Born and raised in Virginia, Mac began his musical career with sawdust in his shoes, when, at twelve, he played 1" trumpet for the circus, soon followed by teenage years performing with an array of bands and playing 1" trumpet with the Roanoke Symphony. After graduating from the Berklee School of Music in Boston, Mac went on the road with the big band circuit, playing with such greats as Buddy Rich, Buddy Morrow, Stan Kenton, and others.
New York beckoned the young trumpeter whose flawless intonation and range had caught the attention of recording producers like Nile Rodgers, Bernard Edwards, Bill Lasewell, Arthur Baker, Arif Mardin, and Rick Derringer. Their albums smoked their way to the charts with Mac's fiery horn as Steve Winwood, Arrow, Laurie Anderson, Power Station, Mick Jagger, and many others signed him on time and again for more than 1000 recordings and more than 75 solos on Top-Forty singIes. In the world of screaming guitars, synths, and samplers, Mac Gollehon's trumpet rules; his solos can be heard all over the airwaves. Listen for his solos on David Bowie's Let's Dance, Jagger and Bowie's Dancin' the Street, Grace Jones's Inside Story, Duran Duran's Notorious, Billy Ocean's Get Out Of My Dreams, and on "Coming to America," Eddie Murphy's film soundtrack. He is arguably today's most recorded trumpet player.
As a master of Latin, calypso, country, rock, and jazz, Hilton Ruiz has christened the versatile player "genius"; Lester Bowie describes him as "a special talent,"and Nile Rodgers nicknamed him "the best trumpet player on the planet." After he shared the concert stage with Jon Faddis, Lew Soloff, Randy Brecker, and others, Brass Player s critic wrote: "Playing straight ahead jazz in the company of our most prominent jazzers, Mac more than held his own he left- them awe-struck."
For years, fans around the world have cheered his talent front-lining for Chic, Blondie, Duran Duran, and Sheena Easton, to mention only a few. In fact, on any given week, Mac can be found Iaying down tracks for Onyx, Kenny Barron, Ric Ocasek, Laurie Anderson, or Madonna. "Becoming a complete musician has been an on-going process for me," explains Mac. "It has been an evolution of building a personal stylistic identity by collaborating with other musicians of enormous talent. I've been influenced and stimulated by them and have been able to develop my own character and individual style. Whether I'm working with David Bowie, Hall, Oates or even Duran Duran, most times, I've been able to interject my own concepts into their music and it has helped my own personal approach to music."
"With all the influences and experiences I've encountered,"adds Mac, "along with my own personal musical development, I feel that SMOKIN' SECTION is a sound that had to happen. It's a collection of tracks for the listener who enjoys a more exciting and stimulating sound not routinely heard...or found...on recordings today."
So, it's not surprising that the versatile trumpeter whose unforgettable solo on David Bowie's "Let's Dance" title cut changed Bowie's sound and gave him the biggest hit of his career, is making a few slamming tracks of his own...carving his own niche with a sound so unique that critics have compared him to brassers like Clifford Brown and Lee Morgan. "Visible, volatile products of burning" defines the smoking hits music of Mac Gollehon and of his recent debut release as leader, MAC'S SMOKIN' SECTION (available through Twinbrook, June, 1996), an artistic and musical narrative with strong roots in tradition as well as the makings of a stylistic hybrid. It is a fresh, pure sound on the scene moody blues, pulsing soca, jazz rock, and finger-popping pop to hip hop, swinging big band to sizzling salsa...exuding attitude, inflection, and ambiance. It's no wonder that SMOKIN' SECTION smokes!
Smokin'-Section...slow, sensuous peregrinations- through smoke-filled jazz dungeons,slipping errant into world color and cosmic clubs, fading into the haunting blues simplicity of a Mississippi night... is a musical narrative with strong roots in tradition and the makings of a stylistic hybrid. - McKenzie Entertainment
Question: What do David Bowie, Mick Jagger, Steve Winwood, Grover Washington, Laurie Anderson, Lester Bowie, Nile Rodgers, and Hilton Ruiz all have in common
Answer: Recording with Mac Gollehon one of the most exceptional trumpeters/session players in the music industry.
Mac's Smokin' Section Gollehon's all-original debut album features Mac Gollehon's exciting brand of trumpet, with an all-star cast including Nile Rodgers (guitar), Lester Bowie (trumpet), Hilton Ruiz (piano) and Robert Aaron (tenor sax). Mac's Smokin' Section is lush with original tracks dipped in jazz, rock, latin and blues rhythms and fused by Gollehon's soulful trumpet.
Whether touring the world with top-charting groups or jamming in the studio with Latin jazz all-stars, Gollehon's skillful trumpet playing has graced over 1,000 recordings, many of which have been certified gold or platinum. His distinct "voice" can be heard blowing on hits such as David Bowie's "Let's Dance," (that's Mac introducing the song), Mick Jagger's "Dancin' in the Streets," Duran Duran's "Notorious," and Billy Ocean's "Get Out of My Dreams," among others.
This former member of the Apollo Theatre House Band has shared stages as diverse as Live Aid, Soul Train and Saturday Night Live with artists as diverse as Madonna, Lester Bowie, Mick Jagger, Buddy Rich, Bowie and Tito Puente. (But his first gig was as a 12 year-old member of a circus band!) Classically trained, this three-time author, inventor, and innovator is one of the music industry's best-kept secrets.
MAC Gollehon: _Author, Inventor, Innovator
The Educator: _Perhaps the most important components of playing the trumpet correctly and successfully are breath control and embouchure alignment two issues that Mac confronted early in his career. As students throughout the world questioned him about his power, control, and range, Mac's answers cemented his reputation as an embouchure specialist in the brass community with clinics, lectures and demon- strations in South America, Germany, France, Austria, Italy, and Japan.
The Author: _From his international lectures and clinics, Mac compiled enough material for two books Embouchure and Embouchure Update. His third book, Latin and Caribbean Rhythms was also extremely well-received.
The Video Star: _Mac co.-produced a how-to videotape, Mega-fingers, that demonstrates a method of training fingers for strength, coordination and agility.
The lnventor: _As challenging as playing the trumpet, has been learning how the trumpet is played: Mac made studies and comparisons of different types of trumpets and their resistance factors and responses towards vibration and airstream; he studied publications of renown trumpet designer Reynold Schilke; he experimented in metals, lead pipes, tapers, bore sizes and bell shapes. The MAX trumpet a collaboration with Alan Colin is now sold internationally. He is currently working on two additional prototypes.
The Teacher: _Mac has been a trumpet instructor at Mannes College of Music in New York City, and was the official trumpet coach for the U.S. Army.
Hey, I hope you’re well. I’m still in NYC and I’m excited to have another full band concert coming up soon: Tues, Oct 27, 7.30-9.00 pm Zinc Bar NYC (82 West 3rd Street) I’d love to see you there! Greetings from your Swiss brother, blessings, Vlada www.vladamusic.com
I’m sorry you
haven’t heard from me in a while, I was travelling a lot and preparing the
release of my album. But I’ll be back in NYC and playing there soon:
Tues, Sept
29th, 9.30pm, The Bitter End, Manhattan
I’d love to see
you there! Greetings from your Swiss brother, blessings,
Vlada
VLADA "All
about you" feat. Take 6, K. Whalum, A. Laboriel, V. Colaiuta, P. Jackson
Jr.
Ciao,MacsSmokinSection ,Thank you for the add and the friendship. you are very good, I like your stupendous music a lot, compliments ..really. you are one of my prefeitis talk to you soon, and all of my best wishes to always listen to your good music. all the best.. from italy neal
