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The Full Story

With over two decades of professional playing experience, TJ Spencer has developed a smooth sound that whispers in your ear as he plays. People have told him he has a gift, others say they enjoy listening to his music in the car. Spencer is a seven time CEMA award winner (California Music Educator Assoc.), and Five time recording artist. He has been recognized for playing the saxophone in wo magazines, one in California and one in Nevada and one newspaper. Spencer has played internationally in Germany, Switzerland, and Canada and Domestically on the west coast from Los Angeles and San Diego to Sacramento, Chico, and Redding.

 

TJ Spencer comes from a long line of musician, enjoys jazz and blues but has always had an ear for pop and rock. He enjoys collaborating and writing original music. As a former music major, he is able to put his music theory to work when creating original music. His first original collaboration project was in the  late 1990's with a band called Whistletoe. Led by band leader Jeremy Edwardson & Jon Grant, they recorded a few independent albums they went on mini tours including one to Salt Lake City, Utah to play in the L.I.F.E Music Festival. The band focused completely on original music but split before 2000.  The talented Mr. Edwardson went on to join the Myriad, and had a successful music career.

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Spencer later met up with American Idol finalist Lou Evans and his guitar player Andreas Acuna who started the band Within Crawling Distance. The group played modern day covers and had a set of original music. They had a good run, but disbanded before 2010. Spencer then went back to his roots and received an offer to join the Straight-Ahead Big Band, a professional 18-piece Jazz Band that was the only big band era jazz band from Sacramento, California to Portland, Oregon. He played with professional musicians and traveled all over Northern California playing big band jazz standards from the 1920's. Spencer went into the studio with them to record an album and stayed with them for a few years. But Spencer always had an itch to get back to writing and collaborating with original music. After doing time in the Bay Area he moved North towards the Oregon boarder where he connected with an alternative rock band called Isaiah 58. This band focused on original music and Spencer felt back at home with the group. They had a set of music with two albums out and where performing at concerts from Sacramento, California to Reno, Nevada. Before the band split up in 2016, they recorded an album and collaborated on the release of the bands only published original song. The Single released on iTunes is titled

"I Need Your Love" original work released and performed by Isaiah 58.

 

In early 2020 TJ Spencer connected with Cleveland Boney and has been back in the studio to record a few demos.

He is also working on a new project that will be his first original release that will be completed some time in the fall of 2024.

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