Born Steven Eugene Grove, the smooth jazz saxophonist was reborn in the new millennium as the solo artist Euge Groove. Born on November 27, 1962 in Hagerstown, Maryland, Grove picked up the piano and the saxophone as a child, and honed his skills in the University of Miami’s school of music, where he developed his initial interest in jazz. He played on a number of local sessions, including recording for Miami-based Latin Freestyle group Exposé, whose Number 1 single “Seasons Change” featured a solo from Grove.
From 1988 to 1992, Grove joined the esteemed horn section of funk-rock band Tower of Power. He also continued to work as a session performer, and contributed to recordings by the Eurythmics, Elton John, Huey Lewis and the News, Joe Cocker, and even on a promotional tie-in album for The Simpsons. In the midst of a stint playing for Tina Turner, Grove dubbed himself Euge Groove and embarked on a solo career in 2000. Groove blended elements of pop, gospel, funk, and soul into his easy-going jazz sound, and made regular appearances on the Smooth Jazz charts, which he topped a number of times with songs like “Born 2 Groove” (2007), “Religify” (2008), “Sunday Morning” (2009), “House of Groove” (2012), and “Groove On” (2017). His albums also appeared on the top five of the jazz charts, landing the Number 1 albums Born 2 Groove in 2007 and House of Groove in 2012.
