190: Bob Reynolds

This year musicians and creative people have had to confront themselves, their work, and their ambitions head on, and Bob Reynolds is no exception. But unlike so many of us, Bob already had some mechanisms in place to process that struggle in a creative way. 

Bob is a Grammy Award-winning saxophonist, composer, and educator known for his work with Snarky Puppy, John Mayer, and 12 solo albums. He is no stranger to large stages and tour busses. At the same time, much of his career has been a series of self generated projects. 

On his YouTube channel, he shares tips, tricks, anecdotes and ideas, and he has coached thousands of students through his online Virtual Studio.

I found Bob at the crossroads of what’s happening and where am I going, and we had a beautiful talk about managing that existential crisis that so many of us are having. He talked about his influences, approach, playing with Snarky Puppy, John Mayer, the subtle but significant distinction between practice and the practice, what it means to make music with sincerity, and finding himself on tour in Spain and Italy last March just as Covid was descending over Europe.