Greg Cohen (born July 13, 1953) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

bassist who has been a member of

John Zorn John Zorn (born September 2, 1953) is an American composer, conducting, conductor, saxophonist, arrangement, arranger and record producer, producer who "deliberately resists category". His Avant-garde music, avant-garde and experimental music, ex ...

's Masada quartet and worked with numerous other noted musicians for over four decades.

Career

Cohen plays traditional jazz and other styles, including work with Ken Peplowski, Kenny Davern,

Marty Grosz Martin Oliver Grosz (born February 28, 1930) is a German-born American jazz guitarist, banjoist, vocalist, and composer born in Berlin, Germany, the son of artist George Grosz. He performed with Bob Wilber and wrote arrangements for him. He has a ...

, and

Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...

. He has also worked with

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

David Byrne David Byrne (; born May 14, 1952) is an American musician, writer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was a founding member, principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the American New wave music, new wave band Talking Heads. Byrne has ...

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, author and television host. According to ''Rolling Stone'', Costello "reinvigorated the literate, lyrical ...

, Dagmar Krause,

David Sanborn David William Sanborn (July 30, 1945 – May 12, 2024) was an American alto saxophonist. He worked in many musical genres; his solo recordings typically blended jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He began playing the saxophone at the age o ...

, Susana Baca,

Gal Costa Gal Maria da Graça Costa Penna Burgos (born Maria da Graça Costa Penna Burgos; 26 September 1945 – 9 November 2022), known professionally as Gal Costa (), was a Brazilian singer of Música popular brasileira, popular music. Twelve-times Bra ...

Marisa Monte Marisa de Azevedo Monte (; born 1 July 1967) is a Brazilian singer, composer, instrumentalist, and producer of Brazilian popular music and samba. As of 2011, she had sold 10 million albums worldwide and has won numerous national and internat ...

Laurie Anderson Laura Phillips "Laurie" Anderson (born June 5, 1947) is an American avant-garde artist, musician and filmmaker whose work encompasses performance art, pop music, and multimedia projects. Initially trained in violin and sculpting,Amirkhanian, Cha ...

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

Bill Frisell William Richard Frisell (born March 18, 1951) is an American jazz guitarist. He first came to prominence at ECM Records in the 1980s, as both a session player and a leader. He went on to work in a variety of contexts, notably as a participant ...

Norah Jones Norah Jones ( ; born Geethali Shankar; March 30, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She has won several awards for her music and, , has sold more than 53 million records worldwide. '' Billboard'' named her the top jazz artist of ...

, Dave Douglas, Tricky,

Jesse Harris Jesse Harris (born October 24, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and guitarist. He has worked with Norah Jones, Melody Gardot, Madeleine Peyroux, and Lizz Wright. Early life and education Harris and his twin sister were born i ...

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who is an original member, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His songwriting partnership wi ...

and

Charlie Watts Charles Robert Watts (2 June 1941 – 24 August 2021) was an English musician who was the drummer of the Rolling Stones from 1963 until his death in 2021. Originally trained as a Graphic designer, graphic artist, Watts developed an interest i ...

, Joey Baron,

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter and record producer. He emerged from the British folk scene in early 1965 and subsequently scored multiple international hit singles ...

Crystal Gayle Brenda Gail Webb (born January 9, 1951), known professionally as Crystal Gayle, is an American country music singer widely known for her 1977 hit " Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue". Initially, Gayle's management and record label were the same ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

, Nina Nastasia,

Alan Watts Alan Wilson Watts (6 January 1915 – 16 November 1973) was a British and American writer, speaker, and self-styled "philosophical entertainer", known for interpreting and popularising Buddhist, Taoist, and Hinduism, Hindu philosophy for a Wes ...

Lee Konitz Leon "Lee" Konitz (October 13, 1927 – April 15, 2020) was an American jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist and composer. He performed successfully in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Konitz's ass ...

Richie Havens Richard Pierce Havens (January 21, 1941 – April 22, 2013) was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music encompassed elements of folk music, folk, soul music, soul (both of which he frequently cover song, covered), and rhythm and b ...

, Dino Saluzzi,

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (29 December 1946 – 30 January 2025) was an English singer and actress who achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her UK top 10 single " As Tears Go By". She became one of the leading female art ...

Odetta Odetta Holmes (December 31, 1930 – December 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and s ...

Vesna Pisarović Vesna Pisarović (born 9 April 1978) is a Croatian pop and jazz singer. Life and career 1978–1999: Early life Pisarović was born in Brčko, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia and grew up in Požega, Croatia. From her earliest childhood s ...

Danny Barker Daniel Moses Barker (January 13, 1909 – March 13, 1994) was an American jazz musician, vocalist, and author from New Orleans. He was a rhythm guitarist for Cab Calloway, Lucky Millinder and Benny Carter during the 1930s. One of Barker's earli ...

, Christina Courtin,

Tim Sparks Tim Sparks (born October 31, 1954) is an American Steel-string guitar, acoustic guitar player, singer, arranger and composer. Life Raised in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he was given his first guitar when a bout of encephalitis kept him out of ...

, and Antony and the Johnsons. In August 2006 he was musical director of the Century of Song series at the German arts festival RuhrTriennale. He invited songwriters and performers such as

Holly Cole Holly Cole (born November 25, 1963) is a Canadian jazz singer and actress. For many years she performed with her group The Holly Cole Trio. Background Cole was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her father, Leon Cole, was a note ...

and

. He has been a regular member of Woody Allen and his New Orleans Jazz Band, which played at the Carlyle Hotel in Manhattan. He appeared in the documentary '' Wild Man Blues'' (directed by Barbara Kopple) about a 1996 European tour by Allen and his band. Cohen appears in

Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer, producer. He is considered an enduring figure from the New Hollywood era, known for directing subversive and sat ...

's 1993 film ''

Short Cuts ''Short Cuts'' is a 1993 American comedy-drama film, directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver. The film is set in Los Angeles, in contr ...

''. Cohen is a bass professor and the head of string department at the Jazz Institute Berlin. He is also an honorary professor in contemporary rhythmic music at SDMK - Danish National Academy of Music.

Discography

As leader

* ''Way Low'' (DIW, 1996) * ''Moment to Moment'' (DIW, 1998) * ''Golden State'' (

Relative Pitch Relative pitch is the ability of a person to identify or re-create a given musical note by comparing it to a reference note and identifying the interval between those two notes. For example, if the notes ''Do'' and ''Fa'' are played on a piano, a ...

, 2014)

As sideman

With Terry Adams * '' Terrible'' (

New World Records New World Records is a record label that was established in 1975 through a Rockefeller Foundation grant to celebrate America's bicentennial (1976) by producing a 100-LP anthology, with American music from many genres.Laurie Anderson Laura Phillips "Laurie" Anderson (born June 5, 1947) is an American avant-garde artist, musician and filmmaker whose work encompasses performance art, pop music, and multimedia projects. Initially trained in violin and sculpting,Amirkhanian, Cha ...

* '' Bright Red'' (

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

, 1994) * '' Life on a String'' (Elektra Nonesuch, 2001) With

* '' Painted from Memory'' (Mercury Records, 1998) With Christina Courtin * ''Christina Courtin'' (Nonesuch Records, 2009) * ''Situation Station'' (In A Circle, 2020) With A. J. Croce * ''Twelve Tales'' (Compass, 2013) With Dave Douglas * '' Charms of the Night Sky'' (Winter & Winter, 1997) * '' A Thousand Evenings'' (RCA, 2000) * '' El Trilogy'' (BMG, 2001) With

* (The Orphan Newsboys) ''Extra!'' (Jazzology, 1989) * ''Unsaturated Fats'' (Stomp Off, 1990) * (The Orphan Newsboys) ''Laughing at Life'' (Stomp Off, 1990) * ''Donaldson Redux'' (Stomp Off, 1991) * ''Songs I Learned at My Mother's Knee and Other Low Joints'' (Jazzology, 1992) * (The Orphan Newsboys) ''Live at the L.A. Classic'' (Jazzology, 1992) * ''Thanks'' (J&M, 1993) * (The Orphan Newsboys) ''Rhythm for Sale!'' (Jazzology, 1993, 1995, 1996) * ''Just Imagine … Songs of DeSylva, Brown & Henderson'' (Stomp Off, 1994) * ''Keep a Song in Your Soul'' (Jazzology, 1994) * ''Ring Dem Bells'' (Nagel Heyer, 1995) * ''Going Hollywood'' (Stomp Off, 1996) * ''Left to His Own Devices'' (Jazzology, 1999) * ''Marty Grosz and His Hot Combination'' (Arbors, 2005) With

* '' At the Rebbe's Table'' (Tzadik, 2002) * '' Little Princess'' (Tzadik, 2009) With

* ''

Heartattack and Vine ''Heartattack and Vine'' is the seventh studio album by Tom Waits, released on September 9, 1980, and his final album to be released on the Asylum label. "On the Nickel" was recorded for the Ralph Waite film of the same name. It was used as th ...

'' (Asylum, 1980) * ''

Swordfishtrombones ''Swordfishtrombones'' is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Tom Waits, released in 1983 on Island Records. It was the first album that Waits self-produced. Stylistically different from his previous albums, ''Swordfishtrombones ...

'' (Island, 1983) * ''

Rain Dogs ''Rain Dogs'' is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Tom Waits, released in September 1985 on Island Records. A loose concept album about "the urban dispossessed" of New York City, ''Rain Dogs'' is generally considered the middl ...

'' (Island, 1985) * '' Franks Wild Years'' (Island, 1987) * '' The Black Rider'' (Island, 1993) * '' Mule Variations'' (Anti, 1999) With

Victoria Williams Victoria Williams (born December 23, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter and musician, originally from Shreveport, Louisiana, United States, although she has resided in Southern California throughout her musical career. Diagnosed with multi ...

* '' Happy Come Home'' (Geffen, 1987) * ''

Loose Loose may refer to: Places * Loose, Germany * Loose, Kent, a parish and village in southeast England People * Loose (surname) Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums * ''Loose'' (B'z album), a 1995 album by B'z * ''Loose'' (Crazy Horse album ...

'' (Atlantic, 1994) * '' Musings of a Creek Dipper'' (Atlantic, 1998) With

* '' Masada: Alef'' (DIW, 1994) with

Masada Masada ( ', 'fortress'; ) is a mountain-top fortress complex in the Judaean Desert, overlooking the western shore of the Dead Sea in southeastern Israel. The fort, built in the first century BCE, was constructed atop a natural plateau rising ov ...

* '' Masada: Beit'' (DIW, 1994) with Masada * '' Masada: Gimel'' (DIW, 1994) with Masada * '' Masada: Dalet'' (DIW, 1994) with Masada * '' Masada: Hei'' (DIW, 1995) with Masada * '' Masada: Vav'' (DIW, 1995) with Masada * '' Masada: Zayin'' (DIW, 1996) with Masada * ''

Bar Kokhba Simon bar Kokhba ( ) or Simon bar Koseba ( ), commonly referred to simply as Bar Kokhba, was a Jewish military leader in Judaea (Roman province), Judea. He lent his name to the Bar Kokhba revolt, which he initiated against the Roman Empire in 1 ...

'' (Tzadik, 1996) with Bar Kokhba * '' Masada: Het'' (DIW, 1996) with Masada * '' Masada: Tet'' (DIW, 1997) with Masada * '' Live in Jerusalem 1994'' (Tzadik, 1997) with Masada * '' Live in Taipei 1995'' (Tzadik, 1997) with Masada * '' Masada: Yod'' (DIW, 1997) with Masada * '' The Circle Maker'' (Tzadik, 1998) with Bar Kokhba and Masada String Trio * '' Live in Middleheim 1999'' (Tzadik, 1999) with Masada * '' Live in Sevilla 2000'' (Tzadik, 2000) with Masada * '' Live at Tonic 2001'' (Tzadik., 2000) with Masada * '' First Live 1993'' (Tzadik, 2002) with Masada * '' Filmworks XI: Secret Lives'' (Tzadik, 2002) with Masada String Trio * '' The Unknown Masada'' (Tzadik, 2003) * '' 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 1'' (Tzadik, 2003) with Masada String Trio * '' 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 7'' (Tzadik, 2003) with Masada * '' 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 11'' (Tzadik, 2003) with Masada String Trio * '' Astaroth: Book of Angels Volume 1'' (Tzadik, 2004) with the

Jamie Saft Jamie Saft is an American keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist and composer. He was born in New York City and raised a Conservative Judaism, Conservative Jew, and studied at Tufts University and the New England Conservatory, New England Conserva ...

Trio * '' Sanhedrin 1994–1997'' (Tzadik, 2005) with Masada * '' Azazel: Book of Angels Volume 2'' (Tzadik, 2005) with Masada String Trio * '' Filmworks XX: Sholem Aleichem'' (Tzadik, 2008) * '' Lucifer: Book of Angels Volume 10'' (Tzadik, 2008) with Bar Kokhba * '' Stolas: Book of Angels Volume 12'' (Tzadik, 2009) with Masada Quintet * '' Alhambra Love Songs'' (Tzadik, 2009) * '' Baal: Book of Angels Volume 15'' (Tzadik, 2010) with Ben Goldberg Quartet * '' Haborym: Book of Angels Volume 16'' (Tzadik, 2010) with Masada String Trio * ''

In Search of the Miraculous ''In Search of the Miraculous: Fragments of an Unknown Teaching'' is a 1949 book by Russian philosopher P. D. Ouspensky which recounts his meeting and subsequent association with George Gurdjieff. According to Sophia Wellbeloved, the book is ...

'' (Tzadik, 2010) With others *

Fiona Apple Fiona Apple McAfee-Maggart (born September 13, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter. She released five albums from 1996 to 2020, all of which reached the top 20 on the U.S. Billboard 200, ''Billboard'' 200 chart. As of 2021, she has sold over ...

, '' When the Pawn...'' (Epic, 1999) *

Cyro Baptista Cyro Baptista (born December 23, 1950) is a Brazilian-born percussionist in jazz and world music. He creates many of the percussion instruments he plays. Career Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Baptista arrived in the U.S. in 1980 with a scholarship ...

, '' Vira Loucos'' (Avant, 1997) *

Steve Beresford Steve Beresford (born 6 March 1950) is a British musician who graduated from the University of York He has played a variety of instruments, including piano, electronics, trumpet, euphonium, bass guitar and a wide variety of toy instruments, suc ...

, '' Signals for Tea'' (Avant, 1995) *

, ''

Feelings According to the '' APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations, thoughts, or images evoking them". The term ''feeling'' is closel ...

'' (Warner Bros., 1997) * David Byrne, '' Look into the Eyeball'' (Virgin, 2001) *

Marc Cohn Marc Craig Cohn (; born July 5, 1959) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. He won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist in 1992. Cohn is best known for the song " Walking in Memphis", from his 1991 album '' Marc Cohn'', which was a To ...

, '' Join the Parade'' (Decca, 2007) *

, ''

'' (Alert, 2006) * Anthony Coleman, '' Sephardic Tinge'' (Tzadik, 1995) * Kenny Davern and Ken Peplowski, '' The Jazz KENnection'' ( Arbors, 2001) * Peter Ecklund, ''Ecklund at Elkhart'' (Jazzology, 1994) *

, '' Easy Come, Easy Go'' (Naive, 2008) * Mark Feldman, '' Secrets'' with

Uri Caine Uri Caine (born June 8, 1956) is an American classical music, classical and jazz pianist and composer from Philadelphia. Biography Early years Caine was born on June 8, 1956, in Philadelphia, to Burton Caine (1928–2023), a professor at Temple ...

and Joey Baron (Tzadik, 2009) * Michael Franks, '' Time Together'' (Shanachie, 2011) * Keiji Haino, ''An Unclear Trial'' (Avant, 1998) * Joe Jackson, '' Fast Forward'' (Caroline, 2015) *

Natalie Merchant Natalie Anne Merchant (born October 26, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter. She joined the band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 and was lead vocalist and primary lyricist for the group. She remained with the group for their first seven albums before ...

, '' Leave Your Sleep'' (Nonesuch, 2010) *

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist, composer, conductor and orchestrator. He is known for his non-rhotic Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early America ...

, '' Bad Love'' (DreamWorks, 1999) * Randy Newman, '' Harps and Angels'' (Nonesuch, 2008) * Ken Peplowski, ''Grenadilla'' (Concord, 1997) *

Madeleine Peyroux Madeleine Peyroux (born April 19, 1974) is an American jazz singer and songwriter who began her career as a teenager on the streets of Paris. She sang vintage jazz and blues songs before finding mainstream success in 2004 when her album ''Carele ...

, '' Dreamland'' (Atlantic, 1996) *

Marc Ribot Marc Ribot (; born May 21, 1954) is an American guitarist and composer. His work has touched on many styles, including no wave, free jazz, Rock music, rock, and Cuban music. Ribot is also known for collaborating with other musicians, most notab ...

, '' Shoe String Symphonettes'' (Tzadik, 1997) *

, '' Trouble: The Jamie Saft Trio Plays Bob Dylan'' (Tzadik, 2006) *

Ron Sexsmith Ronald Eldon Sexsmith (born January 8, 1964) is a Canadian singer-songwriter from St. Catharines, Ontario. He was the songwriter of the year at the 2005 Juno Awards. He began releasing recordings of his own material in 1985 at age 21, and has ...

, '' Other Songs'' (Interscope, 1997) * Julian Siegel, ''Live at The Vortex'' (Basho, 2008) *

Loudon Wainwright III Loudon Snowden Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. He has released twenty-six studio albums, four live albums, and six compilations. Some of his best-known songs include "The Swimmin ...

, ''

Social Studies In many countries' curricula, social studies is the combined study of humanities, the arts, and social sciences, mainly including history, economics, and civics. The term was coined by American educators around the turn of the twentieth century as ...

'' (Hannibal, 1999)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cohen, Greg American double-bassists American male double-bassists Jewish American musicians Living people 1953 births Jazz musicians from Los Angeles Musicians from Summit, New Jersey Jewish jazz musicians 21st-century American double-bassists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Masada (band) members 21st-century American Jews