Alto saxophonist Candy Dulfer was brought into the limelight by Prince, who introduced her to the world via his video for "Partyman." Raised in a family heavily involved in the Dutch jazz scene, Dulfer is the daughter of Hans Dulfer, a respected jazz tenor saxophonist. Thanks to him, she listened to and studied the recordings of Sonny Rollins, Coleman Hawkins, and Dexter Gordon. He also introduced her to the stage early in life. When she was 12, she began playing in a band with Rosa King, an American expatriate who lived in Holland. Her career began by playing with brass bands but soon she was fronting her own band, Funky Stuff, who were invited to backup Madonna for part of her European tour. She began leading the band at age 15. Her appearances with Prince led to session work with Eurythmics guitarist/producer Dave Stewart, who gave Dulfer a credit on "Lily Was Here," which reached number six in the U.K. and number one on the Dutch radio charts in 1990. Recording sessions for her debut album were followed by more guest star dates with Van Morrison, Aretha Franklin, and Pink Floyd.

http://www.allmusic.com/artist/candy-dulfer-mn0000945711

Date of Birth 19 September 1969, Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands

Mini Bio (1)

Candy Dulfer is a woman that can blow some serious sax. She was born on September 19, 1969 in The Netherlands, and is the daughter of sax legend Hans Dulfer. Thanks to him, she studied the works of many other jazz legends and learned the craft. At the age of 12, she played with American saxophonist Rosa King, who she has thanked for "showing her the way". It wasn't too long after that when she formed her own band called Funky Stuff, whom Madonna requested for back up on her European tours. But if there are two people she is really thankful for her getting her a break in the music business, it would be Prince and David A. Stewart. Prince had made her the center of attention for his video "Partyman" (she played a solo in the video), and she played backup on another one of his albums. Dave Stewart recruited her to play sax on the title tune for the Dutch Film, Lily Was Here (1989). This lead to a record deal with Arista, and her debut album, 'Saxuality' (on which the tune "Lily Was Here" is featured along with a remix of the song by DNA). The album was a hit among the "smooth jazz" crowd. She continued in 1993 by releasing her second 'Sax-A-Go-Go'. The album featured a song written by Prince, along with remakes of other tunes. After this, Candy went back to The Netherlands to release the album, 'Big Girl' in 1996. Her next album, 'For The Love Of You' followed in 1997 in which she showed her versatility by singing on a few of the tracks. In 1999, she released 'What Does It Take'. The album got critical praise and many said it rivals 'Saxuality' as one of her best. 'Right In My Soul' was released in 2003, on which she also sings. Candy continues to have a huge fan base in The Netherlands and Europe, while having a loyal following in the United States (which includes former president Bill Clinton).

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Pat McCurry

Trivia (4)

Saxophonist

Daughter of Hans Dulfer, a famous Dutch jazz musician.

Mother's name is Inge

In 2003 she had a single called 'Finsbury Park, café 67', which was co-written and produced by Brainpower. It hit the top of several jazz charts.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0241319/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm