Mocean Worker (pronounced "motion worker") is the recording alias of

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 ...

musician and producer Adam Dorn. Philadelphia native Dorn, son of jazz and

R'n'B Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

producer

Joel Dorn Joel Dorn (April 7, 1942 – December 17, 2007) was an American jazz and R&B music producer and record label entrepreneur. He worked at Atlantic Records, and later founded the 32 Jazz, Label M, and Hyena Records labels. He called himself ...

, studied at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

. He adopted the Mocean Worker moniker as a DJ of

drum and bass Drum and bass (commonly abbreviated as DnB, D&B, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterised by fast Break (music)#Breakbeat (element of music), breakbeats (typically 165–185 Tempo, beats per minute) with heavy Bass (music) ...

music, and his style evolved to include electro-swing,

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

big-band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

, and swing elements. Dorn has led bands, given high-profile performances, and had his music used extensively in TV, advertising, and film. In 2014, Dorn and Charlie Hunter launched the podcast ''Compared To What'' and released an album titled ''It's Pronounced Motion...'' in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Biography

Philadelphia native Adam Dorn is the son of renowned

and

producer

. He grew up around the jazz and R&B discs his father produced for Atlantic Records in the '60s and '70s. As a 15-year-old, he sent a fan letter to bassist

Marcus Miller William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandross, and saxophonists Wayne Shorter and David Sa ...

. When Miller responded, inviting Dorn to come by the studio, one visit turned into three years hanging around artists

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 ...

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American Soul music, soul and Contemporary R&B, R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer. Over his career, he achieved eleven consecutive RIAA certification, RIAA-certified ...

and

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

. Dorn is a bass player and vocalist. He studied at

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. Dorn adopted the Mocean Worker moniker as a DJ of

music. The project came about almost by accident, the results of a series of half-serious recording sessions. Since the release of his first album, ''Home Movies from the Brainforest'', the style has varied from a drum and bass sound to a jazz-oriented dance sound that some call electro-swing, incorporating elements of

and swing. Dorn currently resides in Los Angeles after living in New York City for the better part of twenty-five years. In 2008, Dorn led an eight-piece band, which featured some of New York City's most revered

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

and funk players. Assembled by Dorn to bring to life the "breakbeat jazz" stylings of the Mocean Worker studio albums, the group gave a series of high-profile performances, including

Bumbershoot Bumbershoot is an annual international music and arts festival held in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington. One of North America's largest such festivals, it takes place every Labor Day (United States), Labor Day weekend (leading up to and ...

, Burlington Discover Jazz Festival and a residency at N.Y.C. venue Nublu. Dorn's music has been used extensively in TV, advertising and film, including "Tres Tres Chic" in ''The Devil Wears Prada'' and ''The Pink Panther'', "Chick a Boom Boom Boom" in ''Inside Deep Throat'', "Reykjavak" in ''The Namesake'', and "Right Now" in ''Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Elliot Spitzer''. He also scored the

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

/BBC film documentary about the life of comedian/actor

Richard Pryor Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor Sr. (December 1, 1940 – December 10, 2005) was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Known for reaching a broad audience with his trenchant observations and storytelling style, he is widely regarded ...

entitled ''Richard Pryor: Omit the Logic''. Additionally, his song "Intothinair" from the album ''Aural and Hearty'' was featured in the film ''

The Bourne Supremacy ''The Bourne Supremacy'' is the second Jason Bourne novel written by Robert Ludlum, first published in 1986. It is the sequel to Ludlum's bestseller '' The Bourne Identity'' (1980) and precedes Ludlum's final Bourne novel, '' The Bourne Ultim ...

''. In early 2014 Dorn and partner Charlie Hunter launched the podcast ''Compared To What'' featuring conversations with a wide variety of people. There has also been a sudden interest in the Japanese market for Mocean Worker's sound. In February 2014 Dorn released an album featuring some new and unreleased material entitled ''It's Pronounced Motion...'' in Japan through the Voil label.

Discography

Albums

* ''Home Movies from the Brainforest'' (released April 7, 1998) * ''Mixed Emotional Features'' (released February 23, 1999) * ''Aural & Hearty'' (released September 26, 2000) * '' Enter the Mowo!'' (released April 6, 2004) * ''Cinco de Mowo!'' (released June 26, 2007) * ''Candygram for Mowo!'' (released September 27, 2011) * ''It's Pronounced Motion...'' (released April 7, 2014) – Hits compilation featuring three new tracks ("Piano Boogie," "Easy Does It Baby," "The Sky Is Black") and one that would appear on his next album ("Now That's What I'm Talkin' Bout") * ''Mocean Worker'' (released digitally August 18, 2015, scheduled for physical release February 5, 2016) * ''The Lost Frame'' (released November 8, 2018) * ''Boombox'' (released October 27, 2023)

Singles and EPs

* ''Detonator'' (1998) (features a remix by

DJ Trace A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...

); one of the CD versions also includes the song "Counts, Dukes & Strays" from ''Mixed Emotional Features'' and two versions of the title track * ''Diagnosis / Boba Fett'' (1998) * ''Times of Danger / Heaven @ 12:07'' (1999) (features a remix of "Heaven @ 12:07" by

Technical Itch Technical may refer to: * Technical (vehicle), an improvised fighting vehicle * Technical area, an area which a manager, other coaching personnel, and substitutes are allowed to occupy during a football match * Technical advisor, a person who adv ...

); the CD version also includes the song "René M" from ''Mixed Emotional Features'' * ''Intothinair'' (2000) (features remixes by Joshua Ryan and John Selway) * ''Shake Ya Boogie – The Remix EP'' (2009 – Digital release) features remixes by Ursula 1000, Count de Money, and

Bill Hamel Bill Hamel (January 17, 1973 – June 29, 2018) was an American record producer and remixer from Orlando, Florida. He was a founding member of American trance group Fatum, and was a two-time Grammy Award nominee. Bill Hamel was born on January 17 ...

* ''Shooby Shooby Do Yah! – The Remixes!'' (2012 – Digital release) features remixes by Questionable Sound Corp, Neanderthals With Technology, Techdef, and Choppertone * ''Beats, Rhymes and Strife'' (2012 – Digital release)

Remixes

Tenacious D Tenacious D is an American comedy rock duo formed in Los Angeles in 1994 by the actors Jack Black and Kyle Gass. Their music showcases Black's theatrical vocal delivery and Gass' acoustic guitar playing. Critics have described their fusion of ...

– "Explosivo" (Mocean Worker's Megamix) on the EP '' D Fun Pak'' (2002) * Cathedral Brass – "Joy to the World" on the albums '' Christmas Remixed - Holiday Classics Re-Grooved'' (2003) and '' Holiday Remixed'' (2005) *

Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band Charles Wright & the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band is an American soul and funk band. Formed in the early 1960s, they had the most visibility from 1967 to 1973 when the band had 9 singles reach Billboard's pop and/or rhythm and blues charts, ...

– "Express Yourself" on '' What Is Hip?: Remix Project, Vol. 1'' (2004), '' Express Yourself - EP'' (2005), and '' Mr. and Mrs. Smith'' Soundtrack (2005) * Rare Earth – "I Just Want to Celebrate" on the album '' Motown Remixed'' (2005) *

Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...

– "Go to Hell" on the album '' Nina Simone Remixed and Reimagined'' (2006) *

Herb Alpert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter, pianist, singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, conductor, painter, sculptor and theatre producer, who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass (sometimes called "Herb Alpe ...

– "Bittersweet Samba" on the album '' Whipped Cream and Other Delights Rewhipped'' (2006) *

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. (; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He helped shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player an ...

– "Here, My Dear" on the album '' Here, My Dear Expanded Edition'' (2008) * Alice Russell – "All Alone" on the album '' Pot of Gold (Remixes) Volume 1'' (2008) *

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

– "Hey Porter" on the album '' Johnny Cash Remixed'' (2009) *

Keely Smith Dorothy Jacqueline Keely (March 9, 1928The reference work ''The Encyclopedia of Native Music: More Than a Century of Recordings from Wax Cylinder to the Internet'' gives Smith's date of birth as March 9, 1932. – December 16, 2017), professio ...

– "What Is This Thing Called Love?" on the album '' Electro Lounge, Vol. 2'' (2010) *

Lyrics Born Tsutomu William "Tom" Shimura (born September 2, 1972), better known by his stage name Lyrics Born (formerly Asia Born), is a Japanese-American rapper, singer, and producer. He is one half of the duo Latyrx with Lateef the Truthspeaker. Early ...

– "Coulda Woulda Shoulda" on the album '' As 'U Were (Remixes)'' (2012) * Ramin Sakurai – "Brace Yourselves (feat. Elan Atias)" (2012) (credited to Mocean Worker with

Supreme Beings of Leisure Supreme Beings of Leisure (SBL) are an electronic/trip hop band from Los Angeles, California. Current members of SBL are singer/songwriter Geri Soriano-Lightwood, multi-instrumentalist/producer Ramin Sakurai, and guitarist/programmer Rick Torre ...

) *"Harry Goes A Courtin' (The Mowo! Live Hootenanny Throw-Down)" on ''The Harry Smith Project Anthology of American Folk Music Revisited'' (2014) *

Soft Touch "Soft Touch" is a song by English rock musician George Harrison from his 1979 album ''George Harrison (album), George Harrison''. It was also issued as the B-side of the album's lead single, "Blow Away", in Britain and some other countries, whil ...

– "Swim in the Night (feat. Silya)" on ''Swim in the Night feat. Silya'' (remixes) (2014) * Scott Amendola – "Fade to Orange - Mocean Worker Remix" on the album '' Fade to Orange'' (2015)

Compilations

*'' Groove Jammy, Vol. 2'' (1999) – "Lighten Up Francis" *''Sound and Motion, Vol 1'' (2000) – "Detonator" *'' Pink Panther's Penthouse Party'' (2004) – "Tres Tres Chic" *'' Starbucks: Hear Music Playlist Volume 3'' (2004) – "Right Now" *'' WFUV: City Folk Live VII'' (2004) – "Right Now" *'' Jazz Lounge, Vol. 2'' (2004) – "Right Now" *'' Ultra Chilled 05'' (2005) – "Right Now" *'' Oliver Peoples 4'' (2005) – "Shamma Lamma Ding Dong" *'' Inside Deep Throat'' Soundtrack (2005) – "Chick a Boom Boom Boom" *'' The Devil Wears Prada'' Soundtrack (2006,

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 ...

/Wea) – "Tres Tres Chic" *'' Jazz&Milk Breaks'' (2008) – "Shamma Lamma Ding Dong" *'' Sundown: Music for Unwinding'' (2008) – "Changes" *'' Electro Swing Club, Vol. 1'' (2013) – "Shooby Shooby Do Yah!" *'' I Love Swing Music'' (2013) – "Shooby Shooby Do Yah!"

Appearances

* ''Bird Up: The Charlie Parker Remix Project'' features two tracks "produced and constructed" by "Hal Willner's Whoops I'm an Indian," credited to

Hal Willner Hal Willner (April 6, 1956 – April 7, 2020) was an American music producer working in recording, films, television, and live events. He was best known for assembling tribute albums and events featuring a wide variety of artists and musical sty ...

, Mocean Worker, and Martin Brumbach. (The songs are "Salt Peanuts (The Mr. Peanut Chronicles)" and "All The Shadows Of Nuff") * The 2009 John Foti album '' Everybody's Coming to Town'' includes the track "I'm Just a Boy (feat. Mocean Worker)" * Although it is not on the movie's soundtrack CD, the song "Intothinair" is featured in the film ''

'' during the Moscow club scene. * In 2005 Mocean Worker supported Marcus Miller in his tour of Japan. In preparation, Mocean Worker paid an inordinate amount of money for designer trousers. *The song "Hey Baby" is featured in the films ''

The Animal ''The Animal'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Luke Greenfield, written by Tom Brady and Rob Schneider from a story conceived by Brady. It stars Schneider in the lead role, alongside Colleen Haskell, John C. McGinley, Guy Torry, an ...

'', ''

Max Keeble's Big Move ''Max Keeble's Big Move'' is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Tim Hill, written by David L. Watts, James Greer, Jonathan Bernstein and Mark Blackwell and starring Alex D. Linz, Larry Miller, Jamie Kennedy, Nora Dunn, and Robert Carra ...

'' and is used in a level in ''

Shark Tale (video game) ''Shark Tale'' is a 2004 video game based on the film of the same name that was released on Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2 and Xbox. Developed by Edge of Reality for consoles, Vicarious Visions for Game Boy Advance, ...

'' *The song "Right Now" is featured in an advertisement for the 2007

Lincoln Navigator Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (n ...

, and in " The Shower", an episode of

Fox TV Fox Broadcasting Company, LLC (commonly known as Fox; stylized in all caps) is an American commercial broadcast television network serving as the flagship property of Fox Corporation and operated through Fox Entertainment. Fox is based at Fo ...

's ''

The O.C. ''The O.C. '' is an American teen drama television series created by Josh Schwartz that originally aired on Fox in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, with a total of four seasons consisting of 92 episodes. The serie ...

''. * The song "Tickle It" is featured in an episode of the television show '' CSI'' and is also used as theme music for the "All Tech Considered" segments on the

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

show ''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

''. *The song "Tickle it" is featured in the award-winning independent film '' Skills Like This''. *The song "Swagger" was featured in the Dec. 19, 2011 episode of the

American Public Media American Public Media (APM) is an American company that produces and distributes public radio programs in the United States, the second largest company of its type after NPR. Its non-profit parent, American Public Media Group, also owns and o ...

show ''

Marketplace A marketplace, market place, or just market, is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a ''souk'' (from ...

''.

References

External links

Adam Dorn: DJ Mocean Worker Keeps it Movin'
(apple.com)
NPR Weekend Edition article
(Airdate: July 8, 2007) {{DEFAULTSORT:Worker, Mocean American club DJs American remixers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Musicians from Philadelphia American jazz musicians Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania