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Robert Miller

Robert Miller plays electric bass and composes. Robert has two CDs as a leader: "Child's Play (Wildcat Records - 1994) and "Prisoners of Love” (32 Records - 1996). In May 2014 Rober released "Twenty", a compilation CD featuring 16 of his compositions that were recorded over a 20 year period. The CD has garnered great reviews and great airplay for the single, "Catch You Later" (see below). Robert's performing band is called PROJECT GRAND SLAM. PROJECT GRAND SLAM released its debut album, "Play" (Cakewalk Records) in 2008. "Play" includes the group's cover of "The Captain of Her Heart" featuring Judie Tzuke on vocals. This track became a Top 20 jazz radio hit. The balance of "Play" features 11 original compositions - five by Robert - and was produced and engineered by the legendary Frank Filipetti (Grammy Award as producer/engineer for James Taylor's "Hourglass" album). PROJECT GRAND SLAM's second CD, "Spring Dance" (Cakewalk Records 2012), featured 5 new tunes written by Robert. The title tune also became a Top 20 jazz radio hit. PROJECT GRAND SLAM and 5 of Robert's tunes were featured in the hit NBC - TV series "Lipstick Jungle", starring Brooke Shields. Robert recently re-formed PROJECT GRAND SLAM and the group has started playing engagements in the NYC area. The band now features Marcello Casagrandi on piano, Nathan Cepelinski on saxophones, Jeffrey Fajardo on drums, and Ben Sher on guitar. Robert's web site is at www.robertmillerjazz.com and his Facebook page is at www.facebook.com/robertmillerjazz. PROJECT GRAND SLAM's web site is at www.projectgrandslam.com and the group's Facebook page is at www.facebook.com/projectgrandslam. Robert has played with the likes of Anton Fig, Randy Brecker, Jaki Byard, Sonny Stitt, Al Foster, Tim Ries and Jon Lucien, and gained an impressive reputation from appearing at the major jazz clubs in the New York City area, including the Blue Note, Metronome and Birdland, as well as the jazz festival circuit, including The Telluride Jazz Festival, The San Bernadino Jazz Festival and the South Street Seaport Festival with his band, "The Robert Miller Group". The Group appeared on programs with such music luminaries as Bruce Hornsby, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Kenny Barron, War and Regina Carter. Robert is also known for being the co-founder of 32 Records and its sister label 32 Jazz, an innovative record label that released "Jazz For A Rainy Afternoon" and the other "Jazz For..." recordings, in addition to recordings by The Jazz Passengers (featuring Debbie Harry and Elvis Costello), Pat Martino, Houston Person, David "Fathead" Newman, Mose Allison, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Eddie Harris, Kronos Quartet and compilations such as "Hit Jazz" and "Party Jazz".

Take Five With Robert Miller

by AAJ Staff
May 27, 2007

Meet Robert Miller: I play electric bass. I've been playing jazz since the early 1970s. I lived in Boston then and had the privilege of playing with all the great musicians who came through town. My group at the time included Anton Fig, David Letterman's drummer. I later recorded two CDs as leader [Child's Play (Wildcat Records) and Prisoners of Love (32 Records)]. My new group is called PROJECT GRAND SLAM, and I'm very excited about it.Instrument(s): Electric ...

"‘Catch You Later’... with a handsome mid tempo groove, this brass-enriched charmer is a real winner!" - Smooth Jazz Therapy "'TWENTY' is a fun-filled, retrospective romp with 16 original Robert Miller tunes, including the exciting, brassy single "Catch You Later." So good, you'll wish there were 20 tracks on TWENTY!" ~JONATHAN WIDRAN (SmoothJazz.com) "'Twenty' is an excellent resume of twenty years of Robert Miller's musical career. He and his brilliant musical companions have co-created twenty years in jazz history and hopefully they will go on for the next twenty years!" - Michel's Notes "'Twenty' is morning music. What do I mean? There is evening music – calming and relaxing. Miller’s music is quite the opposite. Insert the album Twenty into your music player on the way to work and, trust me, you will arrive to your place of work in a great mood, full of energy and capable of achieving anything!" - Jazz Quad "Project Grand Slam is a spectacular mix of jazz, fusion and rock that combines melody, groove and great improvisation!" - Acid Jazz Magazine; "To the extremely hip, tight yet edgy Robert Miller Group, Child's Play involves taking live improvisational excursions over basic trios and quartets in styles ranging from pop/rock to blues and straight ahead jazz. Any ensemble just as comfy around a gritty, funk driven Hendrix cover ('Fire") as it is invoking images of Miles ("All Blues"), Chick Corea and Charles Mingus clearly has a wild dance in mind. And yet for all the experimentation, bassist Miller and cohorts like speed demon pianist Haim Cotton are at their most provocative when stripping away the blowtorch and playing it ultracool and simple. As solid as Miller is, his real job is laying foundations for all the jamming. In a land where everything seems tailored for radio play, Miller's boys don't mind stretching the limits." - Jonathan Widran, All Music Guide; "Miller's edgy electric bass work is perfectly suited for a program of brisk, rhythmically turbulent pieces featuring superlative trumpet work from the underrated Randy Brecker. Further enhancing this eclectic, but impressive instrumental date are moody vocals by Jon Lucien on Miles Davis.. ..All Blues.. and Ada Dyer on Jimi Hendrix..s ..Fire.." - Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times; "Robert plays the bass with ease..This is just great jazz music" - Strictly Jazz; "Appealing mainstream jazz from the electric bassist, joined by a stellar cast of musicians. Miller is miles ahead..." - The Music Paper; "Miller's bass invigorates jazz standards, a few originals, and a boppish take on Jimi Hendrix's ..Fire... Guests include drummer Anton Fig and trumpeter Randy Brecker..." - Bass Player Magazine; "The Robert Miller Group has acquired rave reviews from many publications. Child's Play is over 55 minutes of high quality music. This disc is packed with progressive and soulful tracks that grab your attention until the end. The band is hard driving and reminiscent of the old masters. I highly recommend Child's Play by The Robert Miller Group." - Bill Heinrichs, Polytechnic

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