International Archives For The Jazz Organ (IAJO) - The Jazz Organ Scene USA

Merl Saunders

Merl (* 1934) attended Polytechnic High School in San Francisco. He gained notice in the 1970s when he began collaborating with Jerry Garcia, with whom he had begun playing in 1971 at a small Fillmore Street nightclub called The Matrix. He sat in with the Grateful Dead, and co-founded the Saunders/Garcia Band which produced three albums, and which became the Legion of Mary with the addition of Martin Fierro (sax) in 1974. It disbanded the following year, but he and Garcia continued to collaborate in the band Reconstruction during 1979, collaborating with Ed Neumeister (trombone), Gaylord Birch (drums) and John Kahn (bass).

He led his own band as Merl Saunders and Friends, playing live dates with Garcia, as well as Mike Bloomfield, David Grisman, Michael Hinton, Tom Fogerty, Vassar Clements, Kenneth Nash, John Kahn and Sheila E.. He also collaborated with Grateful Dead percussionist Mickey Hart in the band High Noon.

In 1990 he released the world music and New Age classic album Blues From the Rainforest, a collaboration with Jerry Garcia and Muruga Booker. This led to the release of a video which chronicled Saunders' journey to the Amazon, and the subsequent albums Fiesta Amazonica, It's in the Air, and Save the Planet so We'll Have Someplace to Boogie. One of the songs from Blues From the Rainforest was used as part of the soundtrack for the TV series Baywatch. Saunders continued to perform with the Rainforest Band for the next ten years.

Saunders worked with musicians Paul Pena, Bonnie Raitt, Phish, Widespread Panic, Miles Davis, and B. B. King. He also recorded with the Dinosaurs, a "supergroup" of first-generation Bay Area rock musicians.

Merl worked with the Grateful Dead on the theme music for the 1985 TV show The New Twilight Zone. As musical director he completed 2 1/2 season of the show . He also worked on the TV series Nash Bridges, and worked on several soundtracks for movies, including Fritz the Cat and Steelyard Blues. He was production co-ordinator for the Grammy Awards for two years, and for the Grammy's Greatest Moments TV special. He also supplied the music for the computer animation video Headcandy: Sidney's Psychedelic Adventure.

He worked with several charitable organizations such as the Seva Foundation, the Rex Foundation, the Rainforest Action Network, and the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic, and headlined the Haight Street Music Fair for 24 consecutive years. He has been granted a Doctorate of Music by Unity College, in Unity, Maine.

In 2002, Saunders suffered from a stroke that paralyzed one side of his body and curtailed his musical career, and he died in San Francisco, California, on the morning of October 24, 2008.

from Wikipedia

Soul Grooving America 30 AM 6093 released 1968	Merl Saunders, organ Ray Shanklin, alto sax Eddie Moore, drums Bill Elliot, drums Jimmy Daniels, guitar Johnny Bishop, guitar Ray Shanklin Big Band
John White Mainstream Records MRL 330 released 1971	John White, guitar Sonny Red, alto sax Hadley Caliman, tenor sax Jock Williams, trombone John Wilmath, trumpet Merl Saunders, piano, organ Dale Smith, bass Terry Hensley, bass J. Burr, congas Phil Wilson, drums Robert Williams, vocals
Heavy Turbulence Fantasy F-8421 released 1972 recorded February 1972	Merl Saunders, organ, piano, synthesizer, vocals Martin Fierro, sax, flute Arthur Adams, guitar Billy Fender, guitar Chris Hayes, guitar Tony Saunders, bass Paul Humphrey, drums Larry Vann, drums Sheila Escovedo, congas
Fire Up Fantasy 9421 released 1973 recorded in Berkeley, CA/USA	Merl Saunders, organ, piano, synthesizer, vocals Jerry Garcia, guitar, vocals Tom Fogerty, guitar Mike Howell, guitar John Kahn, bass Chuck Rainey, bass Bill Vitt, drums Christopher Parker, drums Bill Kruetzman, drums Gaylord Birch, drums Bill Sommers, percussion Ken Nash, percussion Walter Hawkins, vocals
Last Bolero In Berkeley Fantasy 9446 released 1973 recorded February 1973 in Englewood Cliffs, NJ; September 1973 in Berkeley, CA and Hollywood, CA/USA	Cal Tjader, vibes, percussion Herman Riley, tenor sax Seldon Powell, tenor sax Jerome Richardson, tenor sax, flute Frank Wess, baritone sax, flute Don Cooke, trombone Billy Brooks, trumpet Jon Faddis, trumpet Melvin Moore, trumpet Victor Paz, trumpet Joe Beck, guitar Larry Carlton, guitar Randy Oda, guitar Mike Wolff, piano Merl Saunders, organ, piano Ed Bogas, keyboards Chuck Rainey, bass George Duvivier, bass John Heard, bass Dick Berk, drums Jimmy Johnson, drums Paul Humphrey, drums Bobbye Hall Porter, percussion Mayuto Correa, shaker King Errison, congas Michael Smithe, congas Ralph MacDonald, congas
Merl Saunders Fantasy 9460 released 1974	Merl Saunders, organ, piano, clavinet, vocals Martin Fierro, sax Martin Fierro, flute Joel Cohen, guitar Billy Fender, guitar Bill Upchurch, bass John Kahn, bass Tony Saunders, vocals, bass King Errisson, congas Gaylord Birch, drums Eccleston W. Wainwright, drums Jimmy Nelson, drums Kenneth Nash, percussion Michael Howell, vocals
Mo' Roots Columbia KC 33051 released 1974 recorded in San Francisco, CA/USA	Taj Mahal, guitar, banjo, harmonica, piano, vocals Rudy Costa, soprano sax, flute Hoshal Wright, guitar Merl Saunders, organ Aston "Familyman" Barrett, piano Bill Rich, bass Kester "Smitty" Smith, drums, percussion Kwasi "Rocki" Dzidzornu, percussion, congas, tambourine
They Say I'm Different Just Sunshine Records JSS-3500 released 1974 recorded in Sausalito, CA/USA	Betty Davis, vocals Hershall Kennedy, trumpet, clavinet, organ, piano, vocals Cordell Dudley, guitar, vocals Jimmy Godwin, guitar Buddy Miles, guitar Carlos Morales, guitar, vocals Fred Mills, keyboards, vocals Merl Saunders, piano, organ James Allen Smith, keyboards Tony Vaughn, clavinet, piano, vocals Larry Johnson, bass Mike Clark, drums Nicky Neal, drums, vocals Ted Sparks, drums Willy Sparks, drums, vocals Errol Crusher Bennett, percussion Pete Escovedo, timbales Victor Pantoja, congas, percussion Debbie Burrell, vocals Elaine Clark, vocals Mary Jones, vocals Trudy Perkins, vocals
You Can Leave Your Hat On Fantasy F-9503 released 1976 recorded September - October 1976 in Berkeley, CA/USA	Merl Saunders, organ, piano, synthesizer, vocals Jerry Garcia, guitar Tom Fogerty, guitar John Kahn, bass Bill Vitt, drums The Hawkins Singers
Do I Move You Crystal Clear Records CCS 5006 released 1979 recorded February 1979 in Berkeley, CA/USA	Merl Saunders, Hammond B-3 organ, synthesizer, vocals Martin Fierro, sax, flute Tony Saunders, bass Pee Wee Ellis, tenor sax Martin Fierro, alto sax, flute Mark Isham, trumpet Carl Lockett, guitar Kenneth Nash, percussion Ed Neumeister, trombone Larry Vann, drums
Nightfood Global Pacific Records ZK 40733br> released 1988 recorded 1986 in San Francisco, CA; Mill Valley, CA; Berkeley, CA/USA and København/Denmark	Brian Melvin, drums, percussion, vocals Rick Smith, soprano sax, tenor sax Thomas Hass, sax Norbert Stachel, sax Tim Hyland, trumpet Vernon "Ice" Black, guitar Paul Mousavi, guitar Jon Davis, piano, synthesizer Peter Horvath, synthesizer Butch Lacy, synthesizer Merl Saunders, organ Keith Jones, bass Jens Melgaard, bass Curtis Ohlson, bass, drums, vocals Jaco Pastorius, bass Thomas Blackman, drums Andy Narell, steel drum Bill Keaney, bongos, congas Jan Fanucci, vocals Rosie Gaines, vocals Lori Elaine Taylor, vocals Bob Weir, guitar, vocals
Garcia (Compliments) Grateful Dead Records GDLP 4.00644 released 1989 recorded in Los Angeles, CA/USA	Jerry Garcia, guitar, vocals Gene "Mighty Flea" Conners, trombone Amos Garrett, trombone Melvin Moore, trumpet Willie Green, clarinet Gary Ray, clarinet John Rotella, clarinet Joel Tepp, clarinet Arthur Adams, guitar Ben Benay, guitar Larry Carlton, guitar Michael Omartian, Fender Rhodes, piano Merl Saunders, organ string section Arni Egilsson, bass John Kahn, bass Ray Siegal, bass Ron Tutt, drums Bobbye Hall, percussion Merry Clayton, vocals Clydie King, vocals Jackie Kelso, vocals Maria Muldaur, vocals
Blues from the Rainforest Sumertone S2CD-01 released 1990	Merl Saunders, synthesizer, organ Jerry Garcia, guitar Eddie Moore, percussion Muruga Booker, percussion Shakti, vocals Karen Baker, vocals
Fire Up Plus Fantasy FCD-7711-2 released 1992 compilation, recorded 1971-1973	Merl Saunders, synthesizer, clavinet, organ, piano, vocals Tom Fogerty, guitar Jerry Garcia, guitar, vocals Michael Howell, guitar Chuck Rainey, guitar John Kahn, piano, bass Bill Kreutzmann, drums Eddie Moore, drums Chris Parker, drums Bill Vitt, drums Gaylord Birch, congas Kenneth Nash, percussion The Hawkins Singers, vocals
It's In The Air Sumertone 72913721632 released 1993 recorded in San Francisco, CA; Berkeley, CA and Sebastopol, CA/USA	Merl Saunders, Hammond organ, piano, synthesizer, vocals Michael Hinton, guitar Dr. John, piano, vocals Norton Buffalo, harmonica John Popper, harmonica Michael Warren, bass Vince Littleton, drums, percussion Raul Ramirez, congas
Keepers Fantasy FCD-7712-2 recorded in Berkeley, CA and Sausalito, CA/USA	Merl Saunders, organ, piano, clavinet, synthesizer, vocals Martin Fierro, sax, flute Ron Stalling, sax John Wilmeth, trumpet Michael Bloomfield, guitar Joel Cohen, guitar Billy Fender, guitar Tom Fogerty, guitar Jerry Garcia, guitar, vocals Chris Hayes, guitar Michael Howell, guitar David Grisman, mandolin Vassar Clements, violin John Kahn, bass Chuck Rainey, bass Tony Saunders, bass Gaylord Birch, drums Vince Littleton, drums, percussion Larry Vann, drums Bill Vitt, drums Eccleston W. Wainwright jr., drums Sheila Escovedo, congas Kenneth Nash, percussion, bongos, congas Walter Hawkins & The Hawkins Family, vocals Lynette Hawkins-Stephens, vocals Geoff Muldaur, vocals
Fiesta Amazonica Sumertone S2CD-2183 recorded in San Francisco, CA/USA	Merl Saunders, keyboards, organ, piano, vocals Vernon "Ice" Black, guitar Jerry Garcia, guitar Steve Kimock, guitar Chuk Fowler, guitar Jim Hankins, guitar Sir Earl Gri, guitar Piers Lawrence, guitar Bob Weir, guitar John Handy, alto sax Norbert Stachel, flute, soprano sax Vince Welnick, synthesizer, vocals Tony Saunders, bass Chuck Rainey, bass Michael Warren, bass Rob Wasserman, bass Jimmy Fisher & Contagious Praise, drum programming Roscoe Gallo, drum programming, MIDI bass Narada Michael Walden, drums Muruga, congas, drums, percussion Bill Kreutzmann, hand drums Vince Littleton, congas, drums, percussion Greg Gordon, tamboura Raul Ramirez, bongos, percussion Armando Peraza, bongos Mariana, vocals Yanka Rupkina, vocals Mary Stallings, vocals Trio Bulgarka
The Essential Taj Mahal Columbia C2K 94967 compilation	CD2-02: Slave Driver from Mo' Roots Taj Mahal, guitar, banjo, harmonica, piano, vocals Rudy Costa, soprano sax, flute Hoshal Wright, guitar Merl Saunders, organ Aston "Familyman" Barrett, piano Bill Rich, bass Kester "Smitty" Smith, drums, percussion Kwasi "Rocki" Dzidzornu, percussion, congas, tambourine
Keystone Companions Fantasy 7233796 recorded July 1973 at the Keystone in Berkeley, CA/USA	Jerry Garcia, guitar, vocals Merl Saunders, organ, piano, synthesizer John Kahn, bass Bill Vitt, drums David Grisman, mandolin
Orleans Records Story Orleans Records 2311 compilation	various artists Rick Allen, organ Sammy Berfect, Hammond organ, piano Doug Duffey, organ Merl Saunders, Hammond organ

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