Ben Tankard

Last updated
Ben Tankard
BT at Jazzfest.jpeg
Background information
Born (1964-01-10) January 10, 1964 (age 58)
Daytona Beach, Florida, United States
Genres Contemporary gospel, smooth jazz
Occupation(s)Musician
InstrumentsKeyboards
Years active1990s–present
Labels Tribute, Sony Music, Verity
Associated acts Gerald Albright, Take 6, Yolanda Adams, Kirk Whalum, Wayman Tisdale
Website bentankard.me

Ben Tankard (born January 10, 1964) is an American gospel/smooth jazz musician, producer, and arranger.

Contents

Biography

Ben and Jewel Tankard receiving Stellar Award Ben and Jewel Tankard.jpg
Ben and Jewel Tankard receiving Stellar Award

Tankard's father was a minister and his mother a missionary. [1] In church, he played drums at an early age. [1] He played tuba in school and received a basketball scholarship. [1] Although he was selected in the NBA draft, he hurt his knee before the season started. [1] During a period of homelessness, he went to church and was inspired by a revival service to turn his life around. [1] He began playing keyboards, recorded Keynote Speaker (1990) for Tribute, and started to learn about arranging and record production. [1] He followed with He has worked with Gerald Albright, Twinkie Clark, Fred Hammond, John P. Kee, Shirley Murdock, Kelly Price, and Take 6. [1]

Tankard discovered a third-grade school teacher named Yolanda Adams and signed her to his indy Tribute label. He produced her albums Through the Storm , Save the World , More Than A Melody , and Yolanda... Live in Washington . They collaborated on over 40 compositions. He credits her voice for helping to bring his production style and keyboard playing to a large audience. [2] [3]

He won Stellar Awards' Best Instrumental Album in 2010 for Mercy, Mercy, Mercy. [4]

In 2012, Ben Tankard/ Full Tank was nominated by the Soul Train Music Awards for Best Contemporary Jazz Artist. [5]

Discography

Related Research Articles

Cannonball Adderley American jazz alto saxophonist

Julian Edwin "Cannonball" Adderley was an American jazz alto saxophonist of the hard bop era of the 1950s and 1960s.

<i>Whats Going On</i> (Marvin Gaye album) 1971 album by Marvin Gaye

What's Going On is the eleventh studio album by American soul singer, songwriter, and producer Marvin Gaye. It was released on May 21, 1971, by the Motown Records subsidiary label Tamla. Recorded between 1970 and 1971 in sessions at Hitsville U.S.A., Golden World, and United Sound Studios in Detroit, and at The Sound Factory in West Hollywood, California, it was Gaye's first album to credit him as a producer and to credit Motown's in-house studio band, the session musicians known as the Funk Brothers.

Kenny G American saxophonist from Washington

Kenneth Bruce Gorelick, known professionally as Kenny G, is an American smooth jazz saxophonist, composer, and producer. His 1986 album Duotones brought him commercial success. Kenny G is one of the best-selling artists of all time, with global sales totaling more than 75 million records.

Hawk Nelson Canadian band

Hawk Nelson is a Canadian rock band from Peterborough, Ontario. Formed in 2000, the band has released eight studio albums to date.

<i>A Charlie Brown Christmas</i> (soundtrack) 1965 soundtrack album by Vince Guaraldi

A Charlie Brown Christmas is the eighth studio album by American jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi. The album was released in December 1965 in the U.S. by Fantasy Records and was Guaraldi's final studio album for the label. It is the soundtrack to the Christmas television special of the same name.

Jim Brickman American composer, recording artist

James Merrill Brickman is an American pop songwriter, pianist and radio host. Brickman has earned two Grammy nominations for his albums Peace (2003) for Best Instrumental, and Faith (2009) for Best New Age Album. He won a Canadian Country Music Award, a Dove Award presented by the Gospel Music Association, and was twice named Songwriter of the Year by SESAC. Billboard lists 22 of his albums reaching No. 1 on the New Age chart, and 16 of his songs reaching Top 10 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Four of his albums were certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Yolanda Adams American gospel music singer

Yolanda Yvette Adams is an American gospel singer, actress, and host of her own nationally syndicated morning gospel show. She is one of the best-selling gospel artists of all time, having sold nearly 10 million albums worldwide. In addition to achieving multi-platinum status, she has won four Grammy Awards, four Dove Awards, five BET Awards, six NAACP Image Awards, six Soul Train Music Awards, two BMI Awards and sixteen Stellar Awards. She was the first Gospel artist to be awarded an American Music Award.

Bob James (musician) Musical artist

Robert McElhiney James, known professionally as Bob James, is an American jazz keyboardist, arranger, and record producer. He founded the band Fourplay and wrote "Angela", the theme song for the TV show Taxi. Music from his first seven albums has often been sampled and has contributed to the formation of hip hop. Among his most well known recordings are "Nautilus", "Westchester Lady", "Tappan Zee", and his version of "Take Me to The Mardi Gras".

<i>Emerson, Lake & Palmer</i> (album) 1970 studio album by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Emerson, Lake & Palmer is the debut studio album by English progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer. It was released in the United Kingdom by Island Records in November 1970, and in the United States by Cotillion Records in January 1971. After the group formed in the spring of 1970, they entered rehearsals and prepared material for an album which became a mix of original songs and rock arrangements of classical music. The album was recorded at Advision Studios in July 1970, when the band had yet to perform live. Lead vocalist and bassist/guitarist Greg Lake produced it.

"The Christmas Song" is a classic Christmas song written in 1945 by Robert Wells and Mel Tormé.

Tribute Records is an American gospel music record label established in 1990. The label was co-founded by jazz musician and former pro basketball player Ben Tankard and George King. King owned Nashville based Diadem Music Group which produced Contemporary Christian music. Diadem's signature artist Bob Carlisle is best known for his hit song "Butterfly Kisses". Tribute became the urban contemporary gospel division of Diadem and home to several gospel music stars, most notably Tankard, Yolanda Adams, Twinkie Clark of The Clark Sisters and others. Tankard was executive producer and music producer on most of the early Tribute releases and his vision was to develop artists and pioneer a new smooth genre of music he coined as "gospeljazz". He featured Yolanda Adam's jazzy vocals on the album and concept video single " You Bring Out The Best In Me " on his 1994 release "Play Me In Your Key". The jazzy collaborations of Tankard and Adams produced major crossover success and brought the name of Tribute Records to the forefront. Office Depot produced a gospel style " Taking Care Of Business " commercial national ad campaign that was centered on Tribute Records, Tankard, and Adams and ran from 1994-1996.

Matt Maher Musical artist

Matthew Guion Maher is a Canadian contemporary Christian music (CCM) artist, songwriter, and worship leader from Newfoundland, Canada, who lives in the United States. Three of his nine albums have reached the Top 25 Christian Albums Billboard chart and four of his singles have reached the Top 25 Christian Songs chart. His notable writing credits include "Your Grace Is Enough", "I Will Rise", "Because He Lives (Amen)", "Christ Is Risen", and "Lord I Need You". Maher has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards in his career and was awarded the Songwriter of the Year at the 2015 GMA Dove Awards. He is a practicing Catholic.

<i>The Christmas Sessions</i> 2005 studio album by MercyMe

The Christmas Sessions is the first Christmas album by American Christian rock band MercyMe. The album, produced by Brown Bannister, was released on September 27, 2005. The band, who greatly enjoy Christmas, had previously recorded Christmas songs and enjoyed the process so much that they wanted to produce a full-length album. After releasing a studio album in early 2004, they decided to take time off; they realized they could record a Christmas album over that period and began work in December 2004. The band, aiming to produce a rock-oriented album, recruited Bannister, a noted rock producer, to produce it. In addition to one original song, "Joseph's Lullaby", the album consists of covers of both modern and traditional Christmas songs that the band members had listened to when growing up.

Roxanne Seeman American songwriter, lyricist, record producer and theatre producer

Roxanne Joy Seeman is an American songwriter and lyricist. She is best known for her songs by Billie Hughes, Philip Bailey, Phil Collins, Earth, Wind & Fire, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, The Sisters of Mercy, The Jacksons, Jacky Cheung, and in film and television. She has two Emmy nominations.

Fiona Joy Hawkins Musical artist

Fiona Joy Hawkins, known professionally as Fiona Joy, is an Australian vocalist and pianist. Her collaborations have included five albums produced by Will Ackerman. Her influences include George Winston, Michael Nyman, Chopin, and Mendelssohn.

<i>I Am... Yours: An Intimate Performance at Wynn Las Vegas</i> 2009 live video album by Beyoncé

I Am... Yours: An Intimate Performance at Wynn Las Vegas is the third live and fourth video album by American singer Beyoncé. It was released on November 23, 2009 through Music World Entertainment and Columbia Records. The album was recorded at the Encore Theater in Paradise, Nevada, being filmed by Ed Burke, on August 2, 2009, during a stint of Beyoncé's I Am... World Tour (2009–2010). It features performances of over thirty songs, including her solo material, her recordings with the girl group Destiny's Child as well as behind-the-scenes footage. The film was directed by Nick Wickham and produced by Emer Patten.

The Cowboy Bebop anime series was accompanied by a number of soundtrack albums composed by Yoko Kanno and Seatbelts, a diverse band Kanno formed to create the music for the series, with a principal focus in jazz. The soundtrack was released in the American market by Victor Entertainment, a subsidiary of JVC Kenwood.

<i>Welcome to the New</i> 2014 studio album by MercyMe

Welcome to the New is the eighth studio album from contemporary Christian music band MercyMe, which was released on April 8, 2014 by Fair Trade Services and Columbia Records, and the producers are David Garcia and Ben Glover.

Jacob Collier English singer, composer and producer (born 1994)

Jacob Collier is an English musician. His music incorporates elements from many musical genres, and often features extreme use of reharmonisation and close harmony. He is also known for his energetic live performances, in which he often conducts the audience to sing multiple-part harmonies or percussions.

"How Great Is Our God" is a song written by Chris Tomlin, Jesse Reeves and Ed Cash. It was originally featured on Tomlin's album Arriving, that reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs chart. It is also featured live on Tomlin's Live from Austin Music Hall album. As of November 2014, it also is the fifth most popular worship song today, according to CCLI's top 25 worship songs chart. It also reached No. 1 on Christian Music Weekly's 20 The Countdown Magazine's Top 20 Worship Songs Chart. The song won "Song of the Year" and "Worship Song of the Year" at the 2006 GMA Dove Awards, and "Worship Song of the Year" again at the 2008 GMA Dove Awards.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Bush, John. "Ben Tankard". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  2. Mercy Mercy Mercy: The Ben Tankard Story. Ben-Jamin' Publishing. 2010. p. 40.
  3. Davis, Doug (May 18, 2007). "Meet 'The Godfather of Gospel Jazz'". The Daily News Journal - Murfreesboro, Tenn. D1.
  4. "25th Annual Stellar Award Results (2010)". 25th Annual Stellar Award Results (2010).
  5. "Soul Train Awards 2012 Viewers Choice Awards". Archived from the original on 2012-10-23.
  6. "All Keyed Up - Ben Tankard | Release Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  7. "Keynote Speaker - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  8. "Keys to Life - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  9. Tankard, Ben. "Keys to Life" (album notes). Tribute. 1991.
  10. "Christmas - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  11. Tankard, Ben. "An Instrumental Christmas" (album notes). Tribute. 1991.
  12. "Sunday Driving - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  13. "Play Me in Your Key - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  14. "Instrumentally Yours - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  15. Tankard, Ben. "Instrumentally Yours" (album notes). Verity / Zomba. 1996.
  16. "Git Yo Prayze On - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  17. "Raize Da Praize - Tribe of Benjamin | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  18. "The Minstrel - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  19. "Christmas Love - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  20. "Song of Solomon - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  21. "Play a Lil' Song for Me - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  22. "Piano Prophet - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  23. Tankard, Ben. "piano Prophet" (album Notes). Verity. 2004.
  24. "Let's Get Quiet: The Smooth Jazz Experience - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  25. Tankard, Ben. "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy". Verity / Zomba. 2009.
  26. "Full Tank - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  27. "Full Tank 2.0 - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  28. "Full Tank 3: Cantankerous - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  29. Tankard, Ben. "Full Tank 3: Cantankerous". Ben-Jammin' / Universal Music. 12 May 2017
  30. "Rise! - Ben Tankard | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2021.