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Marion was born in West Virginia and grew up in Stamford, Connecticut. He began playing the clarinet and studying classical music at the age of nine.

He started playing tenor sax in high

school, and then migrated to soprano

sax. His passion for various types of

music led him down an eclectic

musical path. He was intrigued by the styles

of jazz musicians, like Stanley Turrentine,

Sidney Bichet, Johnny Hodges, John

Coltrane, Sonny Stitt, Rahsaan Roland

Kirk, Dexter Gordon, Cannonball Adderley,

Coleman Hawkins, Sonny Fortune,

Joe Henderson, Grover Washington

and many others. After studying jazz

at Rippowam High School in Stamford, CT

with Anthony Truglia, Meadows attended

Berklee College of Music. There he

majored in arranging and composition.

He later went to the SUNY Purchase School

for the Arts. During his college years he played

in a number of bands including disco, R&B and

various jazz ensmbles. I got a lot of sideman

jobs in college, and I have always said I

got my real graduate degree playing clubs,

says Meadows, who perfected his craft studying

with Sonny Fortune, Joe Henderson, Dave Liebman

and Eddie Daniels. “Not long after I finished school, (drummer) Norman Connors recorded one of my

songs, “Invitation” and then asked me to join his

band. I later produced his Passion album with my

colleague Jacques Burvick (Aquarium Dream).

Things just fell into place. Meadows first hit the

airwaves in 1991 with “For Lovers Only”, but his

career really began one day in the late ‘80s at

New York’s Grand Central Station. He had been

a sideman with Connors for three years, with only

vague notions of eventually going solo. One day,

while waiting for a train, he pulled out his horn and

began playing under the huge dome. His sweet

sound caught the attention of fellow traveler, producer

and TV composer Jay Chattaway, who happened to be passing by on his way to the train. Chattaway was so impressed with Meadows’ sound that he hooked

Meadows up with legendary keyboardist Bob James. Meadows and James collaborated on a recording

that unfortunately went unreleased. The experience

put him on the road to his eventual success. Meadows hooked up with numerous artists and musicians and

became a well-known sideman in his own right, recording

or performing over the years with Brook Benton, Eartha Kitt, Phyllis Hyman, Jean Carne, The Temptations, Michael Bolton, Angela Bofill, Will Downing, Bob Baldwin, Chuck Loeb,

John Lee, among many others. In the late ‘80s, Meadows stretched his boundaries by becoming a member of a New York avant-garde band called the Aboriginal Music Society. In 1990 Meadows submitted a solo project to

Steve Backer at Novus/RCA and was signed to

a recording contract, thus marking the beginning

of his solo career. Meadows’ first RCA release

“For Lover’s Only” was a huge success and was

followed by his groundbreaking “Keep it Right

There” album. He became a staple of the

contemporary jazz format with his subsequent

recordings, which include Body Rhythm (1994)

and Forbidden Fruit (1996), Passion (1997),

Another Side Of Midnight (1999),

Next To You (2000), In Deep (2002),

Players Club (2004), Dressed To Chill (2006),

Secrets (2009) Whisper (2013)

and most recently Soul Traveler,

the first installment of his Soul

Trilogy which now showcases his

current release, Soul City" on the

New York-based Shanachie Label.

Meadows is a semi-pro cyclist,

graphic artist and designer.

Marion received a doctorate

from Wilberforce University in 2016.

His artwork and photography can be viewed at:

www.marionmeadowsatmospheres.com

www.marionmeadowsphotography.com

MARION MEADOWS
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