George Duke was born in San Rafael, California, and reared in Marin City, a working class section of Marin County. When he was just four years old, his mother took him to see Duke Ellington in concert. "I don't remember it too well," says George, "but my mother told me I went crazy. I ran around saying 'Get me a piano, get me a piano!'" He began his piano studies at age seven, absorbing the roots of Black music in his local Baptist church. "That's where I first began to play funky. I really learned a lot about music from the church. I saw how music could trigger emotions in a cause-and-effect relationship."
“This really took some time but I've written personal liner notes for each of my LPs. It was a real stroll down memory lane and took longer than I thought. I felt like I was writing a book. The liner notes cover my solo as well as my collaborative efforts with the many great musicians I've been fortunate enough to work with. Check them out.” — George Duke
