Smooth jazz saxophonist Steve Cole was born Steve Finckle on August 17, 1970, in
Chicago, Illinois. The son of a musician who played both clarinet and saxophone,
he initially studied classical music on clarinet but switched his focus to
saxophone while he was in high school. A graduate of Northwestern University in
Evanston, he studied economics and continued his classical saxophone studies,
earning a master's degree at the University of Chicago, before becoming a
professional musician. After choosing the tenor saxophone and pursuing jazz
music, he joined guitarist Brian Culberts...