|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 Tuesday, 09 February 2010 |
|
Reggie Houston |
|
|
|
Written by Administrator
|
|
Sunday, 08 January 2006 |
 Reggie Houston was born in New Orleans in 1947, to Ralph Houston, a
pianist and acoustic bassist, and Margarete, who was both an educator
and social activist. Although both parents discouraged him from
pursuing a career in music, Reggie's destiny was shaped by a childhood
spent in one of the most exciting and prominent music scenes in
American history, and by the age of 10 Reggie insisted on studying the
saxophone. His first professional gig came at the age of 12 when he
joined the Batiste family band, The Gladiators, who are now considered
one of the preeminent and pioneering bands of funk.
After his graduation in 1973,
while working for the he New Orleans Jazz and
Heritage Festival, Reggie continued to gig with artists
like New Orleans' soul queen Irma Thomas.
In 1982 Reggie joined The Survivors, whose other original core members
included keyboardist Sam Henry, drummer Zigaboo Modeliste, Charles
Neville, Charmaine Neville, and Ramsy McLean. Other players with The
Survivors included guitar virtuoso Steve Masakowski, drummer Ricky
Sebastian, and Bobby McFerrin. And none other than a teen-aged Harry
Connick Jr. had his very first road gig with The Survivors.
Reggie became a permenent member of Fats Domino's band for 22 years,
and toured the world with them until 1988 when he took a three year
hiatus from the band. During that hiatus, Dr. John, with whom Reggie
occassionally giged, offered Reggie the baritone sax chair in his band,
but by that time Reggie, who had been playing sax with Charmaine
Neville, had accepted her offer to lead her band, which he did until
moving to Portland in 2004. Guided by Reggie's experience, and with no
small contribution from world class pianist Amasa Miller, Charmaine
finally received the recognition that her incomparible vocal mastery
deserved. And The Charmaine Neville Band rose to prominence in New
Orleans and throughout the world.
Today Reggie calls Oregon home and gigs regularly in town with his own
bands, Reggie's Box of Chocolates and Reggie Houston's Earth Island
Band. The Box of Chocolates plays a wide-ranging and eclectic mix of
everything from originals to jazz standards to early rock-n-roll and
features Reggie on sax and vocals, Tim Acott on bass, Turtle Vandemarr
on guitar and vocals, and guest musicians Mike Danner, Gary Gunther,
and keyboardist Dover Weinberg. Reggie first started The Earth Island
Band back in New Orleans with Amasa Miller, and recreated the same
high-spirited funky and soulful sound in Portland with a whole new cast
of players including D.K. Stewart on keyboards, Reinhardt Melz on
drums, and Gary Fountaine on electric bass.o
For more info see website
www.reggiehouston.com.
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| |
More Cities 
Home | New and Notable | Photo Galleries | CD/DVD/Book Reviews | Interviews | SF Bay Area | Chicago | Los Angeles | New York | Twin Cities, MN | More Cities | Festivals | News | Contact | Follow Jazz Police on Twitter | 
