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george howard

George Howard

b. George Howard, 15th September 1957, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

d. 20th March 1998, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

George Howard began his musical career in the late '70's.

Prior to that George had undertaken session work for Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, First Choice and Blue Magic.

He received his first break when Grover Washington Jr., one of his musical idols, invited him on a tour in 1979.

The tour helped establish Howard's name, and in 1982 he released his debut album, 'Asphalt Garden', on Palo Alto.

The record was a moderate hit, as was its follow-up, 1984's 'Steppin' Out'.

That album featured the talents of Dean Gant, Keni Burke, Ndugu and the late Gwen Guthrie.

It wasn't until the 1985 release of 'Dancing in the Sun' that Howard earned a large audience.

Here he collaborated with Siedah Garrett and former members of the group Maze.

The album reached number one on the contemporary jazz charts.

Following the release of 'Dancing In the Sun', he moved to MCA, where he issued 'A Nice Place to Be', 'Reflections', 'Personal' and 'Love Will Follow'.

'Personal' featured a guest appearance from Syreeta.

All four records were considerable successes on the charts. In 1991, Howard signed to GRP, releasing his debut 'Love and Understanding' that year.

It was followed by 'Do I Cross Your Mind' in 1992 and 'When Summer Comes' in 1993.

'A Home Far Away' was released in 1994, and 'Attitude Adjustment' was issued in 1996.

All of his GRP recordings were quite successful, confirming his place among the most popular contemporary jazz performers of the '90's.

His first five years with GRP, plus a selection of his MCA recordings, were summarized on 1997's 'The Very Best of George Howard'.

Howard returned to recording with 'Midnight Mood', which was released in January 1998.

Sadly, it was the last record he would release in his lifetime.

He died from colon cancer 20th March 1998.

A few months later, his last recording, a version of Sly Stone's 'There's A Riot Goin' On', which was conceived as part of Blue Note's cover series.

Real Player

Albums:

Asphalt Gardens (Palo Alto Records 1982)

Steppin' Out (GRP Records 1984)

Dancing in the Sun (TBA Records 1985)

A Nice Place to Be (MCA Records 1986)

Personal (MCA Records 1989)

Love Will Follow (GRP Records 1991)

Love and Understanding (GRP Records 1992)

Do I Ever Cross Your Mind? (GRP Records 1992)

When Summer Comes (GRP Records 1993)

Home Far Away (GRP Records 1994)

Attitude Adjustment (GRP Records 1995)

Midnight Mood (GRP Records 1998)

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