Hiram Bullock


Hiram Law Bullock was a Japanese-born Afro American guitarist known mainly for playing in jazz funk and jazz fusion, but he also worked as a session musician in a variety of genres.
WWW Official Site

Biography

Bullock was born in Osaka, Japan, to African American parents serving in the U.S. military. At the age of two he returned to Baltimore, Maryland, with his parents and showed musical talent. He studied piano at the city's Peabody Conservatory of Music, giving his first public performance at the age of six. After playing saxophone and bass guitar, he took up the electric guitar at age sixteen.
Bullock attended McDonogh School for Boys in Reisterstown, Maryland. He was captain of the band in middle school. He studied at the University of Miami, where he met guitarists Pat Metheny and Steve Morse, and bass players Jaco Pastorius and Will Lee. He paid for tuition by performing at nightclubs in Florida before moving to New York. He became best known for playing with Lee on Late Night with David Letterman and working with David Sanborn and Bob James. His work can be heard on Steely Dan's Gaucho, Paul Simon's One Trick Pony, Sting's ...Nothing Like the Sun and Billy Joel's The Stranger. He also worked with Harry Belafonte, Marcus Miller, Carla Bley, Miles Davis, Ruben Rada, and Gil Evans.
He recorded as a member of the 24th Street Band, which released three albums: 24th Street Band, Share Your Dreams and Bokutachi. In 1982, he released his debut album, First Class Vagabond, which was exclusively distributed for the Japanese market by the JVC-Victor Company and later reissued on CD. Also in 1982, he was an original member of The World's Most Dangerous Band, the house band on the NBC-TV program Late Night with David Letterman. He stayed with Letterman's show for about two years. In 1986, Bullock released his first album as a leader for Atlantic Records called From All Sides, followed by the albums Give It What You Got in 1987, and Way Kool in 1990.
Shortly after the Atlantic albums, he recorded a few tracks from those sessions for a live event at the Indigo Blues Venue, in order to release it in Japan. His live band from the Indigo Blues sessions included Dave Delhomme, Steve Logan, and Steven Wolf.
On May 27, 2004, he teamed up with drummer Billy Cobham and the WDR Big Band for a performance of the works of Jimi Hendrix at the University of Cologne in Germany. An album of this performance was released posthumously in 2008.
He had his own signature model guitars made by Cort, the HBS & HBS-II.
Bullock died on July 25, 2008, in New York City, at the age of 52.

Discography

As leader

First Class Vagabond From All Sides Give It What U Got PDB with Jaco Pastorius, Kenwood Dennard Way Kool World of Collision A-014 Manny's Car Wash Carrasco Late Night Talk 55 Bar Sessions with Haru Takauchi, Leni Stern, Mike Stern Guitar Man Color Me Try Livin' It Jam Jam/The Heavy Cats Too Funky 2 Ignore Plays the Music of Jimi Hendrix with WDR Big Band

As sideman

With Carla BleyHeavy Heart Night-glo Sextet
With Brecker BrothersDon't Stop the Music Detente
With Bill EvansThe Alternative Man Big Fun Soul Bop Band Live
With Gil EvansLive at Sweet Basil 75th Birthday Concert
With Roberta FlackRoberta Flack Roberta Flack Featuring Donny Hathaway Roberta
With Michael FranksPassionfruit Skin Dive The Camera Never Lies
With Bob JamesTouchdown Lucky Seven H Joined at the Hip
With Chaka KhanNaughty What Cha' Gonna Do for Me Chaka Khan
With David MatthewsDune Digital Love Guitars On Fire!
With Marcus MillerThe Sun Don't Lie Tales M²
With Idris MuhammadTurn This Mutha Out You Ain't No Friend of Mine! Boogie to the Top Foxhuntin My Turn
With Jaco PastoriusLive in New York City Vol. 1: Punk Jazz Live in New York City Vol. 2: Trio Live in New York City Vol. 3: Promise Land Trio 2 Live in New York City Vol. 4 Jaco Pastorius in New York Live in New York City Vol. 6: Punk Jazz 2 Live in New York City Vol. 7: History
With David SanbornSanborn Promise Me the Moon Heart to Heart Hideaway Voyeur Backstreet Straight to the Heart A Change of Heart Close-Up Upfront
With Spyro GyraCarnaval Catching the Sun City Kids Incognito
With Lew SoloffHanalei Bay Rainbow Mountain
With Bonnie TylerFaster Than the Speed of Night Holding Out for a Hero Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire
With others