichael McDonald
WithStephanie Mills
WithMelba Moore
WithKeb' Mo'
WithOdyssey
WithLou Rawls
WithDavid Sanborn
WithBoz Scaggs
WithJanis Siegel
WithCarly Simon
WithPaul Simon
WithFrank Sinatra
WithThe Spinners
WithThe Temptations
WithKenny Vance
WithDionne Warwick
WithWas (Not Was)
WithBill Withers
With others
In 2017, Miller appeared on the Armenian talk showNice Evening.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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