Gary Marks and David Samuels, Vibraphonist

Vibraphonist David Samuels played on Gary Marks's debut album, Gathering (1974), marking his own recording debut alongside fellow future jazz great John Scofield. Marks has described how the two met: after recruiting guitarist John Scofield, Marks asked him who the best vibraphonist in Boston was, and Scofield said David Samuels. Samuels wrote out the chord charts for the Gathering sessions in detailed technical notation and passed them around to the rest of the band.

Seventeen Years in Spyro Gyra

Samuels went on to become a Grammy-winning member of the jazz fusion band Spyro Gyra for seventeen years, and co-founded the Caribbean Jazz Project. Over his career he recorded and performed with Gerry Mulligan, Chet Baker, Frank Zappa, Carla Bley, Pat Metheny, David Friedman, and Gary Burton. He also performed on Marks's third album, Thoughts of Why (1978).

A Reviewed Debut

"Self-produced in 1974 and engineered at Ultra Sonic Recording Studios in New York, the album includes guitar legend John Scofield, the amazing jazz pianist Michael Cochrane, and one of the top vibraphonists in the world, David Samuels."

— Forced Exposure, 2025, reviewing Gathering

"He allows plenty of space for vibes solos from David Samuels, guitar solos from John Scofield, and piano solos from Michael Cochrane — all of which serve as a backdrop for Gary's beautifully written songs and stretched-out vocals."

— Dusty Groove, Inc., 2007, reviewing Gathering

Two Jazz Fusion Careers, One Shared Starting Point

Samuels's path from Gathering's tracking room to a Grammy-winning career runs in parallel with John Scofield's, both future jazz greats recruited into Marks's band in 1973 before either had a name that audiences would recognize. Where Scofield's career moved toward straight-ahead and fusion jazz guitar, Samuels's moved into jazz fusion's Latin and Caribbean strains, first with Spyro Gyra and then as co-founder of his own ensemble. Two very different directions arose out of the same Boston apartment where the Gathering band first came together.