Doug Lawrence

Born October 11th, 1956 in Lake Charles, Louisiana, saxophonist Doug Lawrence spent over 25 years as a working musician based in New York City. Among the artists he has performed and recorded with include - Benny Goodman, Aretha Franklin, Sarah Vaughan, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, Nancy Wilson, Rosemary Clooney, Jimmy Cobb's Mob, Frank Wess, Buck Clayton, Roy Eldridge, Wild Bill Davis, Benny Carter, Bobby Short, Patti Austin, Grover Mitchell, Stevie Wonder, The Smithsonian Masterworks Orchestra, Dennis Mackrel's Manhattan Symphony Jazz Orchestra, George Bensen, Lizz Wright, Ledisi and many others.Doug has performed on six continents at virtually every major concert hall, jazz club and jazz festival in the world, including - Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Royal Albert Hall, The Blue Notes in Japan, Italy and New York, The Village Vangaurd, Blues Alley, Birdland, The North Sea Jazz Festival, Umbria Jazz Festival, Newport, Chicago, Montreal, New Orleans, New York, Los Angeles and Nice Jazz Festivals and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to mention just a few. Doug has also performed for 5 American Presidents, as well as the Queen of England and the Royal Families of Monaco, Sweden and Spain.As a featured soloist with the 18-time Grammy-winning World Famous Count Basie Orchestra, Doug continues to tour extensively (see tour dates page-www.douglawrencejazz.com). The Basie Band has no parallel in jazz. They have won more awards, polls and Grammys than any other jazz band in history. The chair Doug fills (lead tenor) has been inhabited by a virtual "who's who" of jazz tenor saxophonists. They include - Lester Young, Hershel Evans, Don Byas, Eli "Lucky" Thompson, Bud Johnson, Buddy Tate, Illinois Jacquet, Wardell Gray, Frank Wess, Frank Foster, Billy Mitchell, Sal Nistico, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Jimmy Forrest and Kenny Hing.Doug has appeared on over 100 recordings (see discography page at www.douglawrencejazz.com) including four critically acclaimed recordings of his own - "Soul Carnival" (3 USA 2/98, Top 10 for 14 weeks, Gavin Jazz Radio Report), "High Heel Sneakers" (11 USA 2/99, Top 20 for 10 weeks, Gavin Jazz Radio Report), the extraordinarily popular "Big Band Swing" and Doug's latest CD, "Street Wise" on the Alltribe label. New recordings for 2009/2010 will include Doug performing on numerous CD's with a variety of artists including Frank Wess, Hank Jones, Nneena Freelon, Curtis Fuller, The Count Basie Orchestra, Clyde Stubblefield, Tony Bennett, Jamie Cullum and others.In 2003 Doug and his wife Cara moved back to Doug's childhood home of Albuquerque, New Mexico. It had been 27 years since Doug left his family home in Albuquerque to pursue his career in jazz. Now, living in the "Land Of Enchantment", Doug enjoys his time off from his busy touring schedule, relaxing and spending time with his family and friends. When time permits, Doug makes rare New Mexico appearences with local and international talent.