Mindi Abair
American saxophonist and singer working in smooth jazz. She has released a run of contemporary instrumental and vocal records since the early 2000s.
A–Z
Artists
67 names from smooth jazz and the contemporary and quiet-storm records beside it. Short notes, not a label catalog.
A
Acoustic Alchemy
English smooth-jazz group formed in the early 1980s by guitarists Nick Webb and Simon James, known for steel- and nylon-string interplay.
Gerald Albright
American saxophonist. His contemporary jazz albums include 24/7 and Slam Dunk, both Grammy winners in the contemporary instrumental field.
Marc Antoine
French guitarist whose records sit in contemporary and smooth jazz, mixing nylon-string lines with R&B rhythm sections.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
B
Anita Baker
American singer associated with quiet-storm soul ballads. Her 1986 album Rapture is a reference point for that late-night vocal style.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Walter Beasley
American saxophonist and a longtime music professor at Berklee College of Music, with a parallel career of smooth-jazz leader dates.
George Benson
American guitarist and singer. Jazz instrumental work led into vocal hits such as Breezin' and Give Me the Night, a bridge into the smooth-jazz era.
Chris Botti
American trumpeter and composer. His solo career moved from contemporary jazz sessions into widely heard ballad and orchestral projects.
Rick Braun
American trumpeter, flugelhorn player, and producer. He has been a regular name on smooth-jazz radio since the 1990s.
Norman Brown
American guitarist and singer. His contemporary jazz records, including Just Chillin', are staples of the smooth-jazz guitar lane.
Jonathan Butler
South African singer, songwriter, and guitarist whose work crosses R&B and jazz fusion and is often programmed with smooth jazz.
C
Larry Carlton
American guitarist. A first-call studio player in the 1970s, he later led contemporary jazz dates and played with Fourplay.
Steve Cole
American smooth-jazz saxophonist who also teaches music business at the University of St. Thomas.
Joyce Cooling
American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. She has recorded contemporary jazz dates and worked with players including Al Jarreau.
The Crusaders
American group founded in 1960 as the Jazz Crusaders, later shortened to the Crusaders. Joe Sample was a founding keyboardist.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Brian Culbertson
American keyboardist, trombonist, and producer whose albums sit between smooth jazz, R&B, and funk.
D
Down to the Bone
British acid-jazz project led by Stuart Wade, formed in 1996. The records lean on groove and are often filed beside smooth jazz.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Will Downing
American singer and songwriter whose R&B and quiet-storm ballads have been played alongside contemporary jazz vocal sets.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
George Duke
American keyboardist, singer, and producer. His fusion and R&B records, and his production work, sit next to the contemporary jazz lane.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Candy Dulfer
Dutch saxophonist. She started the band Funky Stuff as a teenager; the single Lily Was Here, with Dave Stewart, carried her to a wider audience.
E
Nathan East
American bassist and singer, a founding member of Fourplay, with a long session career across jazz, R&B, and pop.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Richard Elliot
Scottish-born saxophonist based in the American smooth-jazz scene. Summer Horns, a collaboration, was nominated for a Grammy in pop instrumental.
Euge Groove
Stage name of saxophonist Steven Eugene Grove. He records contemporary instrumental jazz under that name.
F
Fourplay
American quartet formed by Bob James, Lee Ritenour, Nathan East, and Harvey Mason. Later lineups included Larry Carlton and Chuck Loeb.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
G
Kenny G
Kenneth Gorelick, American saxophonist and producer. The 1986 album Duotones, and the single Songbird, made him the format's best-known name.
Jeff Golub
American guitarist who led the band Avenue Blue and recorded contemporary jazz under his own name.
H
Paul Hardcastle
English producer and multi-instrumentalist, known for the 1985 single 19 and later for the smooth-jazz project the Jazzmasters.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Everette Harp
American saxophonist. He has recorded for Blue Note, Capitol, and Shanachie, including contemporary and funk-leaning leader dates.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Hiroshima
American band formed in 1974 that folds Japanese instruments into contemporary jazz and pop instrumentals.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
I
Incognito
British band formed around Jean-Paul 'Bluey' Maunick. Acid jazz, funk, and quiet-storm vocals, with singer Maysa among the featured voices.
Vincent Ingala
American multi-instrumentalist whose main horn is tenor saxophone. His releases are filed as contemporary and urban jazz.
J
Bob James
American keyboardist, arranger, and producer. He wrote Angela, the theme of the television series Taxi, and co-founded Fourplay.
Boney James
American saxophonist, songwriter, and producer, and one of the format's most consistent radio artists since the 1990s.
Al Jarreau
American singer. Breakin' Away (1981) mixed jazz, R&B, and pop and won Grammy awards across those fields.
Jessy J
Jessica Arellano, American saxophonist who records contemporary jazz under the name Jessy J.
K
Jeff Kashiwa
American saxophonist. He has recorded solo contemporary jazz and played with the Rippingtons and the Sax Pack.
Earl Klugh
American acoustic guitarist and composer. His nylon-string records helped define the quieter side of contemporary jazz; he has a Grammy and multiple nominations.
Dave Koz
American saxophonist, producer, and radio host based in Los Angeles, a central figure in smooth-jazz radio and touring.
L
Ronnie Laws
American saxophonist and singer, younger brother of flutist Hubert Laws. His solo work includes jazz and smooth-jazz recordings.
Michael Lington
Danish-American saxophonist and producer working in contemporary jazz and soul instrumentals.
Chuck Loeb
American guitarist. He played with Steps Ahead and Metro and later joined Fourplay.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Jeff Lorber
American keyboardist, composer, and producer. Prototype, with the Jeff Lorber Fusion, won a Grammy for contemporary instrumental album.
M
Chuck Mangione
American flugelhorn player and composer. He played with Art Blakey, then reached a wide audience with the 1977 hit Feels So Good.
Eric Marienthal
American saxophonist based in Los Angeles, heard on contemporary jazz and fusion sessions and as a leader.
Keiko Matsui
Japanese keyboardist and composer whose albums are usually filed as smooth jazz and new age.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Maysa
Maysa Leak, American singer. She is known both for solo quiet-storm and jazz records and for her work with Incognito.
Marion Meadows
American soprano saxophonist and composer. His first leader album, For Lovers Only, came out in 1990.
Chieli Minucci
American guitarist and co-founder of the band Special EFX, playing contemporary jazz with world-music color.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
N
Najee
Jerome Najee Rasheed, American saxophonist and flutist, a steady presence on smooth-jazz radio since the late 1980s.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Ken Navarro
American contemporary-jazz guitarist and composer from Indiana.
P
Pieces of a Dream
American R&B and jazz-fusion group, long associated with contemporary and quiet-storm programming.
Art Porter Jr.
American saxophonist, son of jazz musician Art Porter Sr. He recorded contemporary jazz leader albums before his death in 1996.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
R
Nelson Rangell
American woodwind player and composer from Colorado. He is known for saxophone and also features piccolo on his records.
The Rippingtons
American contemporary-jazz group founded in 1985 by guitarist Russ Freeman. The debut Moonlighting became a format landmark.
Lee Ritenour
American guitarist active since the late 1960s. Studio and fusion work led into contemporary jazz and a founding role in Fourplay.
S
Sade
Helen Folasade Adu, Nigerian-British singer and principal songwriter of the band Sade. Diamond Life and later quiet-storm records sit beside this room's vocal side.
Joe Sample
American pianist and composer, a founder of the Jazz Crusaders (later the Crusaders). His solo work crossed jazz, soul, and pop.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
David Sanborn
American alto saxophonist. His leader albums mixed jazz with instrumental pop and R&B and were core to the format that became smooth jazz.
Tom Scott
American saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He led the L.A. Express and has a long studio career in jazz and pop.
Spyro Gyra
American band formed in Buffalo in 1974. Jazz, R&B, and funk meet on records such as Morning Dance.
T
Paul Taylor
American alto and soprano saxophonist. His first album, On the Horn, appeared in 1995.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Wayman Tisdale
American basketball player and smooth-jazz bass guitarist. After an NBA career he released a series of contemporary bass records.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
W
Grover Washington Jr.
American saxophonist. With records such as Mister Magic and Winelight, and the single Just the Two of Us with Bill Withers, he is one of the founders of what became smooth jazz.
Kim Waters
American saxophonist from Havre de Grace, Maryland, with a long run of smooth-jazz leader albums.
Buy on AmazonNo Bandcamp
Kirk Whalum
American saxophonist and songwriter. His R&B-inflected instrumental records, and session work, are part of the contemporary jazz mainstream.
Peter White
English guitarist, pianist, and composer. A long collaboration with Al Stewart preceded his own smooth-jazz albums.
Y
Yellowjackets
American fusion band founded in Los Angeles in 1977. Their contemporary jazz is often programmed next to the smoother end of the format.