Bob Conti (born December 27, 1947) is an American percussionist known for his work with Donna Summer, Diana Ross, and his long-term collaboration with Jose Feliciano.
He composed and played percussion for Bad Girls, an album that went double platinum. He also produced The Genius of Jose Feliciano Vol 1 & Vol 2 on his own record label, Joyfull Productions.
Early life
Conti was born in Brooklyn and joined the American Legion's Drum and Bugle Corp at 12.[1][2] He later moved to Los Angeles and attended Venice High School, where he played Baritone Sax in the high school dance band, "The Crescendos," and had his own band, "The Circle of One."[3][4] After high school, Conti's music career took precedence over his college education at Santa Monica College.[5]
Career
Conti's career started when he won a radio contest with his band, leading to performances with well-known artists and eventually recording an album with Wilson Pickett.[6][7] Later, he was signed by Jubilee Records as a songwriter and lead vocalist. Conti then joined The Platters as saxophonist and lead vocalist.
Throughout his career, Conti has performed with various artists in the studio and on tour, working on over 150 albums. He has also been a composer, publisher, musical director, television presenter, and bandleader.
Bob Conti at Montreaux Jazz
Donna Summer years & Jose Feliciano
Conti performed with Donna Summer from 1977 to 2010, contributing to her double platinum Bad Girls album. On that album, he composed "Can't get to sleep at night".[8][9] He then collaborated with José Feliciano from 1982 to 2016, producing several albums and touring worldwide. In addition to writing songs for him, Bob produced several of his albums, including The Genius of José Feliciano, Volume 1[10] and Volume 2[11] and From the Heart.[12]
Jose Feliciano & Bob Conti Epcot Center
Present day
Since 2016, Conti has focused on charitable projects and established a non-profit organization called "We Celebrate US." In March 2017, he was appointed by the Mayor of Thousand Oaks, California, to the position of Cultural Arts Commissioner of the Thousand Oaks, California Cultural Affairs Commission/Alliance for the Arts, a term that ended in November 2019. In 2017 Bob was one of the producers of the City of Thousand Oaks' live stage show, the 2017 Excellence In The Arts Awards, and also provided some of his original music for the production. [13]
