John Medeski
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| John Medeski | ||
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 John Medeski in concert
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Anthony John Medeski | |
| Born | 28 June 1965 | |
| Genre(s) | Jazz | |
| Instrument(s) | Keyboards, piano | |
| Associated acts |
Medeski Martin & Wood | |
| Website | Medeski Martin & Wood official website | |
Anthony John Medeski (b. 28 June 1965) is an American jazz keyboards player and composer. He plays the acoustic piano and an eclectic array of keyboards, including the Hammond B-3 organ, melodica, mellotron, clavinet, ARP String Ensemble, Wurlitzer Electric Piano, Moog Voyager Synthesizer, Wurlitzer 7300 Combo Organ, and Yamaha CS-1 Synthesizer (a "kids' toy"), among others.
Medeski was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and grew up in Florida. After piano lessons (starting when he was five years old), he began as a teenager to perform with musicians such as Mark Murphy and Jaco Pastorius. In 1983 began studying piano at the New England Conservatory in Boston, where he also performed as a sideman with Dewey Redman, Billy Higgins, Bob Mintzer, Alan Dawson, and Mr. Jellybelly.
Highly technically gifted, but also soulful, Medeski seems equally at home performing in accessible groove based funk/jazz (some MMW albums and A Go Go with John Scofield) as he is in the more experimental side of things; such as John Zorn's Electric Masada or his collaboration with David Fiuczynski, Lunar Crush.
Medeski is best known for his work with Medeski Martin & Wood, often known as MMW, with drummer/percussionist Billy Martin and bassist Chris Wood. The trio was formed in New York in 1991 and has been on the cutting edge of Funk/Jazz. Collaborating with such musicians as Trey Anastasio and John Scofield, the band has become one of the faces of modern Jazz.
In 2000, Medeski collaborated on The Word. A traditional southern rock band with members Robert Randolph (pedal steel) from Robert Randolph and the Family Band, brothers Luther Dickinson (guitar) and Cody Dickinson (drums), and Chris Chew (bass) of North Mississippi Allstars. The band released a self titled album and toured in support. The band reunited in the summer of 2005 at the Bonnaroo Music Festival. This was the first time since 2001. Robert Randolph has mentioned that The Word will tour sometime in 2007.
During the Trey Anastasio Band 2001-2002 tour, Medeski played organ when original keyboardist Ray Paczkowski was unable to play.
Medeski was a guest on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz radio program on September 27, 2005. During the show he talked at length about his formal training on the piano, his approach to playing music, and some of the musicians that he admires the most. He performed several songs by Thelonious Monk and other composers, as well as the Medeski, Martin & Wood classic "Bubblehouse". The show was released on CD on April 4, 2006.
On July 14, 2006, John Medeski & The Itch performed their debut gig at the All Good Music Festival in Masontown, WV. "The Itch" consists of Eric Krasno (guitar) of Soulive and Adam Deitch (drums) with Medeski playing a B3 Organ.
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