I’ve made this true life confession on this blog several times, but I would be remiss if I did not send a special shout out to Eric Leeds for helping me to actually be cool in those very awkward teenage years. I played Baritone Saxophone for the majority of my time in High School and because of its size I would dare say it may not have been the hippest case to carry around. Then of course the accompanying questions “What’s that big thing?” Blah, blah, blah…
Anywhoo in the Summer of ’86 I got my revenge somewhat, when lo and behold what did I spy on BET? Oh yeah a guy playing the hell out of a Bari Sax with Prince. Then the conversation changed when I went back to school in the Fall “Hey don’t you play that thing that the guy plays with Prince?”. I sure do. Thanks Eric Leeds for helping an awkward teen not be so awkward and for your fantastic gift of musical goodness. Oh yeah shoutout to Prince too! Enjoy this live clip (while you can)(P.S. especially beginning at the 2:42 mark) with “Life Can Be So Nice” as an added bonus.
Prince – Girls And Boys (1986) by retrospective1
Ivan Orr is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, performer, and writer. A native of Charlottesville, Virginia Ivan was involved with the forming and nascent days of The Music Resource Center as its first Program Director. A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Music, Ivan currently resides in Richmond, VA where he maintains an active performance and production schedule while serving as the Music Editor for Grown Folks Music, a position he has held since 2010.
