Duane Eubanks

b. 24 January 1969, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. The youngest of three jazz-playing brothers, and a nephew of Ray Bryant, Duane Eubanks was raised in intensively musical surroundings. Deciding to learn the trumpet, he soon began to play effectively in the post-bop idiom. After studying for a degree in Business Administration at the University of Maryland, Eubanks enrolled as a jazz major at Temple University. During this period he also received private lessons from Johnny Coles. Relocating to New York, Eubanks formed his own quartet and in 1997 made his recording debut on his brother Robin Eubanks’ Wake Up Call. He has also performed and recorded with musicians including, Antonio Hart, Illinois Jacquet, Oliver Lake, Phyllis Hyman, Donald Byrd, James Moody, and the Temptations. Eubanks is always interesting when playing ballads, finding a delicately shaded and rounded sound. His liking for warm and melodic sounds has led him to compose a number of attractive songs, including ‘Lonelyism’, ‘Can’t Wait ’Til Dawn’ and ‘Clairvoyance’, all of which appear on his debut album. With his older brothers, Robin and Kevin Eubanks, attracting rather more of the spotlight in jazz at the start of the new century, it might well be that it is as a songwriter that Duane Eubanks will make his most lasting mark.