Marion was born in West Virginia and grew up in Stamford, Connecticut. He began playing the clarinet and studying classical music at the age of nine.
He started playing tenor sax in high
school, and then migrated to soprano
sax. His passion for various types of
music led him down an eclectic
musical path. He was intrigued by the styles
of jazz musicians, like Stanley Turrentine,
Sidney Bichet, Johnny Hodges, John
Coltrane, Sonny Stitt, Rahsaan Roland
Kirk, Dexter Gordon, Cannonball Adderley,
Coleman Hawkins, Sonny Fortune,
Joe Henderson, Grover Washington
and many others. After studying jazz
at Rippowam High School in Stamford, CT
with Anthony Truglia, Meadows attended
Berklee College of Music. There he
majored in arranging and composition.
He later went to the SUNY Purchase School
for the Arts. During his college years he played
in a number of bands including disco, R&B and
various jazz ensmbles. I got a lot of sideman
jobs in college, and I have always said I
got my real graduate degree playing clubs,
says Meadows, who perfected his craft studying
with Sonny Fortune, Joe Henderson, Dave Liebman
and Eddie Daniels. “Not long after I finished school, (drummer) Norman Connors recorded one of my
songs, “Invitation” and then asked me to join his
band. I later produced his Passion album with my
colleague Jacques Burvick (Aquarium Dream).
Things just fell into place. Meadows first hit the
airwaves in 1991 with “For Lovers Only”, but his
career really began one day in the late ‘80s at
New York’s Grand Central Station. He had been
a sideman with Connors for three years, with only
vague notions of eventually going solo. One day,
while waiting for a train, he pulled out his horn and
began playing under the huge dome. His sweet
sound caught the attention of fellow traveler, producer
and TV composer Jay Chattaway, who happened to be passing by on his way to the train. Chattaway was so impressed with Meadows’ sound that he hooked
Meadows up with legendary keyboardist Bob James. Meadows and James collaborated on a recording
that unfortunately went unreleased. The experience
put him on the road to his eventual success. Meadows hooked up with numerous artists and musicians and
became a well-known sideman in his own right, recording
or performing over the years with Brook Benton, Eartha Kitt, Phyllis Hyman, Jean Carne, The Temptations, Michael Bolton, Angela Bofill, Will Downing, Bob Baldwin, Chuck Loeb,
John Lee, among many others. In the late ‘80s, Meadows stretched his boundaries by becoming a member of a New York avant-garde band called the Aboriginal Music Society. In 1990 Meadows submitted a solo project to
Steve Backer at Novus/RCA and was signed to
a recording contract, thus marking the beginning
of his solo career. Meadows’ first RCA release
“For Lover’s Only” was a huge success and was
followed by his groundbreaking “Keep it Right
There” album. He became a staple of the
contemporary jazz format with his subsequent
recordings, which include Body Rhythm (1994)
and Forbidden Fruit (1996), Passion (1997),
Another Side Of Midnight (1999),
Next To You (2000), In Deep (2002),
Players Club (2004), Dressed To Chill (2006),
Secrets (2009) Whisper (2013)
and most recently Soul Traveler,
the first installment of his Soul
Trilogy which now showcases his
current release, Soul City" on the
New York-based Shanachie Label.
Meadows is a semi-pro cyclist,
graphic artist and designer.
Marion received a doctorate
from Wilberforce University in 2016.
His artwork and photography can be viewed at: