Artist Name: Bill Cosby Artist Biography: In the early 1960s, Philadelphia native Bill Cosby (b. 7/11/32) achieved levels of commercial success and universal success unparalleled by any of his fellow African-American comedians. By breaking stand-up comedy´s color barrier, Cosby set the stage for the widespread success of everyone from Richard Pryor to Eddie Murphy to Chris Rock. An avowed jazz fan (his long-running sitcom The Cosby Show featured guest appearances by Dizzy Gillespie among other historic jazz figures), Cosby has worked as a composer, producer, and vocalist on albums by such artists as Jimmy Heath, Charles Mingus, and Tito Puente. In 1997, Cosby gathered a group of musicians including Lester Bowie, Bobby Watson, Cedar Walton, and Billy Higgins to produce a tribute album for his tragically murdered son, celebrating life with Hello, Friend: To Ennis With Love (Verve). E-mail:   Web Site: