Norton Buffalo
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Norton Buffalo (born 28 September 1951, Oakland, California)[1] is a singer-songwriter, country and blues harmonica player, record producer, bandleader and recording artist.
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[edit] Career
Born and raised in Oakland, he gained renown throughout the 1970s as a San Francisco Bay Area musician, and he continues to perform and record music often as a session musician. He is best known as a versatile exponent of the harmonica including chromatic[2] and diatonic.[3]
Buffalo (his real name was Phillip Jackson but legally changed it to Norton Buffalo in the 1970's), the son of a harmonica player, was raised in Richmond, California. In high school he performed in a series of bands. By the early 1970s he began to play with such Bay Area groups as Clover, The Moonlighters, Elvin Bishop and Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen.
In early 1976 Buffalo joined the "farewell" European tour of Commander Cody's band and was recorded on the band's 1976 final live album, We've Got A Live One Here! [4] which included Buffalo's song, "Eighteen Wheels".
After the tour Buffalo returned to California, briefly played with a number of local bands, and later in 1976 he joined the Steve Miller Band's Fly Like an Eagle national tour. He also played harmonica on the band's hit follow-up album, Book of Dreams, released in May 1977. Buffalo appeared on the tracks, "Winter Time" and "The Stake".
By the late 1970s Buffalo had formed his own band, the Stampede, and recorded two Capitol Records albums, Lovin' in the Valley of the Moon and Desert Horizon. Not long after the release of his second album, in 1979 Buffalo and his band were featured on the PBS music television program Austin City Limits. [5]
His harmonica work appeared on the 1977 album Sweet Forgiveness by Bonnie Raitt.
Buffalo also did a cameo appearance in the rock movie, The Rose starring Bette Midler. He was a member of the band (on harmonica and trombone). He also spoke a line or two.
He played harmonica on two tracks on The Doobie Brothers' Grammy award winning 1978 album Minute By Minute.
Norton had another cameo in Michael Cimino's ill fated "Heaven's Gate (film)" Starring Kris Kristofferson, Christopher Walken, Sam Waterston and Jeff Bridges, filmed in Montana in 1979.
Was nominated for a Grammy in 1992 for "Best Country Instrumental Performance" For the tune "Song For Jessica" from his 1991 Duet CD "R&B" with Guitarist Roy Rogers, on Blind Pig Records.
Norton Buffalo appears as a session musician on 180 albums to date.
Norton continues to perform and record as a member of The Steve Miller Band with whom he has now been a member for over 32 years.
[edit] Discography
- Lovin' in the Valley of the Moon, Capitol Records, 1977
- Desert Horizon, Capitol Records, 1978
- R & B (with slide guitarist Roy Rogers) (Blind Pig, 1991)
- Travellin’ Tracks (with Roy Rogers) (Blind Pig, 1992)
- King of the Highway (Blind Pig, 2000)
- Roots Of Our Nature (Blind Pig, 2003)
Go to Norton Buffalo's Official Website for a detailed listing of other recordings he has done
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Norton Buffalo - Free Music Downloads, Videos, Lyrics, CDs, MP3s, Bio, Merchandise and Links
- ^ Norton Buffalo Reviews
- ^ Harmonica Players- Male- Cross Category Music- Lee Oskar, Norton Buffalo
- ^ We've Got a Live One Here, Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, Amazon.com, 1976
- ^ Norton Buffalo, Austin City Limits, 1979
