LIFE IN THE KEY OF G

A distinguished musician talks about how a “skinny, white, nerdy guy” named Kenneth Gorelick became one of the bestselling artists of all time.

As Kenny G (b. 1956), a Seattle native, relates, his love affair with the saxophone began in fourth grade when he first saw it played on The Ed Sullivan Show. After his parents rented one for him, he became “hypnotized by the physicality of it.” A natural musician, the author quickly learned to read music and play the instrument. Only after the high school band rejected him during his freshman year, though, did he begin the daily “intense practice regimen” that transformed him into a first-chair player and dedicated musician. His life changed forever when Jim Gardiner, the school’s Black composer in residence, introduced him to Grover Washington, whose work the author studied with the meticulousness that became one of his defining musical characteristics. “One session doesn’t do it,” he writes. “You have to come back to it over and over and over. Which is another reason that I still practice three hours every day.” Later, at around the time the author took up his trademark soprano saxophone, Gardiner recommended him to R&B superstar Barry White, who needed a replacement sax player “with a soulful feel” for his band. From that point on and for the entirety of the college career that followed, the author played professionally. He joined Jeff Lorber’s jazz fusion band, where he became known as “Kenny G” and met producer Clive Davis, who offered him the chance to record as a solo artist. Warm, thoughtful, and upbeat, this candid memoir about a life dedicated to—and enriched by—music will appeal to Kenny G’s many fans and to music aficionados with an interest in the rise of the smooth-jazz sound.

Feel-good reading from a feel-good musical artist.