Cornelius Bumpus
Birth name Cornelius Bumpus, Jr.
Born May 7, 1945
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Died February 3, 2004 (aged 58)
Sioux City, IA
Genres Jazz, rock
Occupation(s) Musician
Instruments Saxophone, Keyboards
Associated acts
Doobie Brothers
Steely Dan
Cornelius Bumpus (May 7, 1945 – February 3, 2004) was an American woodwind, keyboard player and vocalist from Santa Cruz, California.
Bumpus began his musical career playing alto saxophone at ten for his school band, and by age twelve he was playing at Luso-American dances. He attended Santa Cruz High School where he performed in the band and won the John Philip Sousa Award. He also played school dances with his own band, Corny and the Corvettes. In 1966 he was in Bobby Freeman’s band and after this he began his associations with many well-known groups.
His role in these bands was primarily as a saxophonist. His most notable touring was with the Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan. Bumpus toured with Steely Dan from 2000 to 2003. In 2002 he worked on the Big Blue Earth project sponsored by the Church of Christ, Scientist. Bumpus enjoyed a short tenure with Café Society, a Los Angeles pop band, during the 1980s where he played in a horn section with the trombonist Dan Levine and trumpeter Anne Petereit King.
In 1981, Bumpus issued his first solo LP, A Clear View, which featured his singing, writing and sax playing, stretching out with the band on several, long, jazzy jams over six minutes each.
Bumpus died of a heart attack at age 58 on February 3, 2004 while on an airline flight from New York to California, where he was scheduled to perform at the Columbia College Jazz Concert Series. The plane made an emergency landing in Sioux City, Iowa to try to help him, but Bumpus died by the time the plane reached the ground.
Discography
With Clifford Coulter
East Side San Jose (Impulse!, 1970)
With Moby Grape
Live Grape (Escape Records, 1978)
With The Doobie Brothers
One Step Closer (Warner Bros. Records, 1980)
Farewell Tour (Warner Bros. Records, 1983)
With Donald Fagen
Kamakiriad (Reprise Records, 1993)
With Steely Dan
Alive in America (Giant, 1995)
Plush TV Jazz-Rock Party (PBS In The Spotlight special, 2000)
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