Andrew Paul Woolfolk II (October 11, 1950 – April 24, 2022) was an American

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

. Woolfolk was a longtime member of the band

Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (abbreviated as EW&F or EWF) is an American band formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1969. Their music spans multiple genres, including jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, Latin and Afro-pop. They are among the best-selling ba ...

from 1973 to 1985, and from 1987 to 1993. He also collaborated with artists such as

Deniece Williams June Deniece Williams (née Chandler; born June 3, 1950) is an American singer. She has been described as "one of the great Soul music, soul voices" by the BBC. She is best known for the songs "Free (Deniece Williams song), Free", "Silly (song ...

Stanley Turrentine Stanley William Turrentine (April 5, 1934 – September 12, 2000) was an American jazz tenor saxophone, tenor saxophonist and record producer. He began his career playing R&B for Earl Bostic and later soul jazz recording for the Blue Note Reco ...

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and later became the lead singer of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis and had a successful solo career, ac ...

Twennynine Twennynine, also known as Twennynine with Lenny White, was an American R&B band founded in 1979. Overview Twennynine was founded by jazz fusion drummer Lenny White in 1979 after he left Return to Forever. White formed the band to explore commer ...

Philip Bailey Philip James Bailey (born May 8, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter and percussionist, best known as an early member and one of the two lead singers (along with group founder Maurice White) of the band Earth, Wind & Fire. Noted for his fo ...

, and

Level 42 Level 42 are an English jazz-funk band formed on the Isle of Wight in 1979. They had a number of UK and worldwide hits during the 1980s and 1990s. Their highest-charting single in the UK was " Lessons in Love", which reached number three on th ...

Biography

Woolfolk attended East High School in

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

. In 1972 he joined the band

as a saxophonist and became a longstanding member. Woolfolk was inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

as a member of Earth, Wind & Fire in 2000. In 2017, Woolfolk was inducted into the

Colorado Music Hall of Fame Colorado Music Hall of Fame (The Hall) is a nonprofit in Colorado, United States founded in 2011 with a mission to promote and support Colorado’s music community. Inductees ;2011 *John Denver *Red Rocks Amphitheatre ;2012 *Barry Fey * Flash Ca ...

. Woolfolk died on April 24, 2022, after a long illness.

Collaborations

Aside from his work with EW&F, Woolfolk played the saxophone on Valerie Carter's 1977 album ''

Just a Stone's Throw Away ''Just a Stone's Throw Away'' is Valerie Carter's first full-length solo album. It features guest appearances from artists such as Maurice White, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne and Deniece Williams. The album was finally reissued in full as part ...

'',

' 1977 LP ''

Song Bird A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5,00 ...

'',

's 1979 album '' Best of Friends'', and

's 1981 LP ''

Tender Togetherness ''Tender Togetherness'' is a studio album by tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, released in April 1981 on Elektra Records. The album reached No. 13 on the ''Billboard'' Jazz Albums chart. Critical reception With a 3.5 out of 5 star rating, ...

''. He later performed on

's 1983 album ''

Standing in the Light ''Standing in the Light'' is the fourth studio album released in 1983 by the English jazz-funk band Level 42 on Polydor Records. The album peaked at No. 9, being the group's first top 10 showing in the UK Pop Albums Chart. Standing in the Light ...

'',

's 1984

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

-nominated LP ''

The Wonders of His Love ''The Wonders of His Love'' is the second studio album by Philip Bailey, released in 1984 on Myrrh Records. It was his first gospel album, peaking at No. 13 on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Top Christian Albums chart and No. 17 on the ' ...

'', and Bailey's 1986 Grammy-winning album '' Triumph''. Woolfolk also played the saxophone on Tracie Spencer's 1988 self titled album and on

' 1996 album ''

Dance Into the Light ''Dance into the Light'' is the sixth solo studio album by English drummer and singer-songwriter Phil Collins, released on 21 October 1996 in the United Kingdom by Face Value Records. It features guest backing vocals from some of Collins' tourin ...

''.

References

External links

* * 1950 births 2022 deaths 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians American multi-instrumentalists Musicians from Texas Earth, Wind & Fire members 20th-century American saxophonists 21st-century American saxophonists East High School (Denver, Colorado) alumni {{US-woodwind-musician-stub