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Bob James

The infectiously slick, melodic grooves of pianist Bob James were a staple of the smooth jazz scene in the 1970s and later became one of the strutting sounds of early hip-hop when his work was sampled by Run DMC, NWA and Wu-Tang Clan. A natural musician with perfect pitch, he started playing at the age of four and grew up performing at state fairs and local dances, before studying at the University of Michigan and Berklee College of Music, where he fell into the world of free jazz. He was discovered by Quincy Jones at the Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival in 1962 and signed to ...