At age 8, Jim Murray's interest in Jazz music was ignited when his brother played him a record of Vince Guaraldi's “Charlie Brown Christmas”. He began studying piano at age eight and upright bass later in Jr. high school. During high school he began performing in local restaurants, clubs, and special music events around his hometown, Grand Junction, Colorado. His early influences on piano are Art Tatum, Bill Evans, Erroll Garner, Monk, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and Keith Jarrett.
After high school, Jim's move to the American east coast in 1984 proved to be an invaluable experience as he met and learned from such piano legends as Ellis Marsalis and Dave McKenna.
Moving back to Colorado in the 1990s, Jim's music has been a regular feature in the various hotels, jazz festivals, and jazz clubs in Aspen, Vail, and Grand Junction, in both solo and small combo performances, often working with bassist/producer Dennis Woodrich and the legendary Swedish drummer Bert Dahlander.
Since moving to Japan in 2001, Jim Murray has played with many Tokyo jazz greats such as bassist Stan Gilbert, drummers George Kawaguchi and Tommy Campbell, trumpeter Neil Stalnaker, and vocalists Karen Aoki and Hiroko Williams.
