Kenny G Biography

Kenneth Gorelick (born June 5, 1956), better known by his stage name Kenny G, is an American saxophonist who was born in Seattle to a Jewish family. He adopted his stage name when he turned professional at the age of 17 and started playing in Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra. He has a degree in accounting from the University of Washington.

In 1981 Kenny G signed with Arista Records as a solo artist. He has released many solo albums and collaborated with various artists including Whitney Houston, Natalie Cole and Aretha Franklin. Influenced by the likes of Grover Washington, Jr., his own albums are usually classified as smooth jazz.
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His cross-over into pop music remains highly popular with the American buying public, although he has come under much fire from music critics and jazz devotees. As of 2003, Kenny G was named the 25th-highest selling artist in America by the RIAA, with 47.5 million albums sold in the USA . In 1994, Kenny G won the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition for Forever in Love.

In 1997, Kenny G earned a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for playing the longest note ever recorded on a saxophone. Kenny G held an E Flat for forty five minutes, forty seven seconds, a record he still officially holds. However, in 1998, a sax player by the name of Geovanny Escalante from Costa Rica claimed that he held an E Flat for ninety minutes, forty five seconds. This attempt is considered unoffical, as per the Guinness Book of World Records judges were not present at the event, which is required for an official entry in the book.

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KENNY G BIOGRAPHY