Spaceman Patterson

William "Spaceman" Patterson is a guitarist and producer, who has collaborated with Miles Davis, James Brown and Frank Ocean.^[1][2][3]

Spaceman Patterson
Also known as	William "Billy" Patterson
Born	August 18, 1954 New Brunswick, New Jersey
Origin	New York City
Genres	Jazz rock hip hop
Instrument	Guitar
Years active	1976–present
Website	https://www.spacemanpatterson.space

History

Spaceman Patterson played guitar in the live band of Melvin Van Peebles

Spaceman Patterson was one of the musicians in Miles Davis' touring line-up in the 1980s.^[4][5] In 1992, Patterson provided music for Ntozake Shange's The Love Space Demands, an adaptation of some of her poetry.^[6][7] In 1995, Patterson produced Melvin Van Peebles' 1995 album Ghetto Gothic.^[8] In 2003, he was musical director for the play Dream on Monkey Mountain presented at the Harlem School of the Arts.^[9]

In 2008, Patterson was enlisted to produce a hip hop album for Bill Cosby.^{[10][11][12][13]} Known at that time for his comedic work and not for performing hip hop, Cosby's album came as a surprise to some.^[14] Patterson told the Associated Press that when Cosby contacted him about making the album, "people started speculating, is he going to rap about Jell-O Pudding Pops or what?"^[14] The resulting release, titled The Cosnarati: State Of Emergency, came out on November 14, 2009, on World Alert Music.

In 2016, Spaceman Patterson played guitar on multiple Frank Ocean recordings, including the albums Endless and Blonde. As of 2018, at least 20 hours of outtakes from Patterson's Frank Ocean sessions have not been released.^[15]

Discography

Per each album's liner notes.^[16]

Studio albums

With Jamaica Boys

• 1987: Jamaica Boys (Warner Bros)
• 1989: J Boys (Warner Bros)
• 1990: Shake It Up (Warner Bros)

With J-Funk Express

• 1993: Getting Back To My Roots (Pioneer)
• 1995: This is Rare Groove (99 Records)

As producer

• 1983: Trademark – Uh-huh! (Move'n Groove Records)
• 1995: Melvin Van Peebles – Ghetto Gothic (Capitol Records)
• 1996: Monifah – Moods... Moments (Universal)
• 2009: Bill Cosby – The Cosnarati State of Emergency (World Alert Music)

As sideman

With James Blood Ulmer

• 1980: Are You Glad to Be in America? (Rough Trade)
• 1993: Blues Preacher (Columbia)

With Miles Davis

• 1989: Amandla (Warner Bros)
• 2001: 1986-1991: The Warner Years (Warner Bros)

With David Sanborn

• 1992: Upfront (Elektra)
• 1994: Hearsay (Elektra)

With Frank Ocean

• 2016: Endless (Def Jam)
• 2016: Blonde (Boys Don't Cry)

With others

• 1976: Hamiet Bluiett - Wildflowers: The New York Loft Jazz Sessions
• 1989: Sly and Robbie – Silent Assassin (Island Records)
• 1990: Toshinobu Kubota – Bonga Wanga (CBS)
• 1993: Teddy Pendergrass – A Little More Magic (Elektra)
• 1997: Ultramagnetic MCs – The B-Sides Companion (Next Plateau)
• 2010: Jaheim – Another Round (Atlantic)