Today we’d like to introduce you to Harold Reid
Hi Harold, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Well growing up I didn’t really have a great home life, so I would use music as a way to escape all the chaos and bad things around me. I would always have head phones in and be listening to the radio, a cassette tape or a cd. Growing up we had an old record player I would play around with and try to listen to the few albums we had in the house but they were so old the quality was real poor and you couldn’t really understand what was on them but I thought it was neat to play around with anyway. Once I hit middle school age I hung around a family friend that had a country band that I played drums for from time to time but it wasn’t till about the middle of my 6th grade year I was walking down the hall and the band director was passing me and said to me “ hey you look like you should be in band.” At that time I wasn’t sure what band was. So I then started noticing other kids walking around with instrument cases and thought hey that may be something I might be interested in. So at the end of the year I signed up and went to tryouts for instrument placements. My first choice was to play drums and my second was the saxophone. I was supposed to play the drums but at that time the middle school was getting a new band director and the new director calls my parents at the start of my 7th grade year and tells them I’m going to be a saxophone player. So funny thing happened. I come home from school and there on my bed was a saxophone case and inside was a saxophone. I was like this isn’t a drum, why is this here. So my dad told me since he already bought it I was stuck with it. So I started my journey as a saxophone player in 7th grade in 1999. After that I joined the high school marching band and was under the direction of my high school band director. He was the same director that told me I looked like I should be in band..lol.. So from there and all through high school I joined the Jazz Ensemble,Wind Ensemble, and everything else band related. I owe a lot of my love for music to my high school director cause he introduced me to a lot of different bands and genres and styles of music that I never knew before. He always pushed me to do better and want to be better. I never had anyone that encouraged me at home with my music. He was the only one I felt that really believed in me and pushed me to want to be better and do more with music. After high school I went to college and studied music education and music ministry. I then took on a few jobs as a music pastor at a few churches but the whole church thing wasn’t for me. Years later I was back at my old high school due to my son being in the band and that’s when I started helping teach the woodwinds as an Instructor. Once my son changed schools I then decided to branch out and try to make a career playing solo. I missed playing like I once did and wanted to do that again but wanted to see if I could make a career out of it. My first gig was at a local pizza shop in town that had me back several times. I then took on a few more gigs and was starting to plan out everything and then my life was put on hold. I had a major heart attack and wasn’t able to play for a while. Once I had my strength back I started going to a few open mics and made some awesome friends in the music community. That’s when I decided on the stage name Sax Man. I took my first gig after my heart attack at an ice cream shop around Christmas. Then I started recording music and then went to be on late night tv, then I wrote and produced my first original album. Since then I have had serval cover albums and singles, 2 Original albums, been on the front page of the local paper, this will be my fourth magazine interview, and had an original song featured on the Grammy Awards Weekend Livestream. I also have all my music streaming on all music platforms such as Spotify, YouTube, ITunes, Amazon Music, Pandora, and I have my own station on IHeart Radio.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. When I started off all I had was a small Bluetooth speaker, my iPad , a few music books and my horn. It took a while to finally get professional equipment. Plus starting out I didn’t have a clue to what I was doing. Sometimes I still feel like I don’t know what I’m doing..lol. As time has gone by I’ve definitely learned from my mistakes as a musician and have learned what works and what doesn’t. With every gig I play it’s a learning experience because I feel I learn something new each time on what I can do better. My biggest struggle would have to be when I had my heart attack. I really thought that was it for me and my music career. I honestly didn’t think I would ever be able to play again but thankfully that wasn’t the case and I was able to get back into it and pick up where I left off.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Well obviously I am a saxophonist. Hence the name Sax Man. I play solo gigs for venues, private events, corporate events, music festivals, etc.. When I play I have all professional equipment and have backing tracks so it’s like I have a full band backing me. Every time I play I’m always a crowd pleaser, people love it. I play all genres of music. Despite what some may think I am not a jazz artist. I play most anything you would hear on your radio. Right now my biggest accomplishment is being featured on the Grammy Awards Weekend Livestream. As I tell everyone I’m not your average or typical sax player. I play most anything and everything to have you out of your seat dancing either by yourself or with a partner.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
Well the one thing I like about my hometown is that it’s small but that’s also what I don’t like in a way. The reason is because with it being so small there aren’t many venues to be able to get booked at. So most places I play are out of town. Not that I mind playing other cities because I love it. I just wish I could have more options in my home town to be able to play at.
Pricing:
- $100hr minimum, price varies depending on travel.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5CyafQSPMQuCluK2vbfub4?si=Ud6OEt_7T-KOGwbJtXO7Qw
- Instagram: https://Instagram.com/sax_man_hr
- Facebook: https://Facebook.com/saxmanhr
- Youtube: https://YouTube.com/haroldwreid
- Other: saxmanhr@gmail.com
