Ernie Watts

Biography

Ernie Watts is a two-time Grammy Award-winning saxophonist born on October 23, 1945, in Norfolk, Virginia, and raised in Wilmington, Delaware. He began playing saxophone at age 13 after accompanying a classmate to the school music department, where he was initially assigned a baritone saxophone. Greatly influenced by John Coltrane's playing on "Kind of Blue," Watts studied classical saxophone at his school before earning a DownBeat scholarship to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. While at Berklee, he was recruited by legendary drummer Buddy Rich in 1966 to join his big band, where he played alto saxophone and toured the world.

After relocating to Los Angeles in 1968, Watts became a first-call session musician for studio work, playing with big bands led by Gerald Wilson, Louis Bellson, and Oliver Nelson, with whom he also toured Africa. He joined Doc Severinsen's Tonight Show Band on NBC television in 1971, a prestigious position he maintained for 20 years while simultaneously building a prolific sideman career. Watts became known for his versatility and distinctive tone, appearing on over five hundred recordings across jazz, R&B, and pop genres, including iconic albums by Marvin Gaye, Steely Dan, and numerous other artists. A pivotal moment came when he met Charlie Haden backstage after a concert at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles; Haden invited him to join his critically acclaimed group Quartet West as a charter member, where Watts played and recorded for over 25 years. This collaboration brought him to the attention of a wider jazz audience and inspired him to focus more deeply on acoustic jazz. In 2014, Watts received the Frankfurt Music Prize, joining luminaries like Chick Corea, Paquito D'Rivera, and John McLaughlin.

Fun Facts

• Watts was initially assigned a baritone saxophone by his school music teacher because he was tall for his age and the teacher thought he could carry it in marching band.
• He played the iconic saxophone solo on Marvin Gaye's 'Let's Get It On' (1973), one of the most recognizable R&B recordings of the 1970s.
• Watts co-wrote the jazz-funk composition 'Abundance' for Karma's 1977 album 'For Everybody,' which opened the album's second side.
• Despite his extensive work as a session musician in Los Angeles studios for over 25 years, winning multiple Most Valuable Player awards, Watts ultimately found his true artistic direction through live acoustic jazz performance with Charlie Haden's Quartet West.

Associated Acts

• Love Unlimited Orchestra
• Jazz Soul Seven - original
• Session II
• The Meeting
• Doc Severinsen & His Big Band
• 香津美・アンド・ジェントル・ソウツ - flute
• 香津美・アンド・ジェントル・ソウツ - tenor saxophone
• The Night Blooming Jazzmen - flute
• The Night Blooming Jazzmen - alto saxophone
• The Night Blooming Jazzmen - tenor saxophone
• Charlie Haden Quartet West - original, tenor saxophone
• Modern Standards Supergroup
• Karma

Musical Connections

Mentors/Influences

• John Coltrane - Primary stylistic influence through Coltrane's playing on 'Kind of Blue' (Kind of Blue) [1960s onward]
• Phil Wilson - Trombonist and teacher at Berklee College of Music who recommended Watts to Buddy Rich's manager (Berklee College instruction) [Mid-1960s]

Key Collaborators

• Buddy Rich - Drummer who hired Watts for his big band; Watts' first major professional engagement (Buddy Rich's Big Band) [1966-1968]
• Charlie Haden - Bassist who invited Watts to join Quartet West as charter member; long-term artistic partnership (Quartet West recordings) [1980s-2000s (25+ years)]
• Doc Severinsen - Bandleader of The Tonight Show Band; Watts was a member for two decades (The Tonight Show Band) [1971-1991]
• Marvin Gaye - R&B artist; Watts played on most of Gaye's albums from the 1970s, including iconic solo on 'Let's Get It On' (Let's Get It On (1973) and subsequent Motown recordings) [1973-1979]
• Quincy Jones - Producer who worked with Watts on his LP 'Chariots of Fire' (Chariots of Fire (1982))
• Karma - Jazz-funk supergroup where Watts was saxophonist and co-writer; featured Curtis Robertson Jr., George Bohanon, Oscar Brashear, and others (Celebration (1976), For Everybody (1977)) [1976-1977]
• Friendship - Jazz-funk supergroup featuring Watts on saxophone alongside Don Grusin, Lee Ritenour, Abraham Laboriel, Steve Forman, and Alex Acuña (Friendship (1979), Session II (1979))

External Links

• Spotify
• [Wikipedia](Not found in search results)
• MusicBrainz

Tags: #jazz, #post-bop