Stuart Zender

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Template:Short description Template:DMCA Template:DMCA

Page Module:Message box/ambox.css has no content.Page Template:Multiple issues/styles.css has no content.

Page Template:Plainlist/styles.css has no content.Page Module:Infobox/styles.css has no content.

Stuart Zender
Also known asStu, SZ
Born
Stuart Patrick Jude Zender

Script error: No such module "person date".
London, England
OriginSheffield, England
DiedScript error: No such module "person date".
GenresPage Template:Hlist/styles.css has no content.
OccupationTemplate:Pluralize from textMusician
InstrumentTemplate:Pluralize from textBass
Years active1993–present
Formerly ofPage Template:Hlist/styles.css has no content.

Script error: No such module "Check for deprecated parameters".Script error: No such module "Check for conflicting parameters".

Stuart Patrick Jude Zender (born 18 March 1974) is an English bassist. He is best known as a former member of the band Jamiroquai.[1]

Biography

Early life

Zender was born in Sheffield, England. He comes from a family with a musical background: Zender's father was a musician, his uncle was a flamenco guitarist, and his older sister participated in punk bands.[2] His family relocated to Norristown, Pennsylvania, when Zender was seven years old.[2] He moved back to England at age 15,[2] where he attended Leighton Park School in Reading, UK, for a year in 1988–89 before being expelled. Zender played the snare drums for his school's marching band before he started to play bass at age 16. He practiced the instrument playing by ear to Black Market by Weather Report, and he was able to play all of the bass parts in two weeks.[2] Before leaving his home at age 17, Zender's mother had saved for him £2,000 (equivalent to £4,600 in 2025) for the occasion.[3] Zender initially played in pubs with a punk rock band, but he had creative differences with the band. He recalled being "stuck onstage, playing these little four-chord songs. I would always jazz the whole thing up and start doing solos and things like that, and they would just tell me to shut up."[2]

Zender admitted that he never had good business acumen, so instead of investing his mother's parting cash gift in a traditional way, he visited a music store and bought a Warwick Streamer bass guitar, which cost nearly the whole amount given to him by his mother. Before picking up a Warwick, Zender played a Music Man Stingray bass guitar. Of his early bands, the most famous was the prank rock group Fabulous, a 1991 outfit chiefly made up of NME writers and photographers.[citation needed]

Jamiroquai (1993–1998)

Zender met Jamiroquai's original drummer Nick van Gelder through his sister.[2] He auditioned for the band in 1993 as the band's bassist,[4] and he played on studio albums from Emergency on Planet Earth (1993) to Travelling Without Moving (1996). From there, Zender was asked to become an official Warwick basses endorser.[citation needed] He received a number of unique customised Streamer models.[citation needed]

Zender left Jamiroquai in 1998 during the recording of their fourth album, Synkronized, primarily because of conflicts with the band leader Jay Kay.[5] A spokesperson for the band said that Zender also expressed his desire to spend more time with his then-girlfriend Melanie Blatt and their new baby.[4]

1998–present

After Jamiroquai, Zender had his own project with the British soul artist Don-E called AZUR, which signed a record deal with D'Angelo's label.[6] However, the project was shelved and was then available on the Internet for a short time. He has also played bass guitar with other artists, including All Saints, Omar, Lauryn Hill, D'Angelo, Gorillaz, Samuel Purdey, Ms. Dynamite and Stevie Wonder.

In summer 2006, Zender became the musical director and bass guitar player for Mark Ronson. The release of the album Version in 2007 proved to be a larger success than first expected. He has played bass guitar for Ronson at events such as BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend, Wireless Festival, Global Gathering, and Glastonbury, and festivals all over Europe, including Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland and North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam. They were also special guests on Jay-Z's UK tour.

Having left the Mark Ronson band in 2011, Zender started his own record label, White Buffalo Recordings, and formerly ran the music publishing company Made Youth Inc.

Some of Zender's most recent work was with the band Leroi.[7] Zender explained they were signed to Geffen Records in Los Angeles but that the deal fell through after the heads of the company, Polly Anthony and Jordan Shurr, who signed them, were made redundant.[citation needed]

In March 2023, Zender released the song "Happy Feelings", featuring Omar and Ana Tijoux, on all major streaming platforms.[8]

In November 2024, Zender released the song "Run" (originally recorded in 2000) on all major streaming platforms under the alias LeRoi74.[9][10]

Artistry

Zender has cited players such as Nathaniel Phillips, Stanley Clarke, Alphonso Johnson, Chuck Rainey, Larry Graham, Bootsy Collins, Verdine White, James Jamerson, Bernard Edwards, Paul Jackson, Hellmut Hattler as his influences.[11]

Personal life

From 1998 to 2006, Zender and All Saints singer Melanie Blatt were in a relationship. They had one child together, born on 20 November 1998.[12] Their relationship ended in 2006.[13][14][15] In 2026, it was reported by BBC News that Zender had met his half-brother, singer Peter Cunnah of D:Ream, following Cunnah’s search for his biological father. The two subsequently spent time together discussing their respective musical careers.[16]

Equipment

  • 1x Warwick SZ Signature Bass 4-string.
  • 1x Warwick SZ Signature Bass 4-string (Red one, saw live in Paris and Amsterdam for Mark Ronson).[17]
  • 1x Warwick SZ Signature Bass 4-string (White one, Zender posted the picture on Facebook).
  • 1x Warwick "Iroquai Rug Bass" Streamer 5-string.
  • 1x Warwick "The Chrome Ender Bass" Streamer Stage I 4-string.
  • 1x Fender 1964 Precision Bass.
  • 1x Warwick Streamer Stage II 5-string (used in 1995 live).
  • 1x Alembic Epic 4-string (onstage backup bass guitar).
  • 1x Warwick Streamer Stage I 4-string.
  • Ashdown Engineering ABM Amplification.
  • Ashdown Engineering SZ Funk Face Twin Dynamic Filter Pedal – Stuart Zender Signature Auto-Wah Pedal

Discography

Release Accompanying artist Role Membership Year
Emergency on Planet Earth (except "When You Gonna Learn (Digeridoo)") Jamiroquai Bass Ex-Member 1993
"Serengeti" Jessica Lauren Bass Guest 1993
In Concert-582 Jamiroquai Bass Ex-Member 1994
The Return of the Space Cowboy Jamiroquai Bass, Composer Ex-Member 1994
"Lost Souls" – Jazzmatazz, Vol. 2: The New Reality / Feel The Music Guru Bass Guest 1995
Travelling Without Moving Jamiroquai Bass guitar, Writer Ex-Member 1996
19 ("Cold Shoulder") Adele Bass guitar Guest 2008
Live from 6A – Late Night with Conan O'Brien Various Bass guitar Guest (unknown)
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill Lauryn Hill Bass guitar Guest 1998
Black Angel Mica Paris Bass guitar Guest 1998
Signs of a Struggle Mattafix Bass guitar, Keyboards Guest 2005
Best by Far Omar Bass guitar, Percussion, Electric guitar, Keyboards, Programming, Co-writer, Producer Guest 2000
Saints and Sinners All Saints Writer, Producer, Mixer, Keyboards, Bass guitar, Percussion, Strings, Programming Guest 2000
Laika Come Home Spacemonkeyz vs. Gorillaz Bass guitar Guest 2002
Version Mark Ronson Bass guitar Guest 2007
Record Collection ("Somebody To Love Me") Mark Ronson & The Business Intl. Bass guitar Guest 2010
In Search of Better Days Incognito Bass guitar Guest 2016

References

Page Template:Reflist/styles.css has no content.

  1. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN 9780857125958. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Duff, S. L. (May 1997). "Can Jamiroquai Take Over the World?". Bass Player: 28–33.
  3. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."An Interview With Bassist Stuart Zender: Progressive Rock Update With Brad Houser". bassmusicianmagazine.com. October 2009. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  4. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Bassist Stuart Zender Leaves Jamiroquai". MTV. Archived from the original on 16 September 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  5. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Mehle, Michael (9 July 1999). "Musical Two Rock Festivals Herald The Sounds Of Summer Mayhem Jamiroquai". Rocky Mountain News. Archived from the original on 21 November 2018.
  6. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."DON-E: Right down to the letter". Bluesandsoul.com. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
  7. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Leroi - Stuart Zender music, videos, stats, and photos". Last.fm. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  8. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Happy Feelings (feat. Omar & Ana Tijoux), 31 March 2023, retrieved 4 April 2023
  9. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.LeRoi74 - Topic (7 November 2024). Run. Retrieved 10 November 2024 – via YouTube.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ https://x.com/STUARTZENDER/status/1855017436552348077
  11. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Biography". Zendermusic.com. Archived from the original on 15 December 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  12. ^ New member for All Saints Accessed 2 January 2006
  13. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Baxter-Wright, Dusty (2 October 2023). "Celebrity Race Across The World: Who is Melanie Blatt?". Cosmopolitan. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  14. ^ FORMER ALL SAINT MELANIE BLATT SAYS SHES STRAPPED FOR CASH AND WILL HAVE TO CONTINUE RECORDING SOLO (Hello magazine, 23 May 2001)
  15. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Ellen, Barbara (5 November 2006). "Saintlier Than Thou". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 March 2025.
  16. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."'Meeting my dad was a D:Ream' - pop star's 50-year search for his birth father". BBC News. 2026. Retrieved 18 February 2026.
  17. ^ [1] Script error: No such module "webarchive".

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Navbox/configuration' not found.

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Authority control/config' not found.

Retrieved from "https://cosmopedia.co/index.php?title=Stuart_Zender&oldid=642606"