Everyone knows why David Sanborn is a jazz legend

The name David Sanborn carries a lot of weight and admiration in the jazz world. And while Sanborn takes a great deal of care and effort to produce quality recordings and put on good shows, don’t ask him to explain his popularity and longevity.

“I really don’t know what it is,” said Sanborn, who will perform Sunday at Thornton Winery as part of the 2009 Champagne Jazz Concert Series. “I don’t have a clue. I make whatever music is in my head. People related to it or don’t. It’s always a mystery to me.”

For Sanborn, the music is a reflection of whatever happens to be going on in his world, or how he happens to be feeling. After numerous Grammy awards and 23 albums, it is clear there is something special.

“I’ve made a lot of records and it is always a challenge,” he said. “I try to make it reflect where I am. I don’t try to premeditate. I don’t look at marketing and try to figure out what to record. I mean if I did, by the time the album came out there would be a different style of music that was popular.”

One thing is certain and that is that Sanborn has come a long way, both in life and career. Some artists start out on an instrument because they were inspired by someone close to them. For Sanborn, the sax may have been a life saver.

“I had polio as a child and was in an iron lung for a year and paralyzed for another year,” he said. “When I was 11 my lungs went and the doctors thought it would be a good idea for me to play a wind instrument,”

Having already become a big fan of Ray Charles and seeing that at the time the saxophone was a major pop and rock and roll instrument, he picked the sax.

“I was a huge fan of Hank Crawford who ran the Ray Charles Band and the sax was it for me,” he said.

He eventually began playing gigs in St. Louis before moving to California. While living in California, he sat in on sessions with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band – even playing Woodstock - and wound up with the band for five years. After the band broke up, he joined Stevie Wonder and numerous other performers such as The Rolling Stones, Taylor and David Bowie.

And from there, a star was born.

“When it comes to music, some of it is just chemistry,” he said. “I can’t predict what works and I never try to duplicate what I’ve done before. If a musician has a successful song or album and just tries to do a follow-up that is just “son of the hit record,” he or she is going to fail more often than not. You have to be creative and let that lead you.”

That even includes cover songs, which Sanborn has done a few of in his career.

His most recent album, 2008’s “Here and Now,” is a tribute to the men who inspired him, Ray Charles, Hank Crawford and David “Fathead” Newman.

“Being influenced by Ray Charles is important for me because while he was hitting the pop charts he was still on the blues side of the spectrum and that is where a ton of pop and rock and roll derived from and knowing those basics put me in a good place,” he said. “And Crawford and Newman were just phenomenal.”

Among the guests on “Here and Now” were Sam Moore, Eric Clapton and Joss Stone.

“I think the key to a cover song is to get the right person for the right song,” he said. “Eric Clapton is a great musician and one of the greatest guitar players of this era. The song, ‘I’m Gonna Move to the Outskirts of Town,’ was the right fit for him. I called him because he is an amazing player and I had a song I thought he could really take off with. It was where his heart lies. When I asked him to play I told him the tune and he said ‘yeah, I know that one. I can do that.”

For “I’ve Got News for You,” it was Sam Moore.

“Again, that was selecting the right guy for the right song,” he said. “He still has the power to deliver.”

He sees a parallel between recording and movies.

“It’s like casting, trying to find the right person for the right role,” he said. “It’s also like being an actor. You aren’t always the same person. It’s more about who am I in this context, who am I in this role. I give the musicians who work with me guidance, but there’s a reason I brought them in. I want to hear what is in their hearts.”

Again, for Sanborn it’s about feeling.

“If you are going to do a cover song or album, it should be about being inspired by the song to be creative with it,” he said. “It always surprises me to see bands that just do a straight cover of songs. It should be a re-imagining, otherwise you are just a bar band.”

He also looks at the stage as a place to be creative, even when the songs are his own.

“People want to go onstage and recreate the album, but why not just listen to the CD then,” he said. “I want to see musicians play. A lot of people want to hear what they know.”

It even gets to the point where Sanborn tires of some of his own music.

“A lot of the songs I’ve played so many times, its hard to get enthusiastic about them, so I will temporarily retire them,” he said. “Fortunately, I have enough material that I can find other things to play. You have to do that, especially if you are touring all the time.”

He also tries to craft set lists around particular venues.

“To an extent, where you play will determine a lot,” he said. “You want to get the audience involved and to do that you have to have a certain chemistry on stage and a certain mix of songs.”

So, as Sanborn nears the release of his 24th album, expected to be issued in October, there is a sense of satisfaction.

“Again, I have my own perspective on my music, but I can’t really put it into words,” he said. “At this point, I’m happy I have the freedom to record what I want, play what I want and just let the music take care of itself, to let the songs develop naturally and capture what I am feeling at that moment.”