Stanley Clarke at Yoshi's Oakland

Four-time Grammy Award Winner Stanley Clarke has obtained “living legend” status during his over 50-year career as a bass virtuoso. He is the first bassist in history to double on acoustic and electric bass with equal ferocity and the first jazz-fusion bassist ever to headline tours, selling out shows worldwide. A veteran of well over 45 albums, Clarke’s creativity has been recognized and rewarded in every way imaginable. In 2022 Clarke was selected by the National Endowment for the Arts as one of its four new Jazz Master honorees. He also was Rolling Stone’s very first Jazzman of the Year and bassist winner of Playboy’s Music Award for ten straight years. Clarke was honored with Bass Player Magazine’s Lifetime Achievement Award and is a member of Guitar Player Magazine’s “Gallery of Greats.” In 2011 he was honored with the highly prestigious Miles Davis Award at the Montreal Jazz Festival for his entire body of work. In September 2016 he became a part of the permanent collection displayed at the Smithsonian’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington DC. ...

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Four-time Grammy Award Winner Stanley Clarke has obtained “living legend” status during his over 50-year career as a bass virtuoso. He is the first bassist in history to double on acoustic and electric bass with equal ferocity and the first jazz-fusion bassist ever to headline tours, selling out shows worldwide. A veteran of well over 45 albums, Clarke’s creativity has been recognized and rewarded in every way imaginable. In 2022 Clarke was selected by the National Endowment for the Arts as one of its four new Jazz Master honorees. He also was Rolling Stone’s very first Jazzman of the Year and bassist winner of Playboy’s Music Award for ten straight years. Clarke was honored with Bass Player Magazine’s Lifetime Achievement Award and is a member of Guitar Player Magazine’s “Gallery of Greats.” In 2011 he was honored with the highly prestigious Miles Davis Award at the Montreal Jazz Festival for his entire body of work. In September 2016 he became a part of the permanent collection displayed at the Smithsonian’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) in Washington DC.
An accomplished film and TV composer of over 70 projects, his credits include Boyz N The Hood, the Tina Turner biopic What’s Love Got To Do With It, Romeo Must Die and The Transporter. Currently he is scoring the music for the Hulu show Woke. He has garnered three Emmy Nominations and a BMI Award for his scoring. Clarke is a member of the exclusive Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.
In 2023 It was announced that Clarke will partner with Santa Monica, CA’s, BroadStage as its Artist in Residence. This multi-year partnership includes performances, curation, and mentorship for Santa Monica College Music Department and Santa Monica High School Jazz students. Clarke’s Pandemic work has involved producing and participating his new well-received web series, Stanley Clarke’s Bass Nation, which premiered November 2020. Stanley and his wife Sofia established The Stanley Clarke Foundation seventeen years ago, which offers scholarships to talented young musicians. He believes in giving back to help young musicians hone their skills.

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