Biography
A prolific keyboardist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist, Brian Culbertson has earned recognition for an extensive run of crossover albums that weave together jazz, funk, pop, and new age. His initial breakthrough arrived via the 1997 release Secrets, which climbed to number 15 on the contemporary jazz chart. Across subsequent years he issued multiple albums that reached the Top Five of the jazz listings, among them Somethin' Bout Love from 1999 on Warner Bros. and Nice & Slow from 2001 on Atlantic. Additional chart-toppers on the same tally included It's on Tonight in 2005, Bringing Back the Funk in 2008, and XII in 2010. Throughout his career he has joined forces with numerous crossover artists such as Gerald Albright, Nathan East, Candy Dulfer, Bootsy Collins, and additional collaborators. As founder of the BCM Entrainment label, Culbertson has sustained a steady presence on jazz charts while shifting among varied atmospheres, among them the R&B-tinged romance of Colors of Love in 2018 and the intimate acoustic jazz of Winter Stories in 2020.
Born in 1973, Culbertson was raised in Decatur, Illinois, where his father, a respected high-school jazz band director and trumpeter, nurtured his musical passion. The household regularly featured recordings by Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Rich, the Brecker Brothers, and David Sanborn. During his formative years he also absorbed the sounds of 1970s R&B/pop/funk ensembles including Blood, Sweat & Tears, Tower of Power, and Earth, Wind & Fire. Formal training began at age eight with piano lessons, followed by drums at nine, trombone at ten, and bass at twelve. Displaying early creative drive, he started writing original pieces while in junior high. By freshman year of high school he was exploring the then-novel Yamaha DX-7 synthesizer alongside an older four-track recorder in his basement. That commitment brought him six individual and five group Down Beat student awards. During the same high-school period he delved into MIDI sequencing and synthesizers; unable to locate peers capable of realizing his material at the desired standard—most being drawn instead to heavy metal—he followed the example of pop producer/songwriter David Foster, one of his foremost influences, and taught himself to perform every part.
Following graduation he moved to Chicago to pursue music studies at DePaul University. On campus he encountered accomplished players and joined a band. In 1994 Culbertson signed with the Mesa/Blue Moon label. Working in the bedroom of the apartment he shared with three fellow students, he captured his debut album, Long Night Out, handling most instruments himself while recruiting a modest supporting ensemble. The record occupied ten consecutive weeks inside the Top Five of the adult contemporary charts. For the follow-up Modern Life, Culbertson abandoned the solo-performance method in favor of a live ensemble drawn from leading Chicago musicians together with the stellar saxophonist Gerald Albright.
He issued further albums throughout the 1990s, among them After Hours in 1995, Secrets in 1997, and Somethin' Bout Love in 1999. Culbertson’s production credits extend to projects by Bob Mamet and Steve Cole. After venturing into advertising-jingle composition, he turned his attention to soundtracks. In 2001 the pianist—also proficient on trombone, trumpet, and percussion—delivered Nice & Slow, then Come on Up in 2003. Two years afterward he released It's on Tonight, followed in 2006 by Soulful Christmas, a set blending holiday standards with one original piece.
In 2008 Culbertson unveiled Bringing Back the Funk, a widely praised album recognized for revitalizing the urban jazz genre and featuring an extensive roster of guests that included Bootsy Collins, Larry Graham, Ray Parker, Jr., and David T. Walker. A live album followed in 2009, succeeded by the studio return XII in 2010. June 2012 brought Dreams, his thirteenth album, populated by an array of all-star contemporary jazz and R&B session musicians and vocalists. Later that year he began work on a long-cherished project.
Now operating as an independent artist, Culbertson had long wished to revisit the material from his 1994 debut Long Night Out, originally tracked in his apartment under severe budgetary constraints. In 2013 he re-recorded those same songs with a large all-star cast that included Nathan East, Russ Freeman, Steve Lukather, and Candy Dulfer, among others, augmented by a 33-piece orchestra. Released on his own BCM label in February 2014 under the title Another Long Night Out, the project was succeeded two years later by the concert album Live: 20th Anniversary Tour, captured at Yoshi's in San Francisco. The full-length Colors of Love appeared in 2018 and ascended to the summit of the Billboard Jazz Albums chart. The trio album Winter Stories followed the next year. In 2020 Culbertson issued his twentieth studio album, the fittingly named XX, which showcased guest vocals from Bootsy Collins, Avery Sunshine, and Noel Gourdin. An EP titled Soundscapes arrived in 2021, accompanied by Red = Passion, the opening installment of a thematic trilogy that would also encompass Blue = Melancholy and White = Hope.
Born in 1973, Culbertson was raised in Decatur, Illinois, where his father, a respected high-school jazz band director and trumpeter, nurtured his musical passion. The household regularly featured recordings by Maynard Ferguson, Buddy Rich, the Brecker Brothers, and David Sanborn. During his formative years he also absorbed the sounds of 1970s R&B/pop/funk ensembles including Blood, Sweat & Tears, Tower of Power, and Earth, Wind & Fire. Formal training began at age eight with piano lessons, followed by drums at nine, trombone at ten, and bass at twelve. Displaying early creative drive, he started writing original pieces while in junior high. By freshman year of high school he was exploring the then-novel Yamaha DX-7 synthesizer alongside an older four-track recorder in his basement. That commitment brought him six individual and five group Down Beat student awards. During the same high-school period he delved into MIDI sequencing and synthesizers; unable to locate peers capable of realizing his material at the desired standard—most being drawn instead to heavy metal—he followed the example of pop producer/songwriter David Foster, one of his foremost influences, and taught himself to perform every part.
Following graduation he moved to Chicago to pursue music studies at DePaul University. On campus he encountered accomplished players and joined a band. In 1994 Culbertson signed with the Mesa/Blue Moon label. Working in the bedroom of the apartment he shared with three fellow students, he captured his debut album, Long Night Out, handling most instruments himself while recruiting a modest supporting ensemble. The record occupied ten consecutive weeks inside the Top Five of the adult contemporary charts. For the follow-up Modern Life, Culbertson abandoned the solo-performance method in favor of a live ensemble drawn from leading Chicago musicians together with the stellar saxophonist Gerald Albright.
He issued further albums throughout the 1990s, among them After Hours in 1995, Secrets in 1997, and Somethin' Bout Love in 1999. Culbertson’s production credits extend to projects by Bob Mamet and Steve Cole. After venturing into advertising-jingle composition, he turned his attention to soundtracks. In 2001 the pianist—also proficient on trombone, trumpet, and percussion—delivered Nice & Slow, then Come on Up in 2003. Two years afterward he released It's on Tonight, followed in 2006 by Soulful Christmas, a set blending holiday standards with one original piece.
In 2008 Culbertson unveiled Bringing Back the Funk, a widely praised album recognized for revitalizing the urban jazz genre and featuring an extensive roster of guests that included Bootsy Collins, Larry Graham, Ray Parker, Jr., and David T. Walker. A live album followed in 2009, succeeded by the studio return XII in 2010. June 2012 brought Dreams, his thirteenth album, populated by an array of all-star contemporary jazz and R&B session musicians and vocalists. Later that year he began work on a long-cherished project.
Now operating as an independent artist, Culbertson had long wished to revisit the material from his 1994 debut Long Night Out, originally tracked in his apartment under severe budgetary constraints. In 2013 he re-recorded those same songs with a large all-star cast that included Nathan East, Russ Freeman, Steve Lukather, and Candy Dulfer, among others, augmented by a 33-piece orchestra. Released on his own BCM label in February 2014 under the title Another Long Night Out, the project was succeeded two years later by the concert album Live: 20th Anniversary Tour, captured at Yoshi's in San Francisco. The full-length Colors of Love appeared in 2018 and ascended to the summit of the Billboard Jazz Albums chart. The trio album Winter Stories followed the next year. In 2020 Culbertson issued his twentieth studio album, the fittingly named XX, which showcased guest vocals from Bootsy Collins, Avery Sunshine, and Noel Gourdin. An EP titled Soundscapes arrived in 2021, accompanied by Red = Passion, the opening installment of a thematic trilogy that would also encompass Blue = Melancholy and White = Hope.
Albums
Dreams
2012
Skies Wide Open Remixes
2011
XII (Bonus Track Version)
2010
Live From The Inside (Bonus Track Version)
2009
Bringing Back The Funk
2008
A Soulful Christmas
2006
It's On Tonight
2005
Come On Up
2003
Nice & Slow
2001
Somethin' Bout Love
1999
Secrets
1997
After Hours
1996
Modern Life
1995
Long Night Out
1994
Singles
