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Wally West: The Big Fish

By Skip Spratt

 The saxophone is alive and well in Greensboro, North Carolina. Wally West, Yamaha clinician, commercial saxophonist and band leader is tearin' it up" in the Bible Belt. His big, bad tenor sound will get your attention, but it's Wally's soulful side that is a perfect match for his gentlemanly southern manner. Be it on stage, the back of the house or simply chatting with an old friend, Mr. West is a true gentleman. "There's hundreds, thousands, HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS (laughs) of better saxophone players out there, but one thing that I really try to do when I go on any job is I try to be very personable. I like to let my personality come through, not just in my playing, but the way I interact with people. I think that has led to a lot of my success. I'm not gonna say that my music has. I think a lot of my success is by the way I handle my affairs."

Wally has been "handling" the saxophone quite well for the last 20 years. If you're not familiar with his playing, not to worry, you may have already heard him. He has backed a cross section of performers that includes jazz greats, original Motown groups, name big bands and even some of country music's finest. Whether playing with Tony Bennett, Smokey Robinson, The Dorsey Orchestras, Roy Clark or Vince Gill, Wally is at home behind the saxophone, regardless of style.

Wally West began playing alto saxophone at the age of 11 in Greensboro, North Carolina. From the moment he began to blow into that old alto, Wally knew he was on to something. He received recognition for being a promising young musician right from the beginning. "In six weeks I had pretty much gone through the first year of band. I received lots of honors and got lots of playing opportunities. I really made a good name for myself and I was really proud."

Years of touring and recording have brought many successes and some notoriety to Wally West, but this "good 'ole boy" is most comfortable at home in North Carolina. As he himself has said, "You can take the boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy!"

Andy Snitzer: Hired Gun

by Skip Spratt

Andy Snitzer is among the busiest session players on the New York scene today. His recording and touring credits are nothing less than a who's who of contemporary music. He can be found in the enviable company of such diverse artists as Bob James, Paul Simon or The Rolling Stones, to name a few. His passionate, yet aggressive style is derivative of classic Brecker and Sanborn, but his sound is truly unique and undeniably his own. Andy's recordings thrive in the sea of "smooth jazz" saxophonists, however, his music has depth, character, complexity and let's not forget—groove! He has found his voice and demands it be heard.

While growing up in Philadelphia, Andy's first playing experiences were on clarinet and piano. In his early teens he lost interest in those instruments and took up the saxophone at age 15. He began college at Northwestern University in Chicago under Fred Hemke, but after one year, transferred into the more contemporary jazz program of the University of Miami. While there, Andy was offered a gig in the horn section touring with Bob James in 1984.

After graduating, he was lured to New York City, but not for the usual reasons. Andy earned an MBA at New York University and went on to a stint at J.P. Morgan Investment. A career in music was not certain at that point, however he continued to play gigs around New York, picking up session work and returning to his "day gig" at J.P. Morgan. At some point the writing was on the wall. Andy was building a reputation as one of New York's top session players and J.P. Morgan was history. A few years later, he was signed to Warner Brothers as a solo artist. Andy has three cds on the Warner Jazz label, including a #1 Hit on NAC radio, "You've Changed", from Ties That Bind.

Several phone calls and countless e-mails led up to my interview with Andy, who manages to juggle production projects, recording sessions and road tours. I caught up with Andy at a stop in Atlanta while he was on tour with Paul Simon. He had just come from playing tennis and was on his way to dinner before enjoying a rare evening off. Andy was gracious enough to speak candidly about the recording business, touring and of course…the saxophone. We spoke briefly about tennis and mutual friends from Philly before starting the interview.