Ian Martin is a bassist, writer, and producer born and raised in Toronto, Canada. He got his start in his father’s church, where a blend of American gospel, contemporary worship, and reggae-inflected hymns shaped his musical ear. He began on piano at 8, switched to drums at 11, and picked up bass at 16 when the chair opened up in the church youth choir — it’s remained his primary instrument ever since. At 17 he founded Full Assurance, a vocally-led gospel group that gave him his first real outlet for writing and arranging.
In 1990 Ian headed to Boston to attend Berklee College of Music, where a growing love of jazz — encouraged by professors Dave Clark and Bill Pierce — led him to take up acoustic bass. He returned to Toronto in 1992, working local clubs and building a reputation as a versatile electric/acoustic player, notably alongside Canadian jazz/blues legend Salome Bey. In 1994 he went back to Berklee to complete a degree in Film Scoring, deepening his compositional range.
Ian relocated to Los Angeles in 2001 and quickly established himself as a first-call bassist across genres, working with artists including KC and JoJo, Angela Bofill, and Barry Manilow. In 2005 he released his second solo album, “The Way,” which found international success — UK label Expansion Records licensed it for European distribution, and Ian’s music has since appeared on MTV, Lifetime, E!, and A&E. In 2010 he partnered with producer/composer Paula Gallitano to form the writing group Playground, producing tracks for artists, television, and film.
The years since have included a two-year run with David Foster (including two Asian tours in 2012), work with Colbie Caillat, a European tour with Frank Gambale, a stint with Macy Gray in 2015, and a session credit on Barbra Streisand’s Burt Bacharach tribute album — alongside ongoing work with artists like Patti Austin and Chris Mann.
More recently, Ian has recorded and performed with the Myron McKinley Trio and is currently recording and playing with Sy Smith. He produced two upcoming releases — for artist Lori Janaire, and for Roberto Restuccia, whose new single he also wrote. His own new single, “Whatever,” is set for release shortly. Last year he played the old-school soul cruise circuit alongside Jody Watley, the Sugarhill Gang, Deniece Williams, The Delfonics, and Heatwave, among others. Over the past three years he’s also recorded acoustic bass for smooth jazz artists including Greg Manning, Adam Hawley, and Cat Hawley.