Thank you for your generous donation and loving thoughts to St. Jude children and their families. Your gift to St. Jude honors the legacy of David Sanborn – husband, father, friend and world-famous saxophonist.
When David Sanborn was young, he contracted polio and was left so weak, he turned to the saxophone to help strengthen his lungs. It proved a fortuitous means of recovery. He studied music at Northwestern University and the University of Iowa, then began to make professional strides in the 1960s, when he played with The Paul Butterfield Blues Band. He even played the famed Woodstock music festival with the group.
After joining the Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the 1960s Sanborn began a long, fruitful partnership with Miles Davis’ arranger Gil Evans. Then in 1975, the release of “Taking Off” marked the beginning of Sanborn’s solo career.
His 1980 LP “Hideaway” was steeped in funk and raw production (the track “The Seduction” was a theme for the film “American Gigolo”) and kicked off a decade-long bestseller streak that included 1981’s “Voyeur” and “As We Speak,” 1983’s “Backstreet,” 1984’s live LP “Straight to the Heart” and 1988’s “Close Up,” which incorporated electronics.
In 1991, Sanborn released “Another Hand,” perhaps his most beloved album among core jazz traditionalists. Later in his career, Sanborn returned to his genre-expansive roots on albums like 2015’s “Time and the River,” an acclaimed LP that spanned Latin, African and soul rhythms, and was his most recent studio recording of new material.
Beyond music, Sanborn pursued a variety of TV and film opportunities. From 1988 to 1990, he and pianist Jools Holland co-hosted the late-night TV series “Night Music” (also known as “Sunday Night Live”), which platformed musicians including Sonny Rollins, Sun Ra and Sonic Youth.
He regularly hosted the “After New Year’s Eve” TV special on ABC and fronted his own syndicated jazz program. The saxophonist wrote scores for the “Lethal Weapon” film franchise and frequently joined David Letterman’s live band. Most recently he hosted the podcast “As We Speak” from WBGO Studios.
Over the course of his career, Sanborn earned 16 Grammy Award nominations and six wins, including honors for his albums “Straight to the Heart” and “Double Vision,” a collaboration with keyboardist Bob James. Sanborn released 25 albums, including eight that went gold and one that achieved platinum status.
Sanborn is survived by his wife, Alice Soyer Sanborn, his son, Jonathan Sanborn, daughter-in-law, Rosie Sanborn. Survivors also include two granddaughters, his sisters Sallie Sanborn and Barb Sanborn, brother-in-law Steve Friedman and nephew Noah Friedman.
St. Jude is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Thank you for supporting their lifesaving efforts and keeping David’s memory alive through this special fund