Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

BERG, Bob

(b 7 April '51, Brooklyn NY; d 5 Dec. 2002 in a car crash, Long Island NY) Tenor, soprano saxophone. After attending Juilliard he was featured in the bands of Brother Jack McDuff '69, Horace Silver '73-6 and Cedar Walton '77-'83. (His Steppin' on Red Records included Walton.) He achieved more fame with Miles Davis from '84, then formed own band with ex-Miles guitarist Mike Stern, produced smooth fusion albums for Denon, including Short Stories '87, Cycles '88, Back Roads '91 and In The Shadow '90; Virtual Reality '93 did not include Stern. Berg's other albums include Enter The Spirit '93 on Stretch, with Chick Corea, and New Birth on EPM Musique. The perceived blandness of some of his output was widely thought disappointing after his early Coltrane-influenced promise, but he returned to form with Another Standard '97 on Stretch, featuring the wonderfully eccentric pianist Dave Kikoski (b Milltown NJ, 29 Sep. '61).