Joe Sample live with The Crusaders on the James Earl Jones hosted television show, Black Omnibus, 1973 #electricpiano #jazzisdead | Jazz Is Dead

Happy heavenly birthday Joe Sample 🎂 Houston raised, groove grounded, Joe Sample had a touch that could slide from gospel warmth to late-night jazz without ever sounding forced. As a founding member of #TheCrusaders, he helped shape a sound where jazz, soul, and R&B shared the same pocket — and his Fender Rhodes became part of that signature texture. From the cool glide of “Street Life” with Randy Crawford to solo albums like Carmel and Rainbow Seeker, his playing carried melody and feel in equ

Joe Sample could play the funkiest of tunes to the most sublime piano. In high school in the 1950s, Sample teamed up with friends saxophonist Wilton Felder and drummer "Stix" Hooper to form a group called the Swingsters. While studying piano at Texas Southern University, Sample met and added trombonist Wayne Henderson and several other players to the Swingsters, which became the Jazz Crusaders. The group made the move from Houston to Los Angeles . He began to use the electric piano , and the gro

Eric Clapton's guitar solo during the Legends tour in 1997 with Marcus Miller (bass), David Sanborn (saxophone), Joe Sample (piano), and Dr. Steve Gadd (drums). | Eric Clapton