Mindi Abair
Encyclopedia
Mindi Abair is an American smooth jazz
saxophonist with a strong Top-40 pop music
background. Mindi has toured and/or recorded with the Backstreet Boys
, Duran Duran
, Mandy Moore
, Josh Groban
, Adam Sandler
, Keb' Mo'
, Lalah Hathaway
, Lee Ritenour
, Teena Marie
, John Tesh
, Bobby Lyle
, Jonathan Butler
, Peter White
and Rick Braun
.
In 1999 she independently released a pop album, Always and Never the Same.
In 2003, Abair moved from pop
to jazz. She signed to Verve Records
and released the album It Just Happens That Way, which peaked at #7 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart and remained in the Top 10 for 19 consecutive weeks. Billboard magazine named It Just Happens That Way one of the top 10 Contemporary Jazz CDs of the year. Her hit single “Lucy’s,” was #1 on R&R for a record-breaking eight weeks. Her 2004 release Come As You Are peaked at #9 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz charts. Her 2006 release Life Less Ordinary peaked at #2 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart and remained in the top 20 for 45 weeks. Her songs “True Blue” and “Bloom” hit #1 on R&R. She signed to Concord Records
in 2007, and her latest 2008 release Stars broke the usual genre barriers, with her single “Stars” (written and produced by Matthew Hager
) charting #29 Adult Contemporary R&R simultaneously with her single “Smile” hitting top ten on the R&R jazz airplay charts.
In 2010, Abair released a CD called "In Hi-Fi Stereo," produced by Rex Rideout.
Abair also plays the flute and keyboard and sings, and she has hosted the nationally syndicated radio
program Chill with Mindi Abair since 2007, which focuses on chill out music
.
Since April 23, 2005, she has been married to guitarist Jason Steele.
, a jazz program started by Rich Matteson
(North Texas State University). She then transferred to Berklee College of Music
in Boston, Massachusetts, where she attended on scholarship and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Woodwind Performance. During her years at Berklee, Mindi studied with Joe Viola and George Garzone
on saxophone. She formed her first band in college.
in 1991, Mindi moved to Los Angeles, where she began booking her band into clubs, coffee shops and hotels. She played solo on the street at 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica and garnered the attention of jazz keyboardist Bobby Lyle
, who hired her to record on his “Power of Touch” CD and tour with him. Her touring possibilities expanded over the next decade, as she toured as a saxophonist/singer and keyboardist with Adam Sandler
, John Tesh
, Jonathan Butler
, Teena Marie
, Rick Braun
, and Bobby Lyle
.
She was featured on saxophone in the Go West
video “Tell Me”. And in 1996, on Adam Sandler’s HBO Special, and recorded on his platinum CD “What’s Your Name?” playing the saxophone solo on “The Lonesome Kicker” and singing on various tracks.
In 1999, Mindi joined the Backstreet Boys
for their Millennium World Tour, and spent the next year and a half as their saxophonist, keyboardist and percussionist. She put together Mandy Moore
’s first band, and acted as musical director, keyboardist, background singer and percussionist for many of her first television appearances and shows.
On her off time from touring, Mindi released her first complete solo record “Always and Never the Same” independently.
season as a soloist with Paul McDonald
and Casey Abrams
and playing behind contestants Jacob Lusk
and Haley Reinhart
. Steven Tyler
remarked to Paul McDonald after her debut on the show “Forget you, who’s your sax player?”
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
saxophonist with a strong Top-40 pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
background. Mindi has toured and/or recorded with the Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys
The Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys...
, Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
, Mandy Moore
Mandy Moore
Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore is an American singer-songwriter, actress and fashion designer. Moore became famous as a teenager in the late 1990s, after the release of her teen pop albums So Real, I Wanna Be with You, and Mandy Moore. In 2007, she took an adult pop-folk direction with the release of...
, Josh Groban
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow "Josh" Groban is an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. His four solo albums have been certified at least multi-platinum, and in 2007, he was charted as the number-one best selling artist in the United States with over 21 million records in that country...
, Adam Sandler
Adam Sandler
Adam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, musician, and film producer.After becoming a Saturday Night Live cast member, Sandler went on to star in several Hollywood feature films that grossed over $100 million at the box office...
, Keb' Mo'
Keb' Mo'
Keb' Mo is an American blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter, currently living in Nashville, Tennessee, United States.-Early life:From early on he had an appreciation for the blues and gospel music...
, Lalah Hathaway
Lalah Hathaway
Eulaulah Donyll Hathaway best known as Lalah Hathaway referred to as the First Daughter of Soul, is a contemporary R&B and jazz singer. She is the daughter of soul singer Donny Hathaway and a classically trained vocalist. In 1990, Lalah Hathaway released a self-titled album. The album's first...
, Lee Ritenour
Lee Ritenour
Lee Mack Ritenour is an American jazz guitarist who has recorded over 42 albums, appeared on over 3000 sessions, and has charted over 30 instrumental and vocal contemporary jazz hits since 1976. One of his most popular songs was the smash hit, “Is It You” in 1981. Ritenour is considered to be a...
, Teena Marie
Teena Marie
Mary Christine Brockert, better known by her stage name Teena Marie, was an American singer, songwriter and producer...
, John Tesh
John Tesh
John Frank Tesh is an American pianist and composer of pop music, as well as a radio host and television presenter. His 10-year-old 'Intelligence for Your Life Radio Show' reaches 14.2 Million listeners/week, and is syndicated by Teshmedia on 400 stations in US, Canada, and the UK...
, Bobby Lyle
Bobby Lyle
Bobby Lyle is a jazz, soul jazz, and smooth jazz pianist. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee but grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota in a home near the corner of Park Avenue and 32nd Street. His father, reportedly, was a sports writer for the Star Tribune newspaper.He had his first gig at 16 and...
, Jonathan Butler
Jonathan Butler
Jonathan Butler is a singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music is often classified as R&B, jazz fusion or worship music.-Biography:...
, Peter White
Peter White (musician)
Peter White is a smooth jazz and jazz fusion guitarist. He also plays the accordion and the piano. His brother, Danny White, was one of the original members who formed the UK based band Matt Bianco.-Career:...
and Rick Braun
Rick Braun
Rick Braun is a smooth jazz trumpet player.Before embarking on a solo career, Braun got his start by playing in several bands, including guitarist Jeff Golub's Avenue Blue...
.
In 2003, Abair moved from pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
to jazz. She signed to Verve Records
Verve Records
Verve Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded by Norman Granz in 1956, absorbing the catalogues of his earlier labels, Clef Records and Norgran Records , and material which had been licensed to Mercury previously.-Jazz and folk origins:The Verve...
and released the album It Just Happens That Way, which peaked at #7 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart and remained in the Top 10 for 19 consecutive weeks. Billboard magazine named It Just Happens That Way one of the top 10 Contemporary Jazz CDs of the year. Her hit single “Lucy’s,” was #1 on R&R for a record-breaking eight weeks. Her 2004 release Come As You Are peaked at #9 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz charts. Her 2006 release Life Less Ordinary peaked at #2 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Chart and remained in the top 20 for 45 weeks. Her songs “True Blue” and “Bloom” hit #1 on R&R. She signed to Concord Records
Concord Records
Concord Records is a U.S. record label now based in Beverly Hills, California. Originally known as Concord Jazz, it was established in 1972 as an off-shoot of the Concord Jazz Festival in Concord, California by festival founder Carl Jefferson, a local automobile dealer and jazz fan who sold his...
in 2007, and her latest 2008 release Stars broke the usual genre barriers, with her single “Stars” (written and produced by Matthew Hager
Matthew Hager
Matthew Hager is a multi platinum American record producer, musician and songwriterOriginally from Houston, Texas Hager now lives in Los Angeles. Before moving to Los Angeles, Hager studied at the prestigious Berklee College Of Music...
) charting #29 Adult Contemporary R&R simultaneously with her single “Smile” hitting top ten on the R&R jazz airplay charts.
In 2010, Abair released a CD called "In Hi-Fi Stereo," produced by Rex Rideout.
Abair also plays the flute and keyboard and sings, and she has hosted the nationally syndicated radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
program Chill with Mindi Abair since 2007, which focuses on chill out music
Chill out music
Chill out music is an umbrella term for several styles of electronic music characterized by their mellow style and mid-tempo beats — "chill" being derived from a slang injunction to "relax."Chill out music emerged in the early and mid-1990s in "chill rooms" at dance clubs, where relaxing music...
.
Since April 23, 2005, she has been married to guitarist Jason Steele.
Early life
Mindi Abair was born in St. Petersburg, Florida and spent much of her early life on the road with her father’s band, The Entertainers. She came from musical roots. Her father, Lance Abair, played saxophone and keyboards, and her grandmother Virginia Rice was an opera singer, piano and vocal instructor. She started playing the piano at age five, and started playing alto saxophone at the age of 8 when her elementary school band instructor laid out instruments on the first day of band class and instructed each student to pick the instrument they most wanted to play. She acted as drum major of her high school marching band her junior and senior years of high school. And as a senior in high school, she auditioned and won the 1st chair alto saxophone for the Florida All-State Jazz Band. Mindi spent her first year of college on a full scholarship at the University of North FloridaUniversity of North Florida
The University of North Florida is a public university located in Jacksonville, Florida. A member institution of the State University System of Florida, the university is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master’s...
, a jazz program started by Rich Matteson
Rich Matteson
Rich A. Matteson, was an American jazz artist, collegiate music educator, international jazz clinician, big band leader, and jazz composer/arranger...
(North Texas State University). She then transferred to Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
in Boston, Massachusetts, where she attended on scholarship and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Woodwind Performance. During her years at Berklee, Mindi studied with Joe Viola and George Garzone
George Garzone
George Garzone is a saxophonist and jazz educator residing in New York city.Saxophonist George Garzone is a member of The Fringe, a jazz trio founded in 1972 that includes bassist John Lockwood and drummer Bob Gullotti, that performs regularly in the Boston area and has toured world wide. The...
on saxophone. She formed her first band in college.
Early career
After graduation from Berklee College of MusicBerklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
in 1991, Mindi moved to Los Angeles, where she began booking her band into clubs, coffee shops and hotels. She played solo on the street at 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica and garnered the attention of jazz keyboardist Bobby Lyle
Bobby Lyle
Bobby Lyle is a jazz, soul jazz, and smooth jazz pianist. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee but grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota in a home near the corner of Park Avenue and 32nd Street. His father, reportedly, was a sports writer for the Star Tribune newspaper.He had his first gig at 16 and...
, who hired her to record on his “Power of Touch” CD and tour with him. Her touring possibilities expanded over the next decade, as she toured as a saxophonist/singer and keyboardist with Adam Sandler
Adam Sandler
Adam Richard Sandler is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, musician, and film producer.After becoming a Saturday Night Live cast member, Sandler went on to star in several Hollywood feature films that grossed over $100 million at the box office...
, John Tesh
John Tesh
John Frank Tesh is an American pianist and composer of pop music, as well as a radio host and television presenter. His 10-year-old 'Intelligence for Your Life Radio Show' reaches 14.2 Million listeners/week, and is syndicated by Teshmedia on 400 stations in US, Canada, and the UK...
, Jonathan Butler
Jonathan Butler
Jonathan Butler is a singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music is often classified as R&B, jazz fusion or worship music.-Biography:...
, Teena Marie
Teena Marie
Mary Christine Brockert, better known by her stage name Teena Marie, was an American singer, songwriter and producer...
, Rick Braun
Rick Braun
Rick Braun is a smooth jazz trumpet player.Before embarking on a solo career, Braun got his start by playing in several bands, including guitarist Jeff Golub's Avenue Blue...
, and Bobby Lyle
Bobby Lyle
Bobby Lyle is a jazz, soul jazz, and smooth jazz pianist. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee but grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota in a home near the corner of Park Avenue and 32nd Street. His father, reportedly, was a sports writer for the Star Tribune newspaper.He had his first gig at 16 and...
.
She was featured on saxophone in the Go West
Go West (band)
Go West is an English pop duo, formed in 1982 by lead vocalist and drummer Peter Cox ; and guitarist and vocalist Richard Drummie...
video “Tell Me”. And in 1996, on Adam Sandler’s HBO Special, and recorded on his platinum CD “What’s Your Name?” playing the saxophone solo on “The Lonesome Kicker” and singing on various tracks.
In 1999, Mindi joined the Backstreet Boys
Backstreet Boys
The Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys...
for their Millennium World Tour, and spent the next year and a half as their saxophonist, keyboardist and percussionist. She put together Mandy Moore
Mandy Moore
Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore is an American singer-songwriter, actress and fashion designer. Moore became famous as a teenager in the late 1990s, after the release of her teen pop albums So Real, I Wanna Be with You, and Mandy Moore. In 2007, she took an adult pop-folk direction with the release of...
’s first band, and acted as musical director, keyboardist, background singer and percussionist for many of her first television appearances and shows.
On her off time from touring, Mindi released her first complete solo record “Always and Never the Same” independently.
American Idol
Mindi has been featured on the 2011 American IdolAmerican Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
season as a soloist with Paul McDonald
Paul McDonald (musician)
Paul McDonald is an American singer-songwriter from Huntsville, Alabama, who as of 2011 resides in Nashville, Tennessee...
and Casey Abrams
Casey Abrams
Casey Abrams is an American musician from Idyllwild, California who finished in sixth place on the tenth season of American Idol. He was eliminated from the competition on April 28, 2011, five weeks after being saved from elimination by the judges.-Early life:Abrams was born on February 12, 1991...
and playing behind contestants Jacob Lusk
Jacob Lusk
Jacob Lusk is an American singer from Compton, California, who finished in fifth place on the tenth season of American Idol.-Early life:...
and Haley Reinhart
Haley Reinhart
Haley Reinhart is an American singer from Wheeling, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois who placed third in the tenth season of American Idol. Reinhart is currently signed to 19 and Interscope Records.-Early life:...
. Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler
Steven Tyler is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the frontman and lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, and occasional piano and percussion. He is known as the "Demon of Screamin'", due to his high screams...
remarked to Paul McDonald after her debut on the show “Forget you, who’s your sax player?”
Discography
- Always and Never the Same (1999)
- It Just Happens That Way (2003)
- I Can't Wait for Christmas (2004)
- Come As You Are (2005)
- Life Less Ordinary (2007)
- A Peter White Christmas with Mindi Abair and Rick Braun (2007)
- Stars (2008)
- In Hi-Fi Stereo (2010)
External links
- Official website
- Chill With Mindi Abair website
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Hager
- Smooth Jazz Notes Interview and Photos of Mindi Abair