John Beasley (musician)

John Rule Beasley (born October 10, 1960), better known as John Beasley, is a jazz pianist, bandleader, and producer of music for film and television.^[1][2]

John Beasley
Background information
Birth name	John Rule Beasley
Born	(1960-10-10) October 10, 1960 (age 62) Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S.
Genres	Jazz
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instrument(s)	Piano, keyboards
Years active	1980–present
Labels	Windham Hill, Resonance, Mack Avenue Records
Website	johnbeasleymusic.com

Career

He was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, and grew up in Texas in a family of musicians.^[3]

His grandfather, Rule Oliver, trombonist, for 50 years was a junior high school band director in Arkansas; his father, Rule Curtis Beasley, music educator, in 1963 won 1st prize in Composition at the Southeastern Composers League in Tuscaloosa, Alabama; his mother, Lida Beasley, brass instrumentalist, was a band director, conducted operas and taught music in various public schools and colleges.^[4]

He approached music at the age of eight by studying piano, but in his teens he played guitar, drums, saxophone, trumpet and oboe.^[5]

Returning to piano and jazz, at the age of twenty he performed his first major concert at Carnegie Hall with Hubert Laws, John Patitucci and the drummer Joey Heredia.^[6][7]

During the 1970s, he performed jazz and R&B in Los Angeles. He toured with Sergio Mendes, then worked as a studio musician. For several years he was a member of band led by Freddie Hubbard. In 1992 his album Cauldron was released by Windham Hill.^[8]

Discography (partial)

Soloist

• 1992 - Cauldron (Windham Hill, 01934 10134-2)
• 1993 - A Change of Heart (Windham Hill, 01934 10145 2)
• 2001 - Surfacing (EWE Records, EWCD 2002)
• 2005 - One Live Night (John Beasley, 17528–56)
• 2008 - Letter to Herbie (Resonance, RCD-1003)
• 2009 - Positootly! (Resonance, RCD-1013)
• 2016 - John Beasley Presents MONK'estra Vol. 1 (Mack Avenue, MAC1113)
• 2017 - John Beasley Presents MONK'estra Vol. 2 (Mack Avenue, MAC1125)
• 2020 - MONK'estra Plays John Beasley (Mack Avenue, MAC1172)

Soundtracks

• 1993 - Mose the Fireman, with Walter Becker and Michael Keaton (Rabbit Ears Productions, 74041-70748-2)

Collaborations

• 2013 - Gianfranco Continenza, Dusting the Time (Videoradio, VRCD 000844)

Music director, TV shows

• 2005 - American Idol (multi-platinum Carrie Underwood victory in 2005 as associate music director), FOX
• 2005 - Carly Simon A Moonlight Serenade aboard Queen Mary, PBS
• 2007 - Search for the Next Pussycat Dolls, CW
• 2012 - Duets with John Legend, Kelly Clarkson, Robin Thicke, Jennifer Nettles, ABC
• 2014 - Sports Illustrated Swimsuit: 50 Years of Beautiful, NBC
• 2014 - Sing Your Face Off, ABC
• 2015 - 2016 - American Idol, FOX
• 2016 - Jazz at the White House (Emmy nomination for best music direction), ABC
• 2017 - International Jazz Day in Cuba, BET^[9][10]

Awards

John Beasley has been nominated for 8 Grammy Awards and won 1.^{[11][12][13][14]}

Pianist John Beasley won the 2021 Best Arrangement, Instrumental Or A Cappella Grammy Award on March 14, 2021, for his arrangement of Donna Lee performed by his big band, MONK'estra, from the album MONK'estra Plays John Beasley, on Mack Avenue Records. He was nominated for a total of four Grammy Awards in 2021.^[15]

63RD ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS (2020) Winer: BEST ARRANGEMENT, INSTRUMENTAL OR A CAPPELLA - Donna Lee

Nominations BEST JAZZ VOCAL ALBUM Holy Room: Live At Alte Oper BEST LARGE JAZZ ENSEMBLE ALBUM MONK'estra Plays John Beasley BEST ARRANGEMENT, INSTRUMENTS AND VOCALS Asas Fechadas

Grammys 2021: Jazzman John Beasley on his four nominations

John Beasley Presents Monk'estra volumes 1 and 2 both garnered two Grammy nominations each at the 59th and 60th Grammy Awards in 2017 and 2018.

60TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS (2017) Nominations BEST LARGE JAZZ ENSEMBLE ALBUM MONK'estra Vol. 2 BEST ARRANGEMENT, INSTRUMENTAL OR A CAPPELLA Ugly Beauty/Pannonica

59TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS (2016) Nominations BEST LARGE JAZZ ENSEMBLE ALBUM MONK'estra, Vol. 1 BEST ARRANGEMENT, INSTRUMENTAL OR A CAPPELLA Ask Me Now

53rd ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS (2010) Positootly earned a 2011 Grammy nomination for BEST JAZZ INSTRUMENTAL RECORDING.

References

1. "John Beasley". Rate Your Music.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
2. "John Beasley". Steinway & Sons.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
3. Yanow, Scott. "John Beasley". All Music.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
4. "Banca dati musicale - Musicista: John Beasley". Radio Swiss Jazz.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
5. Worsley, Jim (April 4, 2019). "John Beasley: Master of All Trades". All About Jazz.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
6. Barker, Brad. "John Beasley channels the 'courage' of Thelonious Monk". Jazz.FM91.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
7. Morrison, Allen (January 4, 2021). "John Beasley Reflects on Miles, Herbie, and (of Course) Monk". JazzTimes.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
8. "Artist Biography by Scott Yanow". All music.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
9. "John Beasley". Challenge Records International.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
10. "John Beasley". All About Jazz.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
11. "John Beasley". Recording Academy Grammy Awards. 22 April 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
12. "Pianist John Beasley wins Grammy Award for "Donna Lee" from Mack Avenue album "MONK'estra plays John Beasley"". DL media music.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
13. Roberts, Randall (March 9, 2021). "On Sunday, a local jazz polymath could have a Grammys for the ages". Los Angeles Times.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
14. Harter, Clara (December 14, 2020). "Samohi grad John Beasley receives four Grammy nominations". Santa Monica Daily Press.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
15. "Grammys 2021: Complete list of winners and nominees". CBS News.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links

• Official website
• John Beasley, on Discogs