James Spaulding

James Spaulding (b. Indianapolis, July 30, 1937 - ) – Alto Saxophonist and flutist. Encouraged by his father (a bandleader before starting a family), Spaulding pursued music in elementary school and started doubling on alto saxophone and flute early on. Following high school, he spent three years in the army and then set out for Chicago, where he studied at the Cosmopolitan School of Music on the GI Bill. Thanks in part to his ability to read music, he caught the attention of experimental leader Sun Ra, who offered him a spot in his famous Arkestra. As a result, he toured with Sun Ra—including a performance at Indy’s YMCA—and played on four of his albums from 1957 to 1960. In 1962, he re-located to New York via Indianapolis, where he spent some time jamming in preparation for his move. In New York, he first played with Randy Weston and later with Max Roach. Another very important New York associate was Indy’s own Freddie Hubbard, who included Spaulding on several albums on Blue Note and Atlantic in the 1960s. In the same decade, he appeared as a sideman on numerous other Blue Note LPs, including those led by Bobby Hutcherson, Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner, Hank Mobley, Horace Silver, Stanley Turentine, Lee Morgan, and Tyrone Washington. In addition to his Blue Note recordings, he has played on albums of Duke Pearson, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Pharoah Sanders, Max Roach, and the World Saxophone Quartet (of which he was a member in 1993). Not only was he an exceptional sideman, but his discography also includes several albums on which he was the leader. As of 2008, he still lives in New York and leads his own quartet, which he brought to the Indy Jazz Fest in 2002.