Russ Paladino
I grew up in Long Island, NY. My Dad exposed me to a variety of great music ranging from Jazz, Rock-n-Roll, RnB, Latin, Blues and Opera. In a house filled with instruments, I gravitated to the saxophone, but also learned to play flute, drums, piano and guitar. Attended Hofstra University and while in attendance was the recipient of the Duke Ellington Award for outstanding contributions in jazz. Player on the New York scene since the early 80's and has recorded and/or performed with artists such as Ronnie Spector, Brian Setzer, Paul Schaffer, Joan Osborne, Andrew Dice Clay, Debbie Gibson, Jelly Bean Benitez, The Drifters, The Coasters, Felix Cavalieri of the Rascals and countless others. My sax sounds can be heard on commercials for companies and products as diverse as Sheraton Hotels, Oreo Cookies, No Excuses Jeans, Pfizer Inc. I've composed and recorded music for Johnson and Johnson Inc, Telluride Film Festival, NY Mets, Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, Media Right Productions and Bob Giraldi Productions. A small list of my musical influences include John Coltrane, Michael Brecker, Sonny Rollins, Cannonball Adderley, Gato Barbieri, King Curtis, David Sanborn, The Beatles, Chicago, Led Zeppelin, Peter Gabriel, Sam & Dave, Tom Waits, Luciano Pavarotti, and too many others to list….