Eric Nemeyer’s · how to solo around the changes. It was this period when I was learning all about jazz. I found my musical style leaning more towards a modal sound versus a bebop

BaLDWINBaLDWIN

Eric Nemeyer’s

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CONTENTSCONTENTS

CLUBS, CONCERTS, EVENTSCLUBS, CONCERTS, EVENTS 13 Calendar of Events 20 Clubs & Venue Listings

4 Bob Baldwin — The Language Of Music, by Ken Weiss

INTERVIEWSINTERVIEWS 28 Wycliffe Gordon—“… always just striv-

ing to … make it the best”

32 Bill Frisell — It’s just about the commu-nication

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Interview by Eric Nemeyer

Bob Baldwin is a contemporary jazz pianist,

composer, author, producer, and inventor who

began studying music at a young age, at home

in Mt. Vernon, NY with his father, Robert Bald-

win, Sr., a jazz pianist who worked with bass

legends Keter Betts and Art Davis. Bob was

also a fan of his older cousin, pianist Lary Wil-

lis. Baldwin's recording career started in 1983

and his debut album, A Long Way to Go, re-

leased in 1988. Among his notable releases are

Bob Baldwin Presents Abbey Road and the

Beatles; Never Can Say Goodbye: A Tribute to

Michael Jackson; MelloWonder: Songs in the

Key of Stevie. An accomplished pianist, Bald-

win has composed and or arranged music for

Regina Carter, The Four Tops, Grover Wash-

ington, Jr., Paul Brown, Richard Elliot, Marion

Meadows, Ragan Whiteside, Lori Williams,

Tom Browne, Bob James, Will Downing, Pieces

of a Dream and others. Bob Baldwin's own

recordings have featured an array of leading

artists including Gerald Albright, Noel Pointer,

Lenny White, Larry Coryell, Chuck Loeb, Russ

Freeman (Rippingtons), Najee, and more.

Among his 25 career solo discs since 1988, he

has had six of his singles chart in the Top 20

since 2011 (Billboard Jazz) and eleven of his

CDs reach the Top 20 CD's since 2000

(Billboard). In addition to his performing activ-

ities, Baldwin is the author of the book You

Better Ask Somebody, a practical guide to the

music business. His radio show NewUrban-

Jazz.com can be heard weekly nationwide.

JI: Bob, you hail from a musical background,

where your dad was a piano player in the New

York area. Talk about how your inspiration and

how your interest in music got started when

you were very young.

BB: I was born in Mt. Vernon, but lived in

Yonkers. We moved to Peekskill in 1968. I

remember it like yesterday because not just a

few weeks later, [Dr. Martin Luther] King was

shot and my mom almost passed out from dev-

astation. I was about five years old when I start-

ed learning about jazz. I was just getting into

kindergarten. Dad was a musician, a pianist,

had great ears, had great chops, but never had

the chance to tour worldwide because he was at

home working a day job to take care of the

family. But at age five years old, I learned so

much about Oscar Peterson and Art Tatum and

Errol Garner. Those are the guys that he lis-

tened to. In Yonkers, I learned about jazz as

young as I can remember. At age six, dad dis-

covered I had perfect pitch and started me on

my way. It was age seven for seven years I took

classical lessons. Those are the guys of his gen-

eration. It was around 1964 when I began lis-

tening - so, those guys were still very much in

the throes of their jazz careers. Of course, the

Dizzy Gillespie’s and the Miles Davis’s and

Herbie Hancock’s soon followed. But dad was

very, very heavily into the piano, obviously. So

that was my early influence and like I said, I’m

picking up all this music at age five. So, it was

a wonderful experience as a young child learn-

ing how to pick up the music. And, of course,

he taught me jazz theory and jazz harmony and

scales and all that kind of good stuff shortly

after that.

JI: What were some of the musical highlights

as you observed the music around you in your

early years?

BB: I didn’t meet Ella, But I do remember

meeting Hugh Masakela when he defected from

South Africa and Apartheid around 1968-69

when he was coming into great popularity.

Hugh lived in Greenburgh, His escape from

South Africa was a big deal and he was well

respected in the community. Greenburgh was

this hip little town next to White Plains that had

a great artistic pulse. Cab Calloway lived near

there. Frank Foster. Atlantic Starr original

members Porter Carroll and Sharon Bryant.

Even Gordon Parks lived in that area. I met him

once. He was a great man and photographer,

the first African-American to do photography

for the cover of Time-Life. My dad was a pho-

tographer and had some Hasselblad equipment.

I learned how to develop film in his darkroom

next to the garage. It was there we bonded as

well. He’d play all the hip jazz ‘cassettes’ while

figuring out chemicals and enlargers and f-stop

settings on the camera. That was fun from

about 1965 to 1972. My dad was amazing be-

cause he was the consummate student of left-

right brain. He was a musician, an engineer,

and used to take a car motor apart and put it

back together. He was the ultimate handyman.

Between 1968 and 1972 when dad was in full

health, he taught me about chords, scales and

the fake book. He would pull out the book and

have me learn chord progressions and teach me

how to solo around the changes. It was this

period when I was learning all about jazz. I

found my musical style leaning more towards a

modal sound versus a bebop or an avant-garde

vibe. Miles was just into his Cool Jazz vibra-

tion and I found myself vibing off of that dur-

ing that time. Kind of Blue with Bill Evans was

very impactful. Also, dad was a big Oscar Pe-

terson fan. He would take the turntable and run

the record at half speed, and proceeded to tran-

scribe solos from the recording. I used to do

that at a young age and try to figure out the

solos of Peterson, Art Tatum. While I didn’t

always execute the solos, I understood them

and how they were impacted by the chord. Pe-

terson was the master. His timing and his work

with Ed Thigpen and Ray Brown were breath-

taking. I remember West Side Story. Dad could-

n’t wait to grab it from the store and play it in

the house. The album Triste was always play-

ing in the house.

JI: What were some of the first songs that you (Continued on page 6)

“finish your dream man. Don’t stop dreaming. Don’t

ever stop dreaming. Continue to pursue the things that you

love doing and stay away from those bad deals, man.”

Bob Baldwin

Never give up what you really love!

INTERVIEWINTERVIEW



learned?

BB: I remember the first standards I learned

were “In a Sentimental Mood” and “Satin Doll”

by Ellington. “Satin Doll” was the perfect les-

son in the 2-5-1 progression, and from there, I

was able to make up alternate changes from

that progression. I began to learn how to

change the color of the chord, which gave the

performance a different mood. The alternate

changes really became a part of my sound from

day one. Musicians seemed to gravitate from

that, and audiences embraced the alternate

mood the different changes made, while staying

true to the original melody. During this period,

my sister was the “soul” records queen: Aretha,

Marvin, Stevie, Smokey, Isaac Hayes, and lat-

er, Earth Wind and Fire, Chicago. Stevie caught

my ear first probably because he played piano,

and his harmonic sound was very distinct to

me.

JI: What was it about Stevie Wonder that at-

tracted you so much more than other artists?

BB: I fell in love with Stevie and was totally

into his golden era, 1971 through 1976, where

he was playing multiple instruments and over-

dubbing them on the recording, which was un-

precedented. My dad told me no one had done

that. With Stevie being blind, it made the feat

more incredible. Fulfillingness First Finale,

Talking Book, Music of My Mind, Innervisions

and Songs in the Key of Life were my fave Ste-

vie projects. In 1972, dad fell ill. He suffered

from encephalitis. I believe it was triggered by

Lyme Disease, but at that time, it wasn’t really

a defined disease. Anyway, it affected his mo-

tor skills and seemed like overnight, his work-

manship, ability to take care of the family and

most of all, his piano skills were stripped from

him.

JI: How did your mom and family cope with

this setback?

BB: The family took it hard. My little brother

William was born in 1971, so mom was left

taking care of four kids. Oldest to youngest are

Debbie, myself, Linda, and William. Mom was

in a tough spot. I lied on my first job applica-

tion in working at a supermarket around the

corner to bring a few dollars home. Wasn’t

much but it helped and helped me grow up real

fast. Between 1975 and 1978, I actually quit

playing piano. My dad’s illness really de-

pressed me. But I but picked it back up in Col-

lege when I played for a gospel choir between

1979-1981. The choir opened up for The Haw-

kins Family and at the time, Tremaine Hawkins

was on fire. She sang at the college and there

wasn’t a dry eye in the house. She optimized

soul even though she was singing this new

wave of gospel. That’s when I fell in love with

Gospel and as they say, “the magic was back”.

I had a love for playing again. So here I am,

full of jazz, soul and gospel, the very heart of

my music.

JI: How did your interest in contemporary jazz

develop from Gospel?

BB: In New York at the time, in 1975 through

1980, a great jazz station, WRVR, played the

straight, contemporary and the fusion. I got hip

to Jeff Lorber, George Duke, Joe Sample,

Chick Corea. They were all amazing players in

their prime. We lost Duke and Sample, but

Chick and Lorber are still on top of their game.

I cried when they flipped over to gospel. The

“WRVR” call letters previously belonged to an

FM jazz station in New York City broadcasting

at 106.7 FM from 1961 to 1980. It was there

when I heard of Pat Prescott, who was the pro-

grammer there. She was the heart and soul of

that station. We later friended each other when

I landed an internship at WBLS in 1980. She

later moved to CD101.9 when they started up

Smooth Jazz in 1988. She gave me my first

airplay in New York, and for that, I’m forever

grateful.

JI: What were some of the first performing

engagements that opened doors for you?

BB: In 1983 I got my first gig with Norman

Connors. Bittersweet because here was some-

one I looked up to and admired. He had the ears

for talent, but when we met, the business piece

was a nightmare and I took some lumps on that

one. It angered me so much, I ended up finish-

ing my degree in business administration and

minored in Broadcast Communications at Ge-

neva College through 1986, in Beaver Falls,

Pennsylvania. That speaks to why I’ve got this

thing for radio. At the time, I did three years of

college before I eventually finished up. But I

came home, did an internship at WBLS Radio

and was doing gigs around town and working

part time and going back to school. I was doing

this job at Allstate doing insurance work when I

got the call to work with the Norman Connors

down in the US Virgin Islands. That was like

my first professional gig. Norman Connors’

group was called the Starship Orchestra. Duke

Jones, my friend in Mount Vernon at the time

had called me for the gig. Duke and Marian

Meadows were on the gig. Another guy named

Jack Burvick, keyboardist - all those guys

played with Norman in the ‘70s with the Star-

ship Orchestra. Again, it was a great experi-

ence, but there were some teaching moments in

terms of business that I did not want to carry

with me as I eventually became a bandleader.

So, there were some goods and some bads.

What happened was that I got called to do the

gig and about two days later they asked me to

bring my own gear. As a side man you don’t do

that - especially getting on a plane. At that time

the keyboard of choice was the Fender Rhoads,

which weighed a ton. Yes, north of a hundred

pounds. Thankfully it was without the speaker,

but it was still heavy. By the time the airlines

got a hold of it, the keyboard was badly out of

(Continued from page 4)

(Continued on page 8)

“they were deciding whether or not to give me piano lessons or go buy this really nice Persian rug for the living room. My mom actually opted

for the piano lessons. So, that was one of those great stories as a young guy. As I got older, she would call me her walking rug. So, it was like one of those great things you just don’t forget when you’re grown up

that your parents really went to bat for you when they get you the things that you wanted to go for.”

— Anton Chekhov

“Encroachment of freedom will not come

about through one violent action or movement but will come about

through a series of actions that appear to be unrelated and coincidental, but

that were all along systematically planned for dictatorship.”

— John Adams, 2nd President

Bob Baldwin


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tune and I had to tune it when I was down there

prior to every gig. And then it got crazy with

the money. I wasn’t getting paid like I was sup-

posed to. So, it was just one of those teaching

moments. I was glad to have gone down and

done the gig and we had made some great mu-

sic. It was there I met Marion Meadows. We’ve

been friends ever since. So, that was my first

real fun experience as a professional. But after

going through all the drama with the business, I

went back to school and got my degree. I was

like, “I need a little backup here - a lot of back-

up.”

JI: You got a crash course about the music

business with that gig.

BB: Absolutely. Yes. What not to do - and

what not to do with my own musicians when I

hired them. So, I treat them with the utmost

respect, and I think that’s one of the things

that’s kind of kept me around for a long time

and the reason a lot of the cats respect me.

They know when I call them and the gig is go-

ing to happen –that they’ll get their money and

we are going to have a good time and make

some great music.

JI: What happened after you left college?

BB: Well, I continued to do gigs around town

and kept honing the chops. I used to go down to

the city a lot and check out the Barry Harris

workshop. I think I probably went to at least ten

or fifteen of his workshops when I was in my

twenties and that was a great experience. I used

to go down to the Village Vanguard. I saw

McCoy Tyner one time with Gary Bartz.

McCoy was playing with so much heat and fire

man. If I was a piano, I would feel sorry for it

because he put a whooping on a piano.

JI: When McCoy played here in Philly in the

1970s at a club called Just Jazz, they would

tune the piano every night, and his physical

approach to playing the piano resulted in his

popping a few of the black keys off the key-

board.

BB: Yes, he was just a beast on the piano. His

sense of rhythm was just so over the top. It was

just a great thing to experience. I have a cousin

who’s been playing jazz for long time - Larry

Willis, a relative on my mom’s side. In fact, I

saw him about three months ago up in Tar-

rytown. He was playing at a club there. But I

saw Larry playing with the Fort Apache band.

He was in that band for many, many years. I’d

go down to the city, to the Blue Note, Village

Vanguard. I used to go down to a club called

Mikell’s on 96th street. I got the chance to see

Grover Washington a few times. I got a chance

to meet Michel Camilo, Richard Tee, Eric Gale

and all those great musicians of that era.

JI: How did the opportunity develop for you to

open for Tom Browne?

BB: It was 1986 and I opened up for Tom

Browne at the Bottom Line in New York City.

We later became friends and I produced one of

the first Gospel-Jazz projects. Only Koinonia

and Seawind were doing anything of the sort,

so he was helping to pave the way for the new

generation of Gospel-Jazz cats like Jonathan

Butler and Kirk Whalum, who helped to bring

it mainstream. But it was Tom Browne’s No

Longer I, which was at the front end of the

Gospel-Jazz movement, and I was right there

with him. The project caught the eye of Danny

Weiss and Dave Wilkes, who were trying to

launch Malaco Jazz. Their attempt failed terri-

bly due to Malaco’s failure to distribute jazz in

the north and in particular, between DC and

NYC. They left a lot of money on the table.

Weiss later helped to jumpstart Shanachie Rec-

ords. That blueprint was originally for Malaco

but in the end, they couldn’t pull it off. Back to

Tom Browne … There was a spot called the

Crazy Horse in White Plains - maybe held like

50 people. On Sundays we would do a jazz jam

session. We’d pull out some charts and just

tweak the music. The club was owned by Vin-

ny Pastore who became famous with The So-

pranos. I got called to open up for Tom Browne

at the Bottom Line in 1986. He asked me to

play in his band for a while. That’s how we

ended up putting together the album. The gos-

pel record he did called No longer I came out in

1988 on Malaco jazz. Malaco was dabbling in

jazz. They wanted to do more of a contempo-

rary jazz thing. Danny Weiss and Dave Wilkes

were running that label on the jazz side. Danny

of course became famous by running Sha-

nachie. But he was trying to do the same thing

as Malaco back in the late eighties. So I did a

record with Tom and then I did my own album.

It was more like a production project called I’ve

Got A Long Way To Go, which is kind of my

first release - but I’m not really featured there

as a keyboardist, but more as an arranger. My

dad took the cover shot when I was at the park

years prior, so we were coming full circle. It

was then when I agreed to not quit playing mu-

sic, but to let my dad’s music live through me.

That was our covenant, our promise, our bond.

I’ve not let him down, even though he passed in

2008, 82 years young. And from there I won

the Sony Innovators award in 1989 selected by

Roberta Flack. And that’s kind of what put me

on the map. Roberta was, at the time, signed to

Atlantic and she was good friends with Sylvia

Rhone. Sylvia Rhone got wind of the project

and then that’s how I ended up getting two rec-

ords on the Atlantic Jazz label before they

eventually folded—Rejoice and Reflections of

Love in 1990 and 1992 respectively.

JI: It looks like a lot of things came together

for you and you were on the road to smooth

sailing.

BB: In a number of ways that’s true. But in

1991 I lost my brother William in a car crash

when he was going back to college. That was a

game changer and of course, set back the fami-

ly. It was tough to go through that. The album

Reflections of Love was a tribute to him.

JI: What were some of the events and ideas

that pushed you to do your own recordings, as

an independent artist?

BB: The year 2000 was when I did my first big

indie record. After doing records with Atlantic

Jazz and Shanachie, I realized that the returns

were low when you didn’t have ownership. To

this day, I know artists who’ve released north

of 20 albums and have no ownership. I didn’t

want to be that guy. I realized that I was going



Bob Baldwin

“The ‘WRVR’ call letters previously belonged to an FM jazz station in New York City broadcasting at 106.7 FM from 1961 to 1980. It was there when I heard of Pat Prescott, who was the programmer there. She was the heart and soul of that station.

We later friended each other when I landed an internship at WBLS in 1980. She later moved to CD101.9 when they started up Smooth Jazz in

1988. She gave me my first airplay in New York, and for that, I’m forever grateful.”



to take a hit in sales and popularity, but chose

to take the road of ownership and making more

per unit. In having conversations with Grover,

Duke and Sample, they were all on board with

that move, and all regretted not doing the same

in their own careers. Duke did it later in his

career and he said it was the best thing he ever

did. Controlling your recordings versus a major

label doing so was always a ‘freak show’ for

me. The ugliness of the music business speaks

to that major fire on the property of UMG rec-

ords, where thousands of masters were burned

to ashes. I always kept a backup of my recorded

masters. I heard the horror stories from Duke

and Grover, took a few lumps on my own and

took heed. That said, on more than one occa-

sion, there have been some accounting night-

mares with the so-called ‘record labels’ I was

with. Frankly, I could run a label ten times bet-

ter than most. So many of them have gone by

the wayside. One went bankrupt, two closed

their doors [Nu-Groove], one closed doors and

got gobbled up by EMI [Narada], and another

cat went down from a money-laundering

scheme. There was a lot of fiduciary reckless-

ness on the part of label owners, both big and

small. So I’m glad to have a piece of ownership

in my career, and learned the ropes of other

bigger labels. My digital catalog is distributed

by The Orchard which is Sony, and my label is

called City Sketches Records. CSI came to

fruition in 1997, and we picked up the digital

distribution around 2007. I’m very happy with

The Orchard and happy to say, they pay on

time and always accurately. When you don’t

have to worry about the money piece, you can

just focus on making a great product, some-

thing that stands the test of time.

JI: Are there activities and creations in which

you are involved beyond music?

BB: Yes. I’m working on an invention that I

hope will be the backbone of the festival I want

to produce. It is a product that I’ve been devel-

oping for about four years and hopefully, it will

come to fruition in 2020, so I guess you can

coin me as pianist / composer / author / inven-

tor.

JI: Let’s return for a moment to your early

development. How old were you when you

started playing tunes and putting some of this

together? Was it within the first year or so of

you getting some lessons from your dad?

BB: Yes, I’d say I was about seven years old.

The first jazz song I remember playing was

“Satin Doll.” It was one of those simple Duke

Ellington pieces. But it gave me a full under-

standing of jazz progressions and that was a

song that had basic jazz progressions that took

us someplace. So, it was probably about seven

years old when I got hip to that tune and started

actually playing it on the piano. So, that was

quite a thrill for me to learn Duke Ellington that

age. Just a sidebar off of that … I used to sit

down and write out the Oscar Peterson solos.

As I mentioned, my dad taught me how to tran-

scribe solos. We’d be on the turntable. He’d

play it at half speed and we’d sit down and try

to write the solos out. That was a really great

ear training exercise for me at age nine or ten

years old.

JI: Did you have a favourite or favourite Oscar

Peterson, more than one favorite Oscar Peter-

son album.

BB: The one that really hit me at that age,

which was probably new at the time, was West

Side Story. Oscar took some great arrangements

off of that play and my God, yes. That was one

of those records that really stuck with me for a

long time.

JI: My favorite Oscar Peterson recordings are

The Trio and the Sounds of the Trio recorded in

1961 live at the London House in Chicago. It’s

still one of my favourites.

BB: Did that have Ray Brown on there and Ed

Thigpen?

JI: Yes.

BB: I’ll check that out. Yes, I was hip to Ray

Brown and Ed Thigpen in the late sixties when

I was eight, nine years old, man. That music

just absolutely blew me away. And the time

that those guys have between the three of them

was impeccable, absolutely impeccable. And

Thigpen’s timing in all those records is just

amazing. You can put this stuff up to a click

track and it would almost sync up. The guy has

such an amazing inner rhythm sensibility about

him.

JI: Yes. It’s great. They do “I’ve Never Been

in Love Before,” but I think that’s from Guys

and Dolls. They do “On Green Dolphin Street,”

“Chicago,” … medium tempo and then after a

break on the drums, it goes into double time,

blowing. Fabulous playing.

BB: Wow! That’s amazing. So now to answer

your question about high school, my dad got

sick when I was eleven years old. Unfortunate-

ly, I was not able to attend any high school

things, like activities, because I had to come

home early and take care of him. So, I never

got a chance to do any high school band stuff

like that. Not to say that they were anything

that I would want to be a part of anyway - be-

cause they were into like ELO and the rock

thing – Kiss … There was no jazz band at my

high school, unfortunately. So, I didn’t miss

anything as far as that goes.

JI: Were you also into Motown, Beatles, Beach

Boys and music like that?

BB: Absolutely. Growing up in New York

there was a station called WABC. DJ’s like

Cousin Brucie [Bruce Morrow]. They played

an amazing plethora of music from the Beatles

to Earth, Wind and Fire and everything in be-

tween; of course, all the Motown stuff. My

sister who is seven years older than me, turned

me onto all the Motown stuff. She had all the

Marvin Gaye’s and Aretha Franklin’s and all

the Detroit music. But the record that really

caught my ear on that side was there was a se-

ries of albums by Stevie Wonder that absolute-

ly blew me away because he couldn’t see, and

because he played every instrument under the

sun. He was one of the first, if not the first artist

to actually overdub his parts on a record. And

Robert Margolis, who was the producer along

with Malcolm Cecil, they really captured that

sound that Stevie is known famous for even

through today. There was four key albums that

I had during that time that really took me by

surprise as far as the non-jazz elements go. But

it taught me a lot about arranging and of course

- I was probably ten or eleven. The first album

that came out was Music of My Mind, which

had the “Superwoman” on it. Stevie’s playing

the moog bass and playing drums and overdub-

bing all the moving parts. It was absolutely

mind blowing. Then it was Talking Book and

Inner Visions. Those are the records he didn’t

produce, but he was down there in Electric La-

dy studios in New York tracking all that stuff

and overdubbing himself. I think the only rec-

ord out at that time that also had overdubs on it

was Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On? So that

record and those four records on the pop side

were the ones that really honed me into more of

a pocket kind of player. Those records were

very influential as a keyboard player at that

age.

JI: Did you buy the sheet music for some of

those songs or did you just do it by ear?

BB: Well, my father had a lot of that music on

paper and we used to go through it. So, we used

to go through, “You Are The Sunshine In My

Life” and all those slick augmented chords or

“Too High” which had those amazing chords

on top of that bass line. So yes, we went

through a lot of that stuff and it was on paper. It

was a great experience as an eleven or twelve-

year-old. It was amazing.

JI: Did your sister play music too?

BB: She wasn’t into it as heavily as I was, but

she - my oldest sister - played accordion for a

little while. I think she stopped doing that after



Bob Baldwin



high school. Then my youngest sister played

violin for a while, but neither one of them stuck

with it. While we’re talking about my early

years … My father played with bassists Art

Davis and Keter Betts. Art lived in Cortland

Manor in New York, which is right outside of

Peekskill, New York and upper Westchester.

That’s just the Upper West Side of Westchester

County. So he would come over to the house

and they would practice. They used to do gigs

around the County – bass and piano duos. I

used to sit on dad’s piano while he was doing

the gig and just soaking it all in as a nine or ten

year old, which is really amazing. One time I

went over Art Davis’s house and Max Roach

was there.

JI: Art Davis played on a number of Coltrane

albums. I saw Keter Betts playing with Les

McCann one summer at a really great theatre-in

-the-round venue, the Lambertville [New Jer-

sey] Music Circus. It was across the Delaware

River near country-ish New Hope, Pennsylva-

nia, which was really fun during the summer.

They brought in a range of jazz, pop, rock, folk

and other acts throughout the summer. My

mom took me there a few times during the

summers before the place folded. Les was per-

forming music from his album, Swiss Move-

ment, with Eddie Harris.

BB: That was a groove, man. Those guys really

grooved on that record. “Compared to What”

was great. My dad played with Keter Betts for a

while, around town and, of course, Keter was

married to Ella [Fitzgerald] for a while. I don’t

think my dad ever met Ella, but definitely hung

out with Keter for quite some time. I believe

she lived up in Westchester County for a while

when they were married. So, I was surrounded

with some really great talented musicians and,

of course, Greenburg New York had its own

little vibe going. Hugh Masekela had defected

from South Africa in the mid-sixties and lived

in Greenburg. It was right around the time he

was doing “Grazing In The Grass” when Herb

Alpert signed him to A&M records. Frank Fos-

ter lived up there too. So there was a lot of

great music.

JI: Were your parents encouraging you to pur-

sue a career in music?

BB: Absolutely. My dad was giving me the

musical inspiration and mom was just the big-

gest cheerleader you could ever ask for in a

family setting. In fact, they were deciding

whether or not to give me piano lessons or go

buy this really nice Persian rug for the living

room. My mom actually opted for the piano

lessons. So, that was one of those great stories

as a young guy. As I got older, she would call

me her walking rug. So, it was like one of those

great things you just don’t forget when you’re

grown up that your parents really went to bat

for you when they get you the things that you

wanted to go for. And they were definitely sup-

portive as far as the music goes.

JI: Were there performance venues or record-

ing studios in the Westchester area that played

a role in your development?

BB: One thing that was really, really special

was this little studio up in White Plains, New

York called Minot Sound. It was not too far

from the train station, walking distance. Guys

would come up from the city and it became this

really major hip kind of hang. In fact, it was

there that I met Luther Vandross before he put

out his first record. He was a big jingle singer

and he did all his jingles up in White Plains,

New York. And of course, the one that was

famous at that time, I believe was a KFC com-

mercial. Marcus Miller was hanging out there.

This is pre 1981-1982. Marcus Miller, David

Sanborn, Lenny White, of course Atlantic Star

recorded there, Bob James recorded a lot of his

records there when he was living in Westches-

ter County. I got a chance to meet all those

guys just when they were coming up. Marcus

had recorded Never Too Much, but he was also

working with Sanborn and producing Grover

Washington. I think it was on the Winelight

album. He was all over that record. Marcus was

still doing Saturday Night Live, and was just

getting ready to work with Miles. I gave Mar-

cus his first interview at WLIB. I helped set

that interview up for him. This is the year when

he was just getting ready to take off. That was

his first radio interview with WLIB. I know

Marcus for a long time. What a great musician

and just all the accolades he’s gotten, he de-

serves. But now getting back to this Minot stu-

dio. I’m meeting Bob James and I’ve got a

friend of mine that I met at the Crazy Horse

who brought me up to Minot which is how I got

turned on to those cats right around 1982-1983.

The Tom Browne opening at the Bottom Line

was 1986. So, when I’m meeting Bob James in

the early eighties, 1982-1983, he’s using this

old sequence program called Texture, which

they don’t make anymore. It was basically a

program where you can just write all your mu-

sic into the computer and just keep a good rec-

ord of everything that’s going on. You can spit

charts out and all that kind of good stuff. So, I

ended up using the same program that Bob

James was using at the time. That’s how I got

into dealing with what they call midi sequenc-

ing, which has been the backbone of electronic

music today. That’s how I got into creating

music and eventually that’s morphed into doing

live stuff and using stuff that I put in the com-

puter. But it all started back in 1982-1983 with

this program I got from Bob James. So that was

the heavy PC program. And basically, you just

write the music into there and, of course, they

had the sequencing and you just hook it up with

the keyboards and the drum machines and this,

that and the other. So that was the basis of how

I started putting music together. And the first

record I did on Malaco was a record that had

this whole sequencing piece and that was in-

spired from the whole Stevie Wonder thing,

doing all this stuff live. It was kind of an inspi-

ration from what he was doing, except it was all

in the computer.

JI: How long did the Minot scene continue to

happen?

BB: That died in 1992. Honestly, I was the last

guy to actually record there. I did an album

called Reflections of Love and that album came

out in 1992, but it was done in the middle of

1991. Shortly after that Minot shut down. But

that was the second record I did on Atlantic,

Reflections of Love. They had this amazing nine

-foot grand piano which was, at that time, close

to 80 or 90 years old. The bass response and the

treble, just the entire way that piano was built

was just absolutely amazing. I had a chance to

record two or three cuts on that piano, man. It

was, just, whoo. I get chills just thinking about

how great that piano sounded back then.

JI: Besides the fusion or the gigs that were

more contemporary jazz gigs, were you also

doing some acoustic things as well?

BB: I never got a chance to do anything on

record as far as straight ahead or acoustic bass.

That is something in my later years that’s on

my bucket list. I’ve got about three or four pro-

jects in my mind right now that I’m ready to

actually unleash and unload, that will be a kind

of an appreciation of the music that my dad

taught me. So that is one of those things that’s

going to evolve over the next three to five

years. So definitely be on the lookout for that.

JI: Maybe plan to do those projects while bass-

ists like Ron Carter and Rufus Reid are still

active.

BB: Oh yes, absolutely. Absolutely. There

aren’t a whole lot of them left. There’s so many

great straight ahead records out of here. I just

want to make sure that I represent the genre

properly - because there’s so much great music

out here and it’s going to be hard to try to do

something better than what Herbie and Miles

and all those guys did back in the ‘60s. Of

course, I love the piano work with Michel

Camilo. I love what Eliane Elias has done. So, I

want to put that same kind of respect on that

mainstream type of sound.

JI: What was it like for you in the 1990s as you

began to lead your own band?



Bob Baldwin

13 To Advertise CALL: 215-887-8880 November-December 2019 Jazz Inside Magazine www.JazzInsideMagazine.com

Friday, November 1 Stefon Harris & Blackout; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy

Jackie Jones 2 at Due Mari, 6:30 PM. 78 Albany, New Brunswick NJ.

Robert Glasper Experiment at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.

Jenny Scheinman/ Alison Miller 4 at Birdland, 8:30 and 11:00 PM. 315 W. 44th.

John Zorn's New Masada 4 at Village Vanguard, 8:30 and 10:30 PM. 178 7th Ave. S.

Denise Reis at Birdland Theater, 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Saturday, November 2 Stefon Harris & Blackout; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy

Nicole Zuraitis at Birdland Theater, 7:00 and 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Swing Dance Long Island at Jazz Loft, 7:30 PM. 275 Chris-tian, Stony Brook NY.


Jenny Scheinman/ Alison Miller 4 at Birdland, 8:30 and 11:00 PM. 315 W. 44th.


Sunday, November 3 Stefon Harris & Blackout; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy

Alan Ferber & NYU Nonet at Blue Note, 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.



Monday, November 4 Lew Tabackin: Zoot, Coleman & Tabackin; Dizzy’s Club,

Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Vanguard Jazz Orchestra; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Dizzy Gillespie Afro-Latin Experience at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.

Tuesday, November 5 Paul Nedzela Quartet; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Cen-

ter, 60th & Bdwy

Fred Hersch Trio - Fred Hersch, Piano; Drew Gress, Bass; Joey Baron, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Ranky Tanky at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.

Isaac Delgado Album Release Party at Birdland, 8:30 and 11:00 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Wednesday, November 6 Paul Nedzela Quartet; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Cen-

ter, 60th & Bdwy

Maurice "Mobetta" Brown Soul Resurgence With Special Guest Big Chief Donald Harrison; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Eunha So 4 feat. Todd Coolman at Birdland Theater, 7:00 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Ranky Tanky at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.


Birdography: Celebrating Clifford Brown w/David De-Jesus and Chris Smith at Birdland Theater, 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Thursday, November 7 Tom Harrell Infinity Band; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy

Maurice "Mobetta" Brown Soul Resurgence With Special Guest Big Chief Donald Harrison; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Arcoiris Sandoval Sonic Asylum Band; Adam Kolker Quartet; Malick Koly "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Frank Vignola at Birdland Theater, 7:00 and 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Viva Cuba! at Jazz Loft, 7:00 PM. 275 Christian, Stony Brook NY.

Talib Kweli w/Live Band at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.


John McLaughlin at Iridium, 8:30 PM. 1650 Broadway.

Friday November 8 Tom Harrell Infinity Band; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy

Kenny Werner Quartet; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Mark Sherman Quartet; Charles Ruggiero/Frank Basile Octet; Corey Wallace Dubtet "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.





Saturday, November 9 Tom Harrell Infinity Band; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy



Mark Sherman Quartet; Charles Ruggiero/Frank Basile Octet; (Continued on page 14)

CALENDAR OF EVENTSCALENDAR OF EVENTS

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Brooklyn Circle; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.





Sunday, November 10 Tom Harrell Infinity Band; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy


Fred Hersch Trio - Fred Hersch, Piano; Drew Gress, Bass;

Joey Baron, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Mike Mullins: Bird Gets The Worm; Aaron Seeber Quintet; David Gibson "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Anderson Brothers at Blue Note, 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.


Monday, November 11 Berklee Institute Of Jazz And Gender Justice Featuring Kris

Davis; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy


JD Allen Trio; Tivon Pennicott Trio; Ben Barnett "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Sheryl Bailey 3 at Zinc Bar, 7:30 and 9:00 PM. 82 W. 3rd St.

Roy Haynes at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.

Donald Edwards 5 at Birdland Theater, 8:30 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Tuesday, November 12 Jerome Jennings Cd Release: Solidarity; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz

At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Michael Leonhart Orchestra; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Dayna Stephens Quintet - Dayna Stephens, Saxophone; Jonathan Finlayson, Trumpet; Eden Ladin, Piano; Ben Street, Bass; Eric McPherson, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Steve Nelson Quartet; Frank Lacy Band; Jon Elbaz "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Django Reinhardt Festival 20th Anniversary Starring Dora-do Schmitt at Birdland, 8:30 and 11:00 PM. 315 W. 44th.


Wednesday, November 13 Jonathan Barber & Vision Ahead; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At

Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy


Dave Baron Quartet; Ryan Berg Quartet; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

David Ostwald's Louis Armstrong Eternity Band; Django Reinhardt Festival With Special Guest Ken Peplowski; Bird-land, 315 W. 44th St.

Young at Heart: Kind of Blue at Jazz Loft, 1:00 PM. 275 Christian, Stony Brook NY.

Joe Alterman 3 at Birdland Theater, 7:00 and 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.



Thursday, November 14 Willie Jones III: Our Man Higgins; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At


Vinicius Cantuaria Sings Jobim & Joao; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


James Austin Sextet; Noah Bless: Slide Appeal; Davis Whit-field "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Joe Alterman 3 at Birdland Theater, 7:00 and 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Brazilian Jazz: Getz, Gilberto and the Bossa Nova at Jazz Loft, 7:00 PM. 275 Christian, Stony Brook NY.

Kenny Garrett at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.


Friday, November 15 Willie Jones III: Our Man Higgins; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At


Chucho Valdés With Special Guest Chick Corea. Grammy Award–Winning Pianist Chucho Valdés Will Play A Broad Spectrum Of Latin And Jazz Styles. Pianist Chick Corea Will Join Valdés For The Second Half Of The Concert In The Pair’s First-Ever Collaboration. Jazz At Lincoln Center, Rose Theatre, 8pm




http://www.jazz.org/dizzys


http://www.bluenote.net


Diego Urcola Quartet; Jason Marshall Group; Wallace Roney Jr. "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Django Reinhardt Festival With Special Guest Roger Kella-way; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Roger Kellaway 3 at Birdland Theater, 7:00 and 9:45 PM. 315 W. 44th.

Kenny Garrett at Blue Note, 8:00 and 10:30 PM. 131 W. 3rd St.

Saturday, November 16 Willie Jones III: Our Man Higgins; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At


Chucho Valdés With Special Guest Chick Corea. Grammy Award–Winning Pianist Chucho Valdés Will Play A Broad Spectrum Of Latin And Jazz Styles. Pianist Chick Corea Will Join Valdés For The Second Half Of The Concert In The Pair’s First-Ever Collaboration. Jazz At Lincoln Center, Rose Theatre, 8pm



Hal Galper Trio; Jason Marshall Group; Brooklyn Circle; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Roger Kellaway Trio; Django Reinhardt Festival With Special Guest Roger Kellaway; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Sunday, November 17 Willie Jones III: Our Man Higgins; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At




Grant Stewart Quartet; Charles Owens Trio; David Gibson "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Django Reinhardt Festival With Special Guest Joel Frahm; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Monday, November 18 Alex Sipiagin Sextet With Special Guest Alina Engibaryan;

Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy


Ari Hoenig Trio; Joe Farnsworth Quartet; Sean Mason "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Sheila Jordan Birthday Celebration; Cyrille Aimee: A Sond-heim Adventure; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Tuesday, November 19 Alex Sipiagin Sextet With Special Guest Alina Engibaryan;

Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Stanley Clarke Band ; Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd St.

Bill Frisell; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Javon Jackson Quartet - Javon Jackson, Saxophone; Jeremy Manasia, Piano; David Williams, Bass; Mcclenty Hunter, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Bruce Williams Quintet; Abraham Burton Quartet; Malik Mclaurine "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Cyrille Aimee: A Sondheim Adventure; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Wednesday, November 20 The Rodbros; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th &

Bdwy




Andy Laverne Quintet; Harold Mabern Tribute; Neal Caine "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

David Ostwald's Louis Armstrong Eternity Band; Cyrille Aimee: A Sondheim Adventure; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Thursday, November 21 The Rodbros; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th &

Bdwy

The Abyssinian Mass By Wynton Marsalis, Featuring The Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra With Wynton Marsalis And 70-Piece Gospel Choir Chorale Le Chateau Directed By Damien L. Sneed. Presented In Collaboration With Lincoln Center’s White Light Festival. Rose Theatre, 8pm




Alexander Claffy Trio; Nick Finzer Quintet; Malick Koly "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Andy Ezrin Piano Trio; Daryl Sherman "Satchmo The Singer" With Scott Robinson And Boots Maleson; Cyrille Aimee: A Sondheim Adventure; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Friday, November 22 Paula West; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th &

Bdwy





Dmitry Baevsky Quartet; Corey Wallace Dubtet "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Birdland Big Band; Brandon Goldberg Trio With Jonathan Michel And Mark Whitfield, Jr.; Cyrille Aimee: A Sondheim Adventure; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Saturday, November 23 Paula West; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th &

Bdwy





Dmitry Baevsky Quartet; Mimi Jones And The Lab Session; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Jay Leonhart; Brandon Goldberg Trio With Jonathan Michel And Mark Whitfield Jr.; Cyrille Aimee: A Sondheim Adven-ture; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Sunday, November 24 Paula West; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th &

Bdwy




Ralph Lalama & "Bop-Juice"; Johnny O'neal Trio; Hillel Salem "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.



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Monday, November 25 Jimmy Cobb Trio; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center,

60th & Bdwy


Anthony Pinciotti Quartet; Brent Birckhead Quartet; Ben Barnett "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Natalie Douglas "Tributes"; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Tuesday, November 26 Wycliffe Gordon & Friends; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy

John Scofield & Dave Holland Duo; Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd St.

Maria Schneider Orchestra; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Jason Moran & The Bandwagon - Jason Moran, Piano; Tarus Mateen, Bass; Nasheet Waits, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Steve Nelson Quartet; Frank Lacy Band; Jon Elbaz "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Louis Armstrong Eternity Band; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Wednesday, November 27 Wycliffe Gordon & Friends; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy




Itamar Borochov Quartet; Santi Debriano & Flash Of The Spirit; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Veronica Swift With The Emmet Cohen Trio; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Thursday, November 28 Thanksgiving With Wycliffe Gordon; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At





David Ambrosio Quintet; Malick Koly "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Veronica Swift With The Emmet Cohen Trio; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Friday, November 29 Wycliffe Gordon & Friends; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy




Christopher McBride & The Whole Proof; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Birdland Big Band; Sandy Stewart With Bill Charlap And Peter Washington; Veronica Swift with The Emmet Cohen Trio; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Saturday, November 30 Wycliffe Gordon & Friends; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy




Christopher McBride & The Whole Proof; George Burton Quintet; Victor Lewis & Seamus Blake "After-Hours"; Small’s, 183 W. 10th St.

Emmet Cohen Trio; Sandy Stewart With Bill Charlap And Peter Washington; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Sunday, December 1 Wycliffe Gordon & Friends; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln

Center, 60th & Bdwy




Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra; John Dimartino; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Monday, December 2 Mingus Orchestra; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Anderson Brothers; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Manhattan School Of Music Jazz Orchestra: Tribute To Hugh Masekela; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Tuesday, December 3 Johnathan Blake & Pentad - Immanuel Wilkins, Alto Sax; Joel

Ross, Vibraphone; David Virelles, Piano: Tue-Thu; Kris Davis, Piano: Fri-Sun; Dezron Douglas, Bass; Johnathan Blake, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Joe Lovano Nonet; David Ostwald's Louis Armstrong Eternity Band; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

New York Youth Symphony: Swinging Through The Ages With Special Guest Matt Wilson; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Wednesday, December 4 Jonathan Kreisberg Quartet 'Capturing Spirits'; Jazz Stand-

ard, 116 E. 27th St.

Johnathan Blake & Pentad - Immanuel Wilkins, Alto Sax; Joel Ross, Vibraphone; David Virelles, Piano: Tue-Thu; Kris Davis, Piano: Fri-Sun; Dezron Douglas, Bass; Johnathan Blake, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Joe Lovano Nonet; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Lioness; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Thursday, December 5 Charles McPherson Quintet '80th Birthday Celebration'; Jazz

Standard, 116 E. 27th St.



Ulysses Owens, Jr's Generation Y; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Friday, December 6 Charles McPherson Quintet '80th Birthday Celebration'; Jazz




Ulysses Owens, Jr. Big Band; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Saturday, December 7 Charles McPherson Quintet '80th Birthday Celebration'; Jazz




Juilliard Jazz Ensembles: The Music Of John Coltrane; Diz-zy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Sunday, December 8 Charles McPherson Quintet '80th Birthday Celebration'; Jazz




Monday, December 9 Mingus Big Band; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Harry Allen Quartet; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Tuesday, December 10 Michael Leonhart Orchestra With Special Guest Keyon Har-

rold; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Christian McBride & Inside Straight - Steve Wilson, Saxo-phone; Warren Wolf, Vibraphone; Peter Martin, Piano; Chris-tian McBride, Bass; Carl Allen, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Stacey Kent; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Israeli Jazz Celebration: Yuval Cohen Sextet; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Wednesday, December 11 Harish Raghavan 'Calls For Action'; Jazz Standard, 116 E.

27th St.



Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra with special guest Catherine Russell; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Thursday, December 12 Bill O'connell & The Afro Caribbean Ensemble; Jazz Stand-

ard, 116 E. 27th St.


Charles Turner & Uptown Swing Holiday Swinging Special; Stacey Kent; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.


“...among human beings jealousy ranks distinctly as a

weakness; a trademark of small minds; a property of all small minds, yet a property

which even the smallest is ashamed of; and when accused of its possession will

lyingly deny it and resent the accusation as an insult.”

-Mark Twain

“Some people’s idea of free speech is that they are free

to say what they like, but if anyone says anything back that

is an outrage.”

- Winston Churchill


Steven Bernstein’s Sexmob; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Friday, December 13 Adonis Rose And The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra With

René Marie And John Boutté Adonis Rose And The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra Brings Their Sonic Power And Stylis-tic Versatility To The Appel Room. Appel Room, 7pm & 9:30pm

Steve Miller - Cannonball Adderley And The Blues. Guitarist And Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Inductee Steve Miller Leads A Spirited Celebration Of Saxophone Legend Cannonball Adderley Featuring The Patrick Bartley Sextet And Vocalist Brianna Thomas. Rose Theatre, 8pm

Louis Hayes: "Serenade For Horace"; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Birdland Big Band; Stacey Kent; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Mary Stallings; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Saturday, December 14 Adonis Rose And The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra With

René Marie And John Boutté Adonis Rose And The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra Brings Their Sonic Power And Stylis-tic Versatility To The Appel Room. Appel Room, 7pm & 9:30pm

Steve Miller - Cannonball Adderley And The Blues. Guitarist And Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Inductee Steve Miller Leads A Spirited Celebration Of Saxophone Legend Cannonball Adderley Featuring The Patrick Bartley Sextet And Vocalist Brianna Thomas. Rose Theatre, 8pm

Louis Hayes: "Serenade For Horace"; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.



Sunday, December 15 Jazz For Kids; Louis Hayes: "Serenade For Horace"; Jazz



Ken Peplowski Big Band; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.



Dave Pietro; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Ted Rosenthal Trio: Winter Wonderland; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Tuesday, December 17 Matt Wilson's Christmas Tree-O With Special Guest Camila

Meza; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Kenny Barron Quintet - Mike Rodriguez, Trumpet; Dayna Stephens, Tenor Sax; Kenny Barron, Piano; Kiyoshi Kitaga-wa, Bass; Johnathan Blake, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Monty Alexander; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Etienne Charles: Creole Christmas; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Wednesday, December 18 Matt Wilson's Christmas Tree-O With Special Guest Camila

Meza; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Kenny Barron Quintet - Mike Rodriguez, Trumpet; Dayna Stephens, Tenor Sax; Kenny Barron, Piano; Kiyoshi Kitaga-

wa, Bass; Johnathan Blake, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Duchess; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Thursday, December 19 Carmen Lundy; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.



Riley’s Red Hot Holidays; Dizzy’s Club, Jazz At Lincoln Center, 60th & Bdwy

Friday, December 20 Carmen Lundy; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.



Saturday, December 21 Carmen Lundy; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Monty Alexander; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St. Sunday, December 22

Carmen Lundy; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.





Jim Caruso's Cast Party; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Tuesday, December 24 Kenny Barron Trio - Kenny Barron, Piano; Buster Williams,

Bass; Jeff “Tain” Watts, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Freddy Cole Quartet; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Wednesday, December 25 Kenny Barron Trio - Kenny Barron, Piano; Buster Williams,

Bass; Jeff “Tain” Watts, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Freddy Cole Quartet; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Thursday, December 26 Raul Midón Trio; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.

Kenny Barron Trio - Kenny Barron, Piano; Buster Williams, Bass; Jeff “Tain” Watts, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Champian Fulton; Freddy Cole Quartet; Freddy Cole Quartet; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Friday, December 27 Raul Midón Trio; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Birdland Big Band; Freddy Cole Quartet; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Saturday, December 28 Raul Midón Trio; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Freddy Cole Quartet; Evan Sherman Big Band; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Sunday, December 29 Raul Midón Trio; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.



Monday December 30 Mingus Big Band; Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St.


Tadataka Unno Trio; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

Tuesday, December 31 New Years Eve With Regina Carter Quintet; Jazz Standard,

116 E. 27th St.

Chris Potter Circuits Trio - Chris Potter, Saxophone; James Francies, Keyboard; Eric Harland, Drums; Village Vanguard 178 7th Ave S.

Birdland Big Band With Vocalist Veroncia Swift; Marilyn Maye; Birdland, 315 W. 44th St.

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Matt WilsonMatt Wilson Jazz StandardJazz Standard

December 17December 17--18, 201918, 2019

© Eric Nemeyer© Eric Nemeyer


5 C Cultural Center, 68 Avenue C. 212-477-5993. www.5ccc.com

55 Bar, 55 Christopher St. 212-929-9883, 55bar.com

92nd St Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10128,

212.415.5500, 92ndsty.org

Aaron Davis Hall, City College of NY, Convent Ave., 212-650-

6900, aarondavishall.org

Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, Broadway & 65th St., 212-875-

5050, lincolncenter.org/default.asp

Allen Room, Lincoln Center, Time Warner Center, Broadway and

60th, 5th floor, 212-258-9800, lincolncenter.org

American Museum of Natural History, 81st St. & Central Park

W., 212-769-5100, amnh.org

Antibes Bistro, 112 Suffolk Street. 212-533-6088.

www.antibesbistro.com

Arthur’s Tavern, 57 Grove St., 212-675-6879 or 917-301-8759,

arthurstavernnyc.com

Arts Maplewood, P.O. Box 383, Maplewood, NJ 07040; 973-378-

2133, artsmaplewood.org

Avery Fischer Hall, Lincoln Center, Columbus Ave. & 65th St.,

212-875-5030, lincolncenter.org

BAM Café, 30 Lafayette Av, Brooklyn, 718-636-4100, bam.org

Bar Chord, 1008 Cortelyou Rd., Brooklyn, barchordnyc.com

Bar Lunatico, 486 Halsey St., Brooklyn. 718-513-0339.

222.barlunatico.com

Barbes, 376 9th St. (corner of 6th Ave.), Park Slope, Brooklyn,

718-965-9177, barbesbrooklyn.com

Barge Music, Fulton Ferry Landing, Brooklyn, 718-624-2083,

bargemusic.org

B.B. King’s Blues Bar, 237 W. 42nd St., 212-997-4144,

bbkingblues.com

Beacon Theatre, 74th St. & Broadway, 212-496-7070

Beco Bar, 45 Richardson, Brooklyn. 718-599-1645.

www.becobar.com

Bickford Theatre, on Columbia Turnpike @ Normandy Heights

Road, east of downtown Morristown. 973-744-2600

Birdland, 315 W. 44th, 212-581-3080

Blue Note, 131 W. 3rd, 212-475-8592, bluenotejazz.com

Bourbon St Bar and Grille, 346 W. 46th St, NY, 10036,

212-245-2030, [email protected]

Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery (at Bleecker), 212-614-0505,

bowerypoetry.com

BRIC House, 647 Fulton St. Brooklyn, NY 11217, 718-683-5600,

http://bricartsmedia.org

Brooklyn Public Library, Grand Army Plaza, 2nd Fl, Brooklyn,

NY, 718-230-2100, brooklynpubliclibrary.org

Café Carlyle, 35 E. 76th St., 212-570-7189, thecarlyle.com

Café Loup, 105 W. 13th St. (West Village) , between Sixth and

Seventh Aves., 212-255-4746

Café St. Bart’s, 109 E. 50th St, 212-888-2664, cafestbarts.com

Cafe Noctambulo, 178 2nd Ave. 212-995-0900. cafenoctam-

bulo.com

Caffe Vivaldi, 32 Jones St, NYC; caffevivaldi.com

Candlelight Lounge, 24 Passaic St, Trenton. 609-695-9612.

Carnegie Hall, 7th Av & 57th, 212-247-7800, carnegiehall.org

Cassandra’s Jazz, 2256 7th Avenue. 917-435-2250. cassan-

drasjazz.com

Chico’s House Of Jazz, In Shoppes at the Arcade, 631 Lake Ave.,

Asbury Park, 732-774-5299

City Winery, 155 Varick St. Bet. Vandam & Spring St., 212-608-

0555. citywinery.com

Cleopatra’s Needle, 2485 Broadway (betw 92nd & 93rd), 212-769-

6969, cleopatrasneedleny.com

Club Bonafide, 212 W. 52nd, 646-918-6189. clubbonafide.com

C’mon Everybody, 325 Franklin Avenue, Brooklyn.

www.cmoneverybody.com

Copeland’s, 547 W. 145th St. (at Bdwy), 212-234-2356

Cornelia St Café, 29 Cornelia, 212-989-9319

Count Basie Theatre, 99 Monmouth St., Red Bank, New Jersey

07701, 732-842-9000, countbasietheatre.org

Crossroads at Garwood, 78 North Ave., Garwood, NJ 07027,

908-232-5666

Cutting Room, 19 W. 24th St, 212-691-1900

Dizzy’s Club, Broadway at 60th St., 5th Floor, 212-258-9595,

jalc.com

DROM, 85 Avenue A, New York, 212-777-1157, dromnyc.com

The Ear Inn, 326 Spring St., NY, 212-226-9060, earinn.com

East Village Social, 126 St. Marks Place. 646-755-8662.

www.evsnyc.com

Edward Hopper House, 82 N. Broadway, Nyack NY. 854-358-

0774.

El Museo Del Barrio, 1230 Fifth Ave (at 104th St.), Tel: 212-831-

7272, Fax: 212-831-7927, elmuseo.org

Esperanto, 145 Avenue C. 212-505-6559. www.esperantony.com

The Falcon, 1348 Rt. 9W, Marlboro, NY., 845) 236-7970,

Fat Cat, 75 Christopher St., 212-675-7369, fatcatjazz.com

Fine and Rare, 9 East 37th Street. www.fineandrare.nyc

Five Spot, 459 Myrtle Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 718-852-0202, fivespot-

soulfood.com

Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing, NY, 718-

463-7700 x222, flushingtownhall.org

For My Sweet, 1103 Fulton St., Brooklyn, NY 718-857-1427

Galapagos, 70 N. 6th St., Brooklyn, NY, 718-782-5188, galapago-

sartspace.com

Garage Restaurant and Café, 99 Seventh Ave. (betw 4th and

Bleecker), 212-645-0600, garagerest.com

Garden Café, 4961 Broadway, by 207th St., New York, 10034,

212-544-9480

Gin Fizz, 308 Lenox Ave, 2nd floor. (212) 289-2220.

www.ginfizzharlem.com

Ginny’s Supper Club, 310 Malcolm X Boulevard Manhattan, NY

10027, 212-792-9001, http://redroosterharlem.com/ginnys/

Glen Rock Inn, 222 Rock Road, Glen Rock, NJ, (201) 445-2362,

glenrockinn.com

GoodRoom, 98 Meserole, Bklyn, 718-349-2373, goodroombk.com.

Green Growler, 368 S, Riverside Ave., Croton-on-Hudson NY.

914-862-0961. www.thegreengrowler.com

Greenwich Village Bistro, 13 Carmine St., 212-206-9777, green-

wichvillagebistro.com

Harlem on 5th, 2150 5th Avenue. 212-234-5600.

www.harlemonfifth.com

Harlem Tea Room, 1793A Madison Ave., 212-348-3471, har-

lemtearoom.com

Hat City Kitchen, 459 Valley St, Orange. 862-252-9147.

hatcitykitchen.com

Havana Central West End, 2911 Broadway/114th St), NYC,

212-662-8830, havanacentral.com

Highline Ballroom, 431 West 16th St (between 9th & 10th Ave.

highlineballroom.com, 212-414-4314.

Hopewell Valley Bistro, 15 East Broad St, Hopewell, NJ 08525,

609-466-9889, hopewellvalleybistro.com

Hudson Room, 27 S. Division St., Peekskill NY. 914-788-FOOD.

hudsonroom.com

Hyatt New Brunswick, 2 Albany St., New Brunswick, NJ

IBeam Music Studio, 168 7th St., Brooklyn, ibeambrooklyn.com

INC American Bar & Kitchen, 302 George St., New Brunswick

NJ. (732) 640-0553. www.increstaurant.com

Iridium, 1650 Broadway, 212-582-2121, iridiumjazzclub.com

Jazz 966, 966 Fulton St., Brooklyn, NY, 718-638-6910

Jazz at Lincoln Center, 33 W. 60th St., 212-258-9800, jalc.org

Frederick P. Rose Hall, Broadway at 60th St., 5th Floor

Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Reservations: 212-258-9595

Rose Theater, Tickets: 212-721-6500, The Allen Room, Tickets:

212-721-6500

Jazz Gallery, 1160 Bdwy, (212) 242-1063, jazzgallery.org

The Jazz Spot, 375 Kosciuszko St. (enter at 179 Marcus Garvey

Blvd.), Brooklyn, NY, 718-453-7825, thejazz.8m.com

Jazz Standard, 116 E. 27th St., 212-576-2232, jazzstandard.net

Joe’s Pub at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette St & Astor Pl.,

212-539-8778, joespub.com

John Birks Gillespie Auditorium (see Baha’i Center)

Jules Bistro, 65 St. Marks Pl, 212-477-5560, julesbistro.com

Kasser Theater, 1 Normal Av, Montclair State College, Montclair,

973-655-4000, montclair.edu

Key Club, 58 Park Pl, Newark, NJ, 973-799-0306, keyclubnj.com

Kitano Hotel, 66 Park Ave., 212-885-7119. kitano.com

Knickerbocker Bar & Grill, 33 University Pl., 212-228-8490,

knickerbockerbarandgrill.com

Knitting Factory, 74 Leonard St, 212-219-3132, knittingfacto-

ry.com

Langham Place — Measure, Fifth Avenue, 400 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10018, 212-613-8738, langhamplacehotels.com

La Lanterna (Bar Next Door at La Lanterna), 129 MacDougal St,

New York, 212-529-5945, lalanternarcaffe.com

Le Cirque Cafe, 151 E. 58th St., lecirque.com

Le Fanfare, 1103 Manhattan Ave., Brooklyn. 347-987-4244.

www.lefanfare.com

Le Madeleine, 403 W. 43rd St. (betw 9th & 10th Ave.), New York,

New York, 212-246-2993, lemadeleine.com

Les Gallery Clemente Soto Velez, 107 Suffolk St, 212-260-4080

Lexington Hotel, 511 Lexington Ave. (212) 755-4400.

www.lexinghotelnyc.com

Live @ The Falcon, 1348 Route 9W, Marlboro, NY 12542,

Living Room, 154 Ludlow St. 212-533-7235, livingroomny.com

The Local 269, 269 E. Houston St. (corner of Suffolk St.), NYC

Makor, 35 W. 67th St., 212-601-1000, makor.org

Lounge Zen, 254 DeGraw Ave, Teaneck, NJ, (201) 692-8585,

lounge-zen.com

Maureen’s Jazz Cellar, 2 N. Broadway, Nyack NY. 845-535-

3143. maureensjazzcellar.com

Maxwell’s, 1039 Washington St, Hoboken, NJ, 201-653-1703

McCarter Theater, 91 University Pl., Princeton, 609-258-2787,

mccarter.org

Merkin Concert Hall, Kaufman Center, 129 W. 67th St., 212-501

-3330, ekcc.org/merkin.htm

Metropolitan Room, 34 West 22nd St NY, NY 10012, 212-206-

0440

Mezzrow, 163 West 10th Street, Basement, New York, NY

10014. 646-476-4346. www.mezzrow.com

Minton’s, 206 W 118th St., 212-243-2222, mintonsharlem.com

Mirelle’s, 170 Post Ave., Westbury, NY, 516-338-4933

MIST Harlem, 46 W. 116th St., myimagestudios.com

Mixed Notes Café, 333 Elmont Rd., Elmont, NY (Queens area),

516-328-2233, mixednotescafe.com

Montauk Club, 25 8th Ave., Brooklyn, 718-638-0800,

montaukclub.com

Moscow 57, 168½ Delancey. 212-260-5775. moscow57.com

Muchmore’s, 2 Havemeyer St., Brooklyn. 718-576-3222.

www.muchmoresnyc.com

Mundo, 37-06 36th St., Queens. mundony.com

Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. (between

103rd & 104th St.), 212-534-1672, mcny.org

Musicians’ Local 802, 332 W. 48th, 718-468-7376

National Sawdust, 80 N. 6th St., Brooklyn. 646-779-8455.

www.nationalsawdust.org

Newark Museum, 49 Washington St, Newark, New Jersey 07102-

3176, 973-596-6550, newarkmuseum.org

New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center St., Newark, NJ,

07102, 973-642-8989, njpac.org

New Leaf Restaurant, 1 Margaret Corbin Dr., Ft. Tryon Park. 212-

568-5323. newleafrestaurant.com

New School Performance Space, 55 W. 13th St., 5th Floor (betw

5th & 6th Ave.), 212-229-5896, newschool.edu.

New School University-Tishman Auditorium, 66 W. 12th St., 1st

Floor, Room 106, 212-229-5488, newschool.edu

New York City Baha’i Center, 53 E. 11th St. (betw Broadway &

University), 212-222-5159, bahainyc.org

North Square Lounge, 103 Waverly Pl. (at MacDougal St.),

212-254-1200, northsquarejazz.com

Oak Room at The Algonquin Hotel, 59 W. 44th St. (betw 5th and

6th Ave.), 212-840-6800, thealgonquin.net

Oceana Restaurant, 120 West 49th St, New York, NY 10020

212-759-5941, oceanarestaurant.com

Orchid, 765 Sixth Ave. (betw 25th & 26th St.), 212-206-9928

The Owl, 497 Rogers Ave, Bklyn. 718-774-0042. www.theowl.nyc

Palazzo Restaurant, 11 South Fullerton Avenue, Montclair. 973-

746-6778. palazzonj.com

Priory Jazz Club: 223 W Market, Newark, 07103, 973-639-7885

Proper Café, 217-01 Linden Blvd., Queens, 718-341-2233

Clubs, Venues & Jazz ResourcesClubs, Venues & Jazz Resources

— Anton Chekhov

“A system of morality

which is based on relative

emotional values is a mere

illusion, a thoroughly vulgar

conception which has nothing

sound in it and nothing true.”

— Socrates


Prospect Park Bandshell, 9th St. & Prospect Park W., Brooklyn,

NY, 718-768-0855

Prospect Wine Bar & Bistro, 16 Prospect St. Westfield, NJ,

908-232-7320, 16prospect.com, cjayrecords.com

Red Eye Grill, 890 7th Av (56th), 212-541-9000, redeyegrill.com

Ridgefield Playhouse, 80 East Ridge, parallel to Main St.,

Ridgefield, CT; ridgefieldplayhouse.org, 203-438-5795

Rockwood Music Hall, 196 Allen St, 212-477-4155

Rose Center (American Museum of Natural History), 81st St.

(Central Park W. & Columbus), 212-769-5100, amnh.org/rose

Rose Hall, 33 W. 60th St., 212-258-9800, jalc.org

Rosendale Café, 434 Main St., PO Box 436, Rosendale, NY 12472,

845-658-9048, rosendalecafe.com

Rubin Museum of Art - “Harlem in the Himalayas”, 150 W. 17th

St. 212-620-5000. rmanyc.org

Rustik, 471 DeKalb Ave, Brooklyn, NY, 347-406-9700,

rustikrestaurant.com

St. Mark’s Church, 131 10th St. (at 2nd Ave.), 212-674-6377

St. Nick’s Pub, 773 St. Nicholas Av (at 149th), 212-283-9728

St. Peter’s Church, 619 Lexington (at 54th), 212-935-2200,

saintpeters.org

Sasa’s Lounge, 924 Columbus Ave, Between 105th & 106th St.

NY, NY 10025, 212-865-5159, sasasloungenyc.yolasite.com

Savoy Grill, 60 Park Place, Newark, NJ 07102, 973-286-1700

Schomburg Center, 515 Malcolm X Blvd., 212-491-2200,

nypl.org/research/sc/sc.html

Shanghai Jazz, 24 Main St., Madison, NJ, 973-822-2899, shang-

haijazz.com

ShapeShifter Lab, 18 Whitwell Pl, Brooklyn, NY 11215

shapeshifterlab.com

Showman’s, 375 W. 125th St., 212-864-8941

Sidewalk Café, 94 Ave. A, 212-473-7373

Sista’s Place, 456 Nostrand, Bklyn, 718-398-1766, sistasplace.org

Skippers Plane St Pub, 304 University Ave. Newark NJ, 973-733-

9300, skippersplaneStpub.com

Smalls Jazz Club, 183 W. 10th St. (at 7th Ave.), 212-929-7565,

SmallsJazzClub.com

Smith’s Bar, 701 8th Ave, New York, 212-246-3268

Sofia’s Restaurant - Club Cache’ [downstairs], Edison Hotel,

221 W. 46th St. (between Broadway & 8th Ave), 212-719-5799

South Gate Restaurant & Bar, 154 Central Park South, 212-484-

5120, 154southgate.com

South Orange Performing Arts Center, One SOPAC

Way, South Orange, NJ 07079, sopacnow.org, 973-313-2787

Spectrum, 2nd floor, 121 Ludlow St.

Spoken Words Café, 266 4th Av, Brooklyn, 718-596-3923

Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse, 165 W. 65th St., 10th Floor,

212-721-6500, lincolncenter.org

The Stone, Ave. C & 2nd St., thestonenyc.com

Strand Bistro, 33 W. 37th St. 212-584-4000

SubCulture, 45 Bleecker St., subculturenewyork.com

Sugar Bar, 254 W. 72nd St, 212-579-0222, sugarbarnyc.com

Swing 46, 349 W. 46th St.(betw 8th & 9th Ave.),

212-262-9554, swing46.com

Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway, Tel: 212-864-1414, Fax: 212-

932-3228, symphonyspace.org

Tea Lounge, 837 Union St. (betw 6th & 7th Ave), Park Slope,

Broooklyn, 718-789-2762, tealoungeNY.com

Terra Blues, 149 Bleecker St. (betw Thompson & LaGuardia),

212-777-7776, terrablues.com

Threes Brewing, 333 Douglass St., Brooklyn. 718-522-2110.

www.threesbrewing.com

Tito Puente’s Restaurant and Cabaret, 64 City Island Avenue,

City Island, Bronx, 718-885-3200, titopuentesrestaurant.com

Tomi Jazz, 239 E. 53rd St., 646-497-1254, tomijazz.com

Tonic, 107 Norfolk St. (betw Delancey & Rivington), Tel: 212-358-

7501, Fax: 212-358-1237, tonicnyc.com

Town Hall, 123 W. 43rd St., 212-997-1003

Triad Theater, 158 W. 72nd St. (betw Broadway & Columbus

Ave.), 212-362-2590, triadnyc.com

Tribeca Performing Arts Center, 199 Chambers St, 10007,

[email protected], tribecapac.org

Trumpets, 6 Depot Square, Montclair, NJ, 973-744-2600,

trumpetsjazz.com

Turning Point Cafe, 468 Piermont Ave. Piermont, N.Y. 10968

(845) 359-1089, http://turningpointcafe.com

Urbo, 11 Times Square. 212-542-8950. urbonyc.com

Village Vanguard, 178 7th Ave S., 212-255-4037

Vision Festival, 212-696-6681, [email protected],

Watchung Arts Center, 18 Stirling Rd, Watchung, NJ 07069,

908-753-0190, watchungarts.org

Watercolor Café, 2094 Boston Post Road, Larchmont, NY 10538,

914-834-2213, watercolorcafe.net

Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, 57th & 7th Ave, 212-247-7800

Williamsburg Music Center, 367 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY

11211, (718) 384-1654 wmcjazz.org

Zankel Hall, 881 7th Ave, New York, 212-247-7800

Zinc Bar, 82 West 3rd St.

RECORD STORES

Academy Records, 12 W. 18th St., New York, NY 10011, 212-242

-3000, http://academy-records.com

Downtown Music Gallery, 13 Monroe St, New York, NY 10002,

(212) 473-0043, downtownmusicgallery.com

Jazz Record Center, 236 W. 26th St., Room 804,

212-675-4480, jazzrecordcenter.com

MUSIC STORES

Roberto’s Woodwind & Brass, 149 West 46th St. NY, NY 10036,

646-366-0240, robertoswoodwind.com

Sam Ash, 333 W 34th St, New York, NY 10001

Phone: (212) 719-2299 samash.com

Sadowsky Guitars Ltd, 2107 41st Avenue 4th Floor, Long Island

City, NY 11101, 718-433-1990. sadowsky.com

Steve Maxwell Vintage Drums, 723 7th Ave, 3rd Floor, New

York, NY 10019, 212-730-8138, maxwelldrums.com

SCHOOLS, COLLEGES, CONSERVATORIES

92nd St Y, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10128

212.415.5500; 92ndsty.org

Brooklyn-Queens Conservatory of Music, 42-76 Main St.,

Flushing, NY, Tel: 718-461-8910, Fax: 718-886-2450

Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, 58 Seventh Ave., Brooklyn,

NY, 718-622-3300, brooklynconservatory.com

City College of NY-Jazz Program, 212-650-5411,

Drummers Collective, 541 6th Ave, New York, NY 10011,

212-741-0091, thecoll.com

Five Towns College, 305 N. Service, 516-424-7000, x Hills, NY

Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow St., Tel: 212-242-

4770, Fax: 212-366-9621, greenwichhouse.org

Juilliard School of Music, 60 Lincoln Ctr, 212-799-5000

LaGuardia Community College/CUNI, 31-10 Thomson Ave.,

Long Island City, 718-482-5151

Lincoln Center — Jazz At Lincoln Center, 140 W. 65th St.,

10023, 212-258-9816, 212-258-9900

Long Island University — Brooklyn Campus, Dept. of Music,

University Plaza, Brooklyn, 718-488-1051, 718-488-1372

Manhattan School of Music, 120 Claremont Ave., 10027,

212-749-2805, 2802, 212-749-3025

NJ City Univ, 2039 Kennedy Blvd., Jersey City, 888-441-6528

New School, 55 W. 13th St., 212-229-5896, 212-229-8936

NY University, 35 West 4th St. Rm #777, 212-998-5446

NY Jazz Academy, 718-426-0633 NYJazzAcademy.com

Princeton University-Dept. of Music, Woolworth Center Musical

Studies, Princeton, NJ, 609-258-4241, 609-258-6793

Queens College — Copland School of Music, City University of

NY, Flushing, 718-997-3800

Rutgers Univ. at New Brunswick, Jazz Studies, Douglass Cam-

pus, PO Box 270, New Brunswick, NJ, 908-932-9302

Rutgers University Institute of Jazz Studies, 185 University

Avenue, Newark NJ 07102, 973-353-5595

newarkrutgers.edu/IJS/index1.html

SUNY Purchase, 735 Anderson Hill, Purchase, 914-251-6300

Swing University (see Jazz At Lincoln Center, under Venues)

William Paterson University Jazz Studies Program, 300 Pompton

Rd, Wayne, NJ, 973-720-2320

RADIO

WBGO 88.3 FM, 54 Park Pl, Newark, NJ 07102, Tel: 973-624-

8880, Fax: 973-824-8888, wbgo.org

WCWP, LIU/C.W. Post Campus

WFDU, http://alpha.fdu.edu/wfdu/wfdufm/index2.html

WKCR 89.9, Columbia University, 2920 Broadway

Mailcode 2612, NY 10027, 212-854-9920, columbia.edu/cu/wkcr

ADDITIONAL JAZZ RESOURCES

Big Apple Jazz, bigapplejazz.com, 718-606-8442, gor-

[email protected]

Louis Armstrong House, 34-56 107th St, Corona, NY 11368,

718-997-3670, satchmo.net

Institute of Jazz Studies, John Cotton Dana Library, Rutgers-

Univ, 185 University Av, Newark, NJ, 07102, 973-353-5595

Jazzmobile, Inc., jazzmobile.org

Jazz Museum in Harlem, 104 E. 126th St., 212-348-8300,

jazzmuseuminharlem.org

Jazz Foundation of America, 322 W. 48th St. 10036,

212-245-3999, jazzfoundation.org

New Jersey Jazz Society, 1-800-303-NJJS, njjs.org

New York Blues & Jazz Society, NYBluesandJazz.org

Rubin Museum, 150 W. 17th St, New York, NY,

212-620-5000 ex 344, rmanyc.org.

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BB: Well, I was fortunate enough to have a

major deal with Atlantic Jazz for two years. I

did a record in 1990 and ‘92 an album called

Rejoice and Reflections of Love. Shortly after

that, and I was on a label with the Gerald Al-

bright, Paul Jackson Jr., Bobby Lyle and an-

other guy, Hiram Bullock, who passed away

years later. But we were all on the same label

and Laila Hathaway was just coming up on

Elektra, so she was in and out of Atlantic do-

ing some projects. I did two records there.

I’ve always been curious about the business

side of the music and how the royalties

worked and I’m so glad I went to school for

business so I could understand accounting and

financing - because as you know, the music

business is a whole lot of accounting. If

you’re not familiar with how to read your

statements, then you get left in the dark a lot

or you’ll get ripped off, or you just get caught

out there not handling your business and not

owning any of it. You could be in this busi-

ness for ten, fifteen, twenty years and not ac-

tually own anything that you’re working on.

So, I began to get conscious about ownership

and accounting. It was at that point in 1993, I

was getting the itch to do something inde-

pendent of going down with the majors. And I

knew that doing that was probably gonna take

a hit in sales and take a hit in profile. But in

the long run, it was better that I own the mate-

rial than to just be a rented artist. So that was

my quest from that point on. In 1996 I did my

first independent project called Welcome to

the Games, when I moved to Atlanta. It was

right around the same time as the Olympics.

So, I did like a little Olympic tribute recorded

in Atlanta and just kind of give shout outs to

different things about Atlanta, like the

“Downtown Underground” and “Dreaming

The Dream,” which was dedicated to Martin

Luther King. And that was when I really start-

ed to dabble with being an independent. The

internet was not quite up and running yet, but

by the year 2000, I secured the name bobbald-

win.com. I think I was the third artist that was

actually securing his name as an artist on a

website. Fattburger and I think Jethro Tull

preceded me. But in 1996, I actually sold

about 6,000 or 7,000 CDs online on an unse-

cured server. What was I thinking of?

JI: People were paying with a credit card?

BB: Yes, yes, yes. It was wild. I mean, Lord

knows, I don’t know where any of that data

was, but their information was highly trusted.

But yes, just to think, looking back now that

you were selling this stuff on an unsecured

server, but that was the kind of trust that peo-

ple had and how much people wanted to get

into the music. So that was a fun time just in

terms of getting the understanding of how all

this stuff works in terms of the internet and

commerce. So, I just kept scratching the sur-

face in terms of how to build this thing as an

independent artist, but still have the respect of

the guys who had record deals, who had major

deals and also be distributed by major labels.

So, it was important that I still had the support

of the labels, but just not giving up the owner-

ship.

JI: Yes. So, you had the distribution through

one of the major labels then?

BB: Yes, my first distribution dabble was in

2000. But before I did that, after the Olympic

records, the Welcome to the Games in 1996, I

did a record called Cool Breeze on Shanachie.

I reunited with Danny Weiss and Dave

Wilkes. So, we did a one off and Cool Breeze

was a product that came out of that experi-

ence. I still maintain ties with the Shanachie

family. Those guys are great. I enjoyed work-

ing with them. We still had that itch to go

Indie. So, my first big Indie record was Bob-

baldwin.com, which came out and the year

2000. I was able to solicit investment money

to cover the cost of recording and I managed

to get a deal with a label called Orpheus Rec-

ords, which is run by Charles Huggins. But I

was able to pull in some really great players -

Gerald Albright, Eric Essex, Marion Mead-

ows, Freddie V from the Average White band,

Vaneese Thomas, who is the daughter of the

late great Rufus Thomas. So that record did

really, really well for me at the time. Once

again, I got caught up in the shortcomings of

the music business - not getting paid properly

for the royalties, having to go to court to deal

with that. It seems like these independent dis-

tributors sometimes don’t want to handle their

business. When you have to deal with stuff

like that, it often inhibits continuity in your

career. I can see why a lot of guys they have

these hiccups in their recording processes.

JI: It is not difficult to get fed up with the

egos and the dishonesty in the business.

BB: Right, right, right, right. Listen, there is

an overflow of egos and dishonesty in this

business, so you always got to constantly keep

your guard up, unfortunately. But thankfully,

there is the music and the music is what keeps

everybody calm and relaxed. There’s some-

thing about music that just hits people a cer-

tain way that keeps me in the game, despite

all the shortcomings and shortfalls of the peo-

ple handling the business. Eventually over the

last ten, fifteen years everything kind of

worked itself out, as I hung in there long

enough to eventually be distributed by a ma-

jor, being paid directly monthly, which is a

beautiful thing, and managing to have some-

thing to catapult and grow from.

JI: What prompted you to go down to Atlanta

to live?


“… the music business is a whole lot of accounting. If you’re not familiar with

how to read your statements, then you get left in the dark a lot or you’ll get ripped off, or you just get caught out there not handling your business and

not owning any of it. You could be in this business for ten, fifteen, twenty years

and not actually own anything that you’re working on. So, I began to get conscious

about ownership and accounting.”

Bob Baldwin



BB: At the time I was working at Sprint, the

phone company - because at that time, I had a

pretty heavy telecommunications background

and I was doing collections of high-end ac-

counts. I was collecting ten to fifteen-million-

dollar checks for Sprint. So, they closed their

offices in White Plains, where I was working

and they gave us either an option to take a

package and move to Dallas or move to At-

lanta. So, I chose Atlanta because I had family

there. I ended up moving down there in 1993.

So that’s how I started my quest to Atlanta.

That’s when I did the Welcome to the Games

and the Cool Breeze and Bobbaldwin.com. A

lot of that was recorded down there. So it was

kind of a refreshing change for me because

the cost of living down there was still decent

compared to New York. I could actually put

some money in my pocket at the end of the

month and then go buy equipment and start

building a studio and having money left over

to market and things of that nature and still

keep the dream alive.

JI: So, do you have a full studio down there

now?

BB: I have what I call a project studio where I

can mix records and record keys. I don’t rec-

ord full bands at this point. I go off site to do

that. But once I have all the tracks, I can take

them home and really taking my time and

come up with some really good mixes that are

very well thought out. I don’t have to rush

through them because I’m looking at a clock.

So, in that regard, yes, I’ve got enough gear

down there to just get the record done, which

is the most important thing because without a

completed record, you can’t take things to the

next level.

JI: Yes. I mean that’s the thing. There was a

book I read years ago, that’s still one of my

favorites. It’s called the Path Of Least Re-

sistance. It is about the process of creation

and that you’re either in the reactive-

responsive mode where you have a problem,

you work on it to make it better, and then you

end up stopping working on it and it gets

worse again. And then you start working on it

again and go through the same circular cycle.

Or you’re in the creative mode where you

create an entirely new structure, a bridge that

gets you to bypass the obstruction or problem

and move from where you are to someplace

new. In every creative endeavour there’s this

five-step process, the beginning of which is

you have a robust kind of enthusiasm and

energy to get started and you’re gung ho.

Then the second level is where you actually

have to put in the real work and your creation

grows from there. In the end of the process,

you must complete your creation, because in

the completion of the creation are the seeds

for your very next creation.

BB: Yes, I think without knowing that’s what

it was, I think those qualifications and those

hypotheses definitely work with what I’m

doing because you have to fight through all

the resisting channels and avoid them as much

as possible. You got to see that finish line. I

think a lot of people, they get started but they

don’t know how to finish. Then there are

those who get a nice record done, but they

don’t have enough money or don’t know how

to promote it on the back end. So, part of the

process is making the creation, the second

part of the process is making sure people are

aware of what their creation is.

JI: Talk about your experiences with some of

the influential musicians with whom you have

worked. Let’s start with Bob James.

BB: Bob James and I actually still communi-

cate to this day. In fact, when I see him in

concert, I might sneak up to him and whisper

the word Minot in his ear and he’ll jump back

and look at me like I’m crazy. We’ll start

cracking up - because he remembers those

days back in the ‘80s when we’d be up there

sixteen, seventeen hours a day working. In

fact, Bob was one of the first guys that en-

couraged me to look at things from an inde-

pendent ownership standpoint because at that

time he had a label called Tappan Zee Rec-

ords distributed by CBS. He got a nice little

piece of change up front and he developed his

labels which were distributed through CBS.

And when it was all said and done, he ended

up walking away with the Masters, which I

thought was a brilliant move. He was one of

the first guys that I really studied in terms of

ownership. Another guy that really taught me

something was Grover Washington Jr., in

1999, the year of his passing. He died in De-

cember, right around his birthday at age 55.

He was supposed to play on a record with

Tom Browne called Funkin’ for Jamaica on

the .com record, Bobbaldwin.com, but he

passed shortly after telling me that. And I

ended up doing a tribute to Grover on that

record. But we were doing a concert in Cin-

cinnati. I was playing with Will Downing at

the time. Oh man, he was livid that night. So,

we sat down and went to the bar and had a

drink and did some chatting. Basically, with-

out getting too deep into it, he was saying that

the label that he was on at the time was not

sending him any royalty payments and he was

in the hole. So the only way he was able to

make money at that point was to just go out

and do gigs. He said, “Man, I am just so tired

of this,” - because he had been doing gigs

since the ‘70s. He never had a break in terms

of doing gigs. Like he was always doing gigs,

always taking care of his band members. He

was a model citizen as far as being an artist,

but he was just physically tired from just all

the gigs and not making any money as a writ-

er or not making any money as an artist in

royalties. That was right before I did the .com

record. because I was about to pitch that to a

label. I ended up pulling it back, finding in-

vestors and doing it myself. So, the takeaway

was that if Grover is complaining and at the

time, he was still hot, that he’s not getting any

royalties, where does that leave me? I don’t

even have even close to the stature that he

has. So that’s when I started to gather myself

and to take ownership of the recording and the

masters so that I would have something fif-

teen or twenty years later, not just be out here

just being a rental artist. So that was really

valuable from Grover. I had a chance to talk

with Joe Sample a few times. In fact, I was

working for a magazine called Strictly Jazz. I

don’t know if you remember them.

JI: Yes, I remember it. It was a thin magazine

that was published by somebody in Atlanta.

BB: Yes, that’s right. Yes, a guy named

Jacques Williams. It lasted maybe three years

but he amassed a few interviews along the

way. So I was a staff writer at the time and I

ended up interviewing Joe Sample and he was

in a hotel room somewhere in Kansas City

and we had a telephone conversation and that

my first time talking to him and he goes,

“Okay, Baldwin make it quick, I’m going to

go do a sound check.” And so that thirty-

minute conversation turned into like a two-

and-a-half-hour conversation. I think he

missed the soundcheck. He was all late. But

we had a great time talking because this was

right at the time when the Crusaders were

breaking up. There was some, here we go

again, money issues, royalty issues, people

not getting paid. So, there was a big infighting

going on with the Crusaders and he was talk-

ing about writing a play, which never came

out, about his experience as a music artist. So,

one of the sad lessons I learned from him is

finish your dream man. Don’t stop dreaming.

Don’t ever stop dreaming. Continue to pursue

the things that you love doing and stay away

from those bad deals, man, because here’s

somebody who he went to high school with

and these guys are just like fighting. And un-

fortunately, they all died between ten and

twelve years ago. They all passed away.

Wayne Henderson, Wilton Felder, Joe Sam-

ple. And I don’t think they really, unfortunate-

ly, closed the gap on the disputes.


Bob Baldwin


JI: Talk about your association with Marion

Meadows, Richard Elliott and Ragan White-

side because they play a significant role in

your albums.

BB: Yes. It’s funny you mentioned that. First

of all, Reagan and Marion got the same birth

date, December 7th. And my birthday is De-

cember 9th, so we all have this Sagittarian

kinship. I met Marion on that Norman Con-

nors gig that I did back in 1983. We stayed in

contact and I think our first records came out

the same time. Shortly after that we collabo-

rated on each other’s projects and it’s just

longstanding. One of the great friendships

I’ve had. He’s just a really down to earth guy.

He’s a fiery guy. He’s calm. Our musical

vibes are pretty sweet. They just kind of blend

nicely. When we do collabs man, they just

take off. Ragan Whiteside, I met the same day

that Marion and I were doing a gig in a little

town in New York called Scarsdale, a real

rich, uppity kind of town. They had the nerve

to try to start a jazz club there, which was an

absolute disaster. It lasted for about a year and

a half, and they didn’t know what to do with

it, unfortunately. But they had this real cool

club there called the August Blue Light. We

were doing this one fundraiser for somebody.

Marian was on the gig. Ossie Davis’ son-in-

law was there. His name was Abdul Wali.

There was Tony Cintron, who played with a

lot of Latin jazz bands drums. Tony Lewis,

who plays in my band now. It was just a mas-

sive band. In fact, Duke Jones from Norman

Connors was there as well. Ossie Davis was

taking pictures with us and Ruby Dee, they

were both still alive at the time. So, Reagan

was sitting in the audience because Reagan’s

mother and father were friends with Ossie

Davis’ kids. So, there was some kinship there.

So, she was about eighteen or nineteen at the

time going on to college for classical music

and she’s hearing all this jazz getting blown

off the stage. She’s like, “Who the heck what

the--?” She was in total shock. So, she was

going back to college the following year. She

had like one or two more years in Florida. So,

she asked me, “Man, how do I take what I do

in classical, which is all reading and go into

this whole jazz world, which is total improvi-

sation.” She’s like,” I don’t see anybody read-

ing any music. You guys are playing your

butts off, how do you do it?” So that’s when

we got a chance to work together. At that time

she had great musical ability, great mechan-

ics, great tone. She had tone back then from

her classical training. So, it was a process of

me teaching her scales and chords and making

sure that every note was connected to a chord

and if it didn’t connect to a chord, made sure

it made sense that you could feel it. But the

basic thing was to connect the chords with the

melody. Once we got that locked in, then you

can figure out the rest … because that’s just

the roadmap getting those scales connected to

the chord. You got the roadmap, now what do

you do with the roadmap? So, I had to basi-

cally kind of give her some insight on the

roadmap and then from there learning how to

improvise. So now, thank God she’s doing

fantastic. Her last four singles went top ten

billboard contemporary jazz. So, I’m really,

really very proud of her. She’s actually killing

them on the charts right now. It was nice just

to be able to break some of those practices of

classical, which is great as an art form, a great

skillset. But to get transition from that to solo-

ing without reading, knowing your scales …

Richard Elliot, I haven’t had a whole lot of

communication with Richard. I met Richard

through Paul Brown. Paul Brown’s a real

good friend of mine, and actually Paul Brown

and I kind of met by accident. I call it accident

on purpose. There was this concert that was

supposed to take place in San Diego many

years ago. I think it was called something like

the Lemon Jazz concert or something like

that. It was a huge concert that had like literal-

ly 30 artists on the bill with like three bands. I

know that if that concert had gone down,

those band guys would’ve got crushed be-

cause it was just so much music. But as it

stands, the overhead on that thing was so mas-

sive. They were putting everybody over at the

Hard Rock Cafe in San Diego, which was

another expensive venue. Eventually the con-

cert fell apart. And so, we all went out there

because we had already spent our money on

plane tickets and hotels. We ended up getting

a hotel somewhere else and we ended up just

having a kind of a freestyle concert that week-

end. It was in 2011. So, it was there that I met

Paul Brown. We jammed together and we

bumped into each other once later on that year

in Toronto. So, we traded numbers and I went

and hung out at his house for a couple of days

a few years back and we just kind of bonded

musically. It was through him I was able to

meet Richard Elliott and we did a couple

tracks for Richard’s album. I think a couple of

tracks I did with Paul that Richard was fea-

tured on. So that’s how that connection came

about. That’s my LA smooth jazz connection.

Those guys are cool.

JI: What kind of processes do you go through

in composing?

BB: Well, I definitely write things down. Ac-

tually, I just sing my ideas into the phone. If

something hits me, I could be in a mall, I

could be shopping, grocery shopping, or I

could be just running an errand and then an

idea hit you and you know that if you don’t

write that idea down, it’ll be lost forever. So

since I’ve had the iPhone and other smart

phones, I make sure that I press that record

button and locked that thing in. So that’s one


“he was saying that the label that he was on at the time was not sending him any

royalty payments and he was in the hole. So the only way he was able to make

money at that point was to just go out and do gigs. He said, “Man, I am just so tired

of this” … That was right before I did the .com record … which I was about to pitch to a label. I ended up … doing it

myself. So, the takeaway was that if Grover is complaining … that he’s not getting

any royalties, where does that leave me?”

Bob Baldwin


thing that inspires me. Sometimes I’ll be driv-

ing and just on a real long drive and yes, I

guess after hearing just the sound of tires hit-

ting that pavement, you get kind of into this

trance and for me it transformed me into some

other creative spaces. So, I’ll start hearing

things, and again, I’ll sing it into the phone

and I’ll take it home and build it from there.

Sometimes I might be inspired by something

that happened in somebody’s life, a birth of

somebody or a death of somebody or it might

be something that somebody says that’s kind

of catchy. And I’ll take a phrase that someone

says and create a thought pattern around that.

You know, so it comes from all kinds of

sources. I get a lot of inspiration from being

outside though. Outside is a great creative

space for me especially around water. I might

be sitting down listening to some intense mu-

sic and maybe I’ll catch an idea from listening

to somebody and maybe I want to sound like a

certain vibe and I may write a motif around

something that I might be really digging that

just sticks in my head.

JI: One other person that you work with a lot,

is Lori Williams. She’s from Baltimore.

BB: Wow! Well, Lori - I’ve got the radio pro-

gram, New Urban Jazz, which I started in

2008. I’m always looking for something new,

different that I haven’t put my ear to yet -

maybe something that’s got a real sweet kind

of quality that just maybe has not taken a turn

in terms of being heard on a wide scale. So, I

was on the web about couple of years ago and

I heard Lori do this version of “Body and

Soul” and she turned this ballad into this fiery

Latin jazz piece. Two piano players were on

the record and it’s a real killer arrangement.

And it really caught my ear. I’m like, man,

why have I never heard this tune and why

haven’t I ever heard of this this artist? So, she

was living in Baltimore in the Fort Washing-

ton area and I had a gig at Ram’s Head in An-

napolis and I invited her to come sit in. She

had done a version of “Island” on her record

and I just did a version of it on mine on the

Brazilian American soundtrack. It’s just a

great Ivan Lins piece. So, she sat, did the

homework and we just connected musically.

It’s been a really nice vibe ever since. I had a

chance to produce her record Out Of The Box

and I just mixed her last album entitled Full

Circle and she’s singer on a couple of pieces

for me. We did a nice version of “My Love”

on my Beatles project, Abbey Road and The

Beatles. So that’s been a really nice relation-

ship. The relationship between vocals and

pianos has a long history. So, some of the

greatest music ever made was arranged by

keyboard players. I love the stuff that Tom

Bell did for the Stylistics. What he did for that

group was just absolutely amazing. Of course,

Quincy Jones, his touch as an arranger and

what he’s done with singers like Patty Austin

and, of course, Michael Jackson and James

Ingram and Luther Vandross and countless

other singers. So it is that connection between

musician and vocalists. And we just have a

nice thing and hopefully we’ll keep it going.

JI: Could you talk a little bit more about New

Urban Jazz, your radio program and how that

developed?

BB: Yes. Back in 2004 I was doing a radio

program in Jacksonville, Florida. I was Pro-

gram Director at a station there called WJSJ.

This is still when Smooth Jazz was kind of

hot. I was there for about a year and a half,

and then I got called and at that time, I was

fusing contemporary jazz with some Brazilian

Samba, Bossa Nova, and anything that I could

get my hands on outside of the country of jazz

artists that wanted to do smooth or contempo-

rary and throw them into the mix. So that was

the birth of it. In 2005, I got called to launch a

Smooth Jazz station in Bermuda. I was pro-

gramming there for about a couple of years -

at KJazz in Bermuda. They have since flipped

the format to some other things. I came back

home in 2007 I worked for WCOK in Atlanta.

I was the Programmer there. So, I was infus-

ing that whole musical style in all those dif-

ferent markets. And I found that it was work-

ing. So, something just stuck with me. And in

2008, I went from WCOK to Radio One sta-

tion in Atlanta. I think it was called WJZZ,

which are actually the call letters that came

down from Detroit, but Radio One got a hold

of it and put it in Atlanta. That was a smooth

jazz station and I had started developing my

show there. Shortly after that, they started

flipping formats, but the big one that really

took me over the top was a CD 101 in New

York. CD 101.9 in New York was the flag-

ship station for Smooth at the time. That was

right around the time when Clear Channel was

contemplating folding Smooth, but they had-

n’t done it. And just when CD 101 shut their

doors, Clear channel went nuts and closed

about 20 stations in 30 months. So, during

that time I started to launch New Urban Jazz,

because I saw that a lot of the stations were

leaving and I wanted to fill some kind of void.

That’s when it started. I started with five sta-

tions in the South, station in Nashville, Mem-

phis, one in North Carolina and three in Ala-

bama, mostly college stations that were play-

ing jazz. It’s been kind of with me ever since.

I’ve done every show weekly, ever since Oc-

tober 1st, 2008. So, I’ve done like 570 shows

in a row weekly. It doesn’t matter what state

I’m in, what country I’m in, I will do the

show. I will do it in the bathroom, I will do it

at a hotel room. As long as I’ve got the com-

puter, a microphone and Logic Audio, I can

send that thing through the internet lines. The

show is a two hour show weekly and I’ve

been very fortunate enough to now have al-

most 50 stations now. In fact, we just picked

up WCOK in Atlanta earlier this month and

we picked up a station, in fact, in the Virgin

Islands, of all places in St. John’s. The current

station list is on the newurbanjazz.com.

There’s a station list if you need to go refer-

ence it.

JI: When you were doing the program from

Bermuda, were you living in Bermuda?

BB: I was back and forth. There was a guy

that owned the station and I would stay there

like two, three months at a time and hang out.

Of course, I went there during the summer. It

was great. In fact, we did a couple of small

jazz festivals over there and brought people

over from the States. It was a lot of fun, man.

It was nice being able to try to put Smooth on

the map. But on the business side, unfortu-

nately for them, they couldn’t keep it together.

So they had to flip the format and sell the sta-

tion.


“Stay focused, stay creative. Don’t forget to give back to your family. Give back to the community, love the music and use the

music together as a feeding mechanism to feed broken hearts out here man because there’s so many of them. I hope that my

music has done that over the years.”

Bob Baldwin


JI: You’re working on some things right now

for a release later this year. Do you want to

talk about that?

BB: Sure. I’ve got an album called Henna.

I’m not exactly sure of the release date yet,

but it’s going to be sometime in the fall of this

year. This record, compared to some other

records, has more of a live feel. In fact, I’m

using the guys from my band. Dave Ander-

son, bass, who’s worked with Bill Evans, sax-

ophonist, and Tony Lewis on drums from the

Bronx. He’s more of a jazz-funk kind of

drummer, but he’s got a really beautiful sound

and we’ve been together on and off for about

20 years. So, we know each other like the

back of my hand. They’re playing on about

six or seven cuts on that album. So, it’s a real

organic record. There’s a tune there, a George

Duke track that I do, just kind of tribute what

he’s done over the years, fusing jazz and Bra-

zilian music. But mostly, it’s made of original

stuff. Also, I’m reissuing that cut called “Club

Life.” Club Life was a record that from what I

can see right now has the most soloists ever

on a smooth jazz. Yes, friendships that devel-

oped over the years. I would send the track

out to guys and I would say, “Listen, play 24

bars and give me some really cool stuff.”

Man, the guy sent me back some amazing

music. Walter Beasley and Nils and U-Nam,

and what Reagan did on it … Brooke Alford

on the violin and Marcus Anderson on the

vocoder. So, it was just a nice fun record man.

We’re dedicating some of the proceeds to a

non-profit called How Big Is Your Dream in

Atlanta. So, we’ve been sending money down

there for them to further the studies of young

kids who want to get into music in their teens.

So, it’s all for a good cause.

JI: Is there anything that you want to talk

about that I haven’t prompted you for?

BB: I think we’ve pretty much covered every-

thing. I wrote that book in 2011 called You

Better Ask Somebody. That was kind of an

experience of all the things that you and I

talked about and more, about what’s going on

in the music business and just to prompt peo-

ple to stay on top of their business side. That

was inspired by my dad who at a young age

was not only a piano player, but he was also a

Civil Engineer. He used to draw schematic

designs and TV sets by hand. He had an

amazing mathematical mind. So, he was the

one who really taught me to really always

think down the middle, don’t think too crea-

tively and don’t over analyse stuff. He helped

me create this balance between analytical and

creativity - and I’m so glad that he planted

those seeds in me at such a young age. That’s

the stuff I wanted to infuse into the book and

get people to not always think about the mu-

sic. The music is important, as the music is

the vehicle that everybody is excited about.

But don’t leave the business unattended. Be-

cause as you see, even today, you hear of

these horror stories, guys losing millions and

millions of dollars from letting their manager

oversee stuff and they just run his stuff into

the ground. You hear about that stuff with

athletes as well.

JI: Yes. It’s crazy. It’s challenging for crea-

tive people to conduct business because we

are emotionally connected to our creations

and that is enticing to many predators and

sociopaths who get into the music and enter-

tainment business, who understand those

weaknesses and try to take advantage of art-

ists and musicians to make easy money. The

predators try to create the illusion that they

are “the” guy who you’ve been missing for

the last 10, 20, 30 years, who can now take

your career to the next level and you’ll really

be successful beyond your dreams. What hap-

pens, of course, in many cases is that these

predators are just charlatans who go to the

local print shop in the morning to print their

business card that says manager or promoter

on it, pick up the cards later in the afternoon,

and head out to clubs at night looking for their

next marks.

BB: Absolutely, man. Absolutely. I’m sur-

prised that it’s still happening, that people

haven’t learned their lesson. It’s just really a

part of the business that I absolutely loathe. If

they could ever clean that part of it up, which

they probably won’t in our lifetime, the music

business would be such a pleasant business.

JI: The music business offers low barriers to

entry which are perfect for wannabes that are

neither expert at what they do, experienced

and devoid of the meta values of integrity,

excellence and caring. So the music business

is a pathway of least resistance for them to

have the “Life of Riley.”

BB: Yup. And I think the key word that you

said is caring man. If more managers and la-

bels will actually care about the music that

they put out and the people that are connected

to them, I think there’d be just such a better

connection between the music execs and the

artists and the audience - because at the end of

the day, it’s the audience that’s making the

difference. You know what I mean?

JI: Absolutely.

BB: Yes. But you’ve got to figure out the

vehicle in which to feed the people. So, my

goal is just to continue to the feed them and

inspire people to do great things. I’m hoping

at some point that I will be able to do a festi-

val, at some point. I’m not sure where, but I

want to fuse a couple of the beautiful genres

of jazz and put them in their rightful, respect-

ful place in an area that hasn’t really been

doing much. So, I’m hoping to develop that

over the next several months. So, I will defi-

nitely keep you posted on that as well.

JI: Are there any words of wisdom or ideas

that you want to close with or share to inspire

any of the readers and prospective and exist-

ing fans?

BB: Absolutely. I would say to the fan base

and to people in general, don’t ever give up

on your dream. Be consistent with the things

that you want. Stay focused, stay creative.

Don’t forget to give back to your family. Give

back to the community, love the music and

use the music together as a feeding mecha-

nism to feed broken hearts out here man be-

cause there’s so many of them. I hope that my

music has done that over the years. In fact,

I’ve gotten calls and emails from people, folks

I don’t even know, I’ve had people email me

and say they were getting ready to go into

surgery, or that they’re going through cancer

right now and they’ve taken my music into

the chemo room with them. You know, that’s

the kind of power that music can have in peo-

ple’s lives. I just hope that my music can con-

tinue to have that kind of positive impact on

people’s lives. So whatever love you put into

the music, it’ll feed the people and it will

come back to you almost without fail.

“just when CD 101 shut their doors, Clear channel

went nuts and closed about 20 stations in 30 months. So, during that time I started to launch New Urban Jazz, because I saw that a lot of the stations were

leaving and I wanted to fill some kind of void.”

Bob Baldwin


Interview & Photo by Eric Nemeyer

JI: Wycliffe, do you want to talk about some of

the trombone players who have influenced you?

WG: Well, I’ve had a chance to meet and to

hang with J.J. Johnson who’s been a tremendous

influence. As a matter of fact, when I teach he’s

the first person that all my students study, once

we get past the basics and fundamentals. J.J. was

really a nice man. He was not one that was really

willing to share his secrets of his development

trombone playing. And I’d heard for years, cats

always asked J.J., “J.J., what method of talking

are you using to play so clean and all the regis-

ters of the instrument?” And J.J. would just give

this blasé answer—“Oh, I’m just playing.” I

said, “Well, surely, he’s not going to do it to me.

We weren’t playing that day. And I was walking

with J.J. and we were walking for about a mile

just talking. So I fell for it. I asked him the same

question. He said, “Oh, I don’t think about it, I

just play.” So, ok, well, he’s going to take that

one to his grave. But another time, I happened to

be off and J.J. was playing at the Blue Note. He

was sharing a night with Jon Hendricks. And I

got there for J.J.’s last set. And this was near the

end of his life. We had known that he had can-

cer. And he played “Goodbye,” one of the most

amazing performances that I’d ever heard. He

played no embellishments, no one chorus of the

melody, not one extra note, not one extra sound

or slide, nothing slick, nothing hip, by himself

onstage [hums melody]. He just played that. And

when I looked around the room at the end of it,

it was like all the trombone players that were in

town and not working that night were there at

that gig, our mouths were just kind of wide

open. It seemed to be nothing fantastic like Bar-

num and Bailey’s. He played the melody one

time and walked off the stage. And it was

“Goodbye” with one of his signature tunes, but it

was just like first of all how did he do that. He

encapsulated the whole room for at least I know

he did with the trombone players in that room.

And, man, it was just one of the most beautiful

moments of mu-

sic. I didn’t get a

chance to see Lou-

is Armstrong. I

just heard him on

recordings. And

thank god for vid-

eo tape for that

part of the record-

ing industry, but to

see J.J., like he

embodied all of that. There was so much history

in just the simplicity that he played of the melo-

dy. But it sang, it spoke, no vibrato. J.J. just

said, it was like he was saying goodbye. And

maybe that was the significance of it. Trombone

players, J.J. is definitely one. But I love the

many different schools of trombone, even from

the plunger players like Tricky Sam Nanton, of

course. But one of the solos that I had my stu-

dents to study was Booty Wood from Duke El-

lington’s records, “Blues in Orbit.” There’s Al

Grey, Quentin Buddy Jackson, Tyree Glenn, so

the various schools of plunger playing. I love

Jack Teagarden, he’s one of those singing trom-

bone players. He would sing, but you could tell

that he sang by the way that he played his instru-

ment. So I’ve checked out Curtis Fuller, Bill

Watrous, Carl Fontana, Frank Rosolino. I’ve

listened to a lot of the trombone players and

studied their style to get something. Dave

Steinmeyer—to share an experience—he’s not

well know as a jazz trombonist, but I was play-

ing, my first time playing with the Smithsonian

Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, I played lead trom-

bone. I had been playing with Wynton Marsalis;

I’d been on the scene for minute, and I didn’t get

the big head, but, you know, I was kind of say-

ing to myself I’m doing a little something--

something, something out here. And you know,

this is the second time they called me. And here

comes Dave Steinmeyer—and I’m playing sec-

ond trombone. And I said, “Maybe, they just

want me to sit in the solo chair.” I’m like, “I

should be playing first.” I’d heard the name be-

fore. And then when he started playing, I was

like, “Oh my God! I should be playing bass

trombone [laughter].” This cat was so amazing.

I’d heard him play before. I just didn’t know

who it was. I heard recordings of trombone play-

ers that piss all the trumpet players off because

he played so high and clean in that register and

just a beautiful sound with no effort. So I admire

him for that. I got a chance meet, sit next to, talk

to him. But my greatest influence musically

came from Louis Armstrong. I love the bass. I

love listening to bass players. Oftentimes, when

I’m playing, I want the piano and the drums to

lay out. The bass has a good feel and I want to

play with the bass.

JI: Could you discuss some of your performing

experiences—such as with the Ellington band?

WG: I’ve had great musicians that I’ve admired

like Britt Woodman who I sat next to that played

with Duke Ellington for many years. I got a

chance to sit next to him in 1989 and 1990. And

to play concerts and to have someone like him

give encouraging words the sky opens up even

more. Someone like Buster Cooper—I’m talking

about trombone players. I’ve been fortunate,

because I’ve been around the kind of people

that, first of all, they’re happy to be alive. I’ve

been around those also that are discouraging;

they’re like, “Why is this not happening? Why is

that not happening? This is not happening for

me and life is just….” I’m like, “Man, why?”

You know I’ve had some of those experiences

too. And none are directed towards me in terms

of my playing, but if I would continue to hang

with that type of company then I would develop

those, you know, that type of attitude. Britt

Woodman told me once. I was playing. We’re

doing the music of Duke Ellington. And I got a

chance to play a solo. And he said, “I wish that

when I was younger I had just played like that.”

To hear that from someone who I admired and

respected so much, it was just great. And then I

also sat next to someone in the band that wasn’t

so encouraging. I won’t call the person’s name,

but it’s like he always came to me like, “Well,

you’re doing this and you’re doing that,” never

really gave me an encouraging word, not that

you have to. But I’m conscious; I always want to

be encouraging to students, musicians, whether

they’re in school, in class, in college, or whether

they’re professional musicians, because that

could be the very thing that says, “You know

what? I can do this” and that may be the next

Louis Armstrong.”

JI: Could you talk about the synergy between

you and Jay [Leonhart].

WG: Well, we met several years ago always

playing as sidemen with Dick Hyman at a show

at the 92nd Street Y or maybe down in Florida

between Sarasota, Fort Myers. We were always

on the bandstand together. And I think the first

time I really took notice to Jay’s playing and

singing was from a show that he developed

called The Bass Lesson. I was on a cruise ship

and kind of admired how he could keep an audi-

ence just by playing and singing with the bass

for an hour or whatever the time was. But I’d

walk by. They’re listening and laughing. I’d

come by about 30 minutes later, they’re still

listening and laughing. I stepped in and I lis-

tened to one of the numbers. I don’t know if it

was about flying someone to L.A. He had sto-

ries. And what’s really amazing to me is how he

can remember all of that. He says it takes prac-

tice. But anyway, I always wanted to do some-


INTERVIEWINTERVIEW

Wycliffe Gordon “… always just striving to … make it the best”

“there’s a much bigger audience for communicative musicians who help you

understand, help bring you in a bit, because not everybody is a jazz aficionado.”



thing more with my voice. Voice is the trom-

bone but also vocalese. I’d walk around scat

singing, and it seemed like a perfect opportunity;

Jay plays and sings with the bass, but that was

just one thing conceptually that we could ex-

pound upon. But then we got together and did a

show—Jack Kleinsinger’s Highlights in Jazz.

We’d get a chance to play a number or two to-

gether, then another show a number or two to-

gether. Then he called us together to do a seg-

ment of his show. We always said, “You know,

we should do something about this. Maybe we

make a recording.” And it took about four, five

times to perform and the last time we did a

show, I think we had a 20 or 30-minute segment.

And it was very well and we just said, “Let’s do

this,” basically. And we did it. We sat down; we

found dates that we had to go into the studio. Jay

made most of the calls and I checked most of my

schedule. And we went to the studio and we

recorded for a couple of days. Before that actual-

ly, the fun part was getting together to rehearse.

We started out, I’d go to Jay’s house and then

his lovely wife would have nice sandwiches. It

was always good to go over there, because I

knew I’d get a nice sandwich or something, a

meal or something after rehearsal.

Jay Leonhart: A Jewish girl from Brooklyn, of

course, you’re going to get a nice sandwich. I

brought some nice sandwiches with us today.

You want to know, I think the recording was

more fun than the rehearsal. Recording it was

fun. It was adventurous. It really was. We had a

ball in the studio.

WG: It was happening, but I think I had, not

more fun, but it was fun at the rehearsal, because

that was where we working everything out. Most

of the stuff we rehearsed, we didn’t record. We

pulled out this tune, that tune, this tune, and that

tune, “I like this.” And then Jay, he’s going

through his sheets of music that he hadn’t seen

in 20 years, said, “Ah, let’s do this one.” I said,

“Well, ok, we can do it,” but most of the things

that we actually practiced we did record. One of

the things we didn’t practice was a song I heard

Jay do on one of the cruises that I remember,

“Me oh My, I got myself a problem.” We were

standing in the studio, had no game plan and he

started playing it. And I think that was the first

thing we recorded. So the synergy was some-

thing that was building; it was always there and

we just got closer and closer to it and stuff,

“Hey, let’s do something about this. It’s good,

you know, hot. Let’s do it. Let’s make it availa-

ble.”

JL: You know, like those rock-and-roll bands

do in the garages in Seattle. You know, “Let’s

get together and do this.” And they all bring

themselves together and do it, an amazing

amount of energy occurs. Well, we just decided,

“Let’s get together and do this thing.” We kept

talking about it and said, “Alright, let’s jump

over the cliff.” Now we’re going to do it. And

now we’ve made a record that frankly I’m not

surprised that it’s being received so nicely, but

it’s really being received well by everybody.

JI: One of the problems we all run into in jazz is

that a lot of people are great players, but not

necessarily great showmen and don’t bring the

audience in. One of the things that I thought you

two guys did great was bringing the audience in,

having a dialogue with the audience, and being

able to really be showmen about it, because I

think that’s an aspect of the music that kind of

alienates people because they’re so into whatev-

er they’re doing. It’s kind of like their own thing

on stage, sometimes.

JL: We all can’t be Miles Davis. We all can’t

get away with that. Sometimes we can play and

just be jazz musicians. And it’s great fun to be

[lowers his voice] mysterious and removed and

just be musicians, brooding jazz geniuses, but

there’s a very small audience for brooding jazz

geniuses. And there’s a much bigger audience

for communicative musicians who help you

understand, help bring you in a bit, because not

everybody is a jazz aficionado. We got like three

percent of the world’s audience. And we need

more. And one way to do it is to bring them in.

They can swallow a lot if you give them a

chance to, say, “Ok, alright, I understand this a

little bit.” And then you can lay something really

heavy on them and they’ll go along with you,

because at least they know you’re communi-

cating with them. They’re trying.

WG: That’s one of the things that I talk to my

students about all the time. I see them in class-

room a lot because I do a lot of educational ac-

tivity. And the students are so caught in playing,

playing the changes. And then when they get on

stage, it’s weird. I said, “Well, people they can

listen to that on the radio and when you’re per-

forming, you have the audio but you also have

the visual. And even if you don’t communicate

to the audience try bringing them in whether it’s

singing or something that’s going to make them

want to listen other than the hip changes that

you’re playing. I don’t know; figure out some

way to tell some jokes. And sometimes you try

things and you don’t get it, but eventually you’ll

become good at figuring out who’s in your audi-

ence and how you can talk to the audience. I try

to say to my students to make sure to get their

stage presence together, even if it’s going to be

in between tunes, how you’re going to introduce

the songs. Talk to the people. Make them feel

that they’re involved.

JI: Jay, could you talk about your illustrious

activities over the last 30, 40 years here in the

city. You’ve really been involved in so many

different aspects of the music.

JL: I’ve worked in the studios, which is a differ-

ent thing then working with people on a long

range basis. I’ve had long-range gigs with peo-

ple like Tony Bennett and Peggy Lee, Mel

Torme, people who I really traveled a lot with—

Urbie Green, people like this. But I’ve worked

in the studios with almost everybody and would

get to know them to some degree. But it’s just a

passing situation where you’re playing for them

and see them for three hours in the afternoon.

You might see them for another session and

that’s it! And that’s how close Queen Latifah

and I are. I mean she came into the studio once

and we said hello, but I’m on her record. And I

had a record out the same time that she did. And

mine was up on jazz airplay. And as mine was

going down, hers was going up. And we said

hello to each other on the way. I’ve got to work

with millions, with thousands of great musicians

in the studio, because I knew how to read suffi-

ciently. I knew how to play in tune enough to be

on a record. And frankly I was able to support

my family better by being in New York then I

was being on the road someplace. And I didn’t

want to be away from the kids frankly. I really

wanted to be with my children.

JI: People I think in general like to be around

people they like and they trust.

JL: Right, absolutely, that’s the way it is. If you

can play well, don’t expect to have every gig,

because want people they know, they trust, who

work well with them and who are easy to deal

with. That’s the way in every business.



“make sure to get their stage presence together, even if it’s going to be in between tunes, how you’re going to introduce the songs. Talk to the people. Make them feel that

they’re involved.”

Wycliffe Gordon


JI: Wycliffe, talk a little bit about your work

with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. How did

that evolve?

WG: That came out of playing with Wynton in

June of 1989. June sixth, my first gig was in

Charleston, South Carolina. I remember that gig

quite vividly, because that was starting out as a

summer job, a temporary thing and it turned into

my career. How that led to the Lincoln Center

Jazz Orchestra, I think they started Jazz at Lin-

coln Center before they became constituents of

Lincoln Center. In 1988, they started having

concerts called Classic Jazz. And they had two

or three concerts a year. And I was a part of that.

I think the first concert I played was in 1989. I

was a member of the first touring band that still

had a lot of the cats that are no longer with us

like Britt Woodman, Norris Turney and a few of

the others, cats that played with Ellington and

Basie. And it was great to sit next to those cats.

We did the first tour in ’91. Then Wynton dis-

banded the septet at the end of ’94. He told us

that in the middle of that year that he’s going to

concentrate more on developing Jazz at Lincoln

Center and that we basically had first dibs in

terms of playing in the band. There was no real

audition process, but we studied every period of

jazz. We were prepared to play whatever music

they put in front of us. 1995 was the start of

Wynton doing the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra

full time. So the septet was working very little.

That was from ’95 till 2000, I was with the Lin-

coln Center Jazz Orchestra till July of 2000. And

it was a great band to play with. It was a lot of

fun. We did a lot of touring not quite as much as

we did with the Wynton Marsalis Septet.

JI: What were the rehearsals like?

WG: There weren’t many challenges. We used

to rehearse a lot. When Wynton would have a

commission or something, he was kind of good

for bringing things down to the wire. He works

really well under pressure, but sometimes that

pressure meant that we would have to rehearse

nine or ten hours a day just so that we could get

the job done. But that didn’t start within the Jazz

Orchestra. We did that with the Septet when he

was writing In This House on This Morning and

up until two weeks before, the piece wasn’t fin-

ished and we were still rehearsing. We were

playing at the Regatta Bar in Boston. We re-

hearsed from ten to one, two to five and left, did

the seven, nine o’clock show and on the week-

ends even an 11 o’clock show, and then re-

hearsed after the gig. You know to get the music

done, but that’s not a normal rehearsal schedule.

Generally with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orches-

tra, they’ll have six-hour rehearsal days: Eleven

to two and three to six, but when it comes to a

crunch situation like that even with the big band,

when we were doing Blood on the Fields or Big

Train, we had to have extra rehearsals. And one

thing I liked about playing with that band, and

particularly with the sextet, is the cats were just

willing to do whatever it took to get the job

done. We had a job to do and you couldn’t get

away with that with, I guess, union musicians.

You wouldn’t be able to pull that off, but

Wynton, he really rewarded the cats in the band

well. I didn’t do the chitlins circuit; I had walked

right out of college into his band, and we were

traveling. Whenever we went overseas, it was

business class. When we were traveling in the

states, we started doing the tour buses. It was a

tour bus with beds and that kind of thing. So it

was nice. You almost didn’t mind. And the thing

that you and Jay spoke about earlier, playing

with musicians that you trust, it was a situation

like that. One of the few situations where we

actually after the gig, we would talk about the

music like what happened. And we were always

just striving to…make it the best, but just get to

the next level. I like to think that that happens

and that we’re striving to do that in most situa-

tions, but sometimes, oftentimes, you’re playing

with cats that they just want to make the gig.

And it’s hard when you’re playing with a band

or a group of musicians that you don’t work

together with all the time. But that was one of

the benefits of being in that situation.

JL: The funny thing about working with Wyc-

liffe is that he is extraordinarily busy, and I’m

very busy. And we’d carve out rehearsal time

out of little niches, little holes in our schedule.

And it’s such fun ‘cause he’s got phones ringing.

He’s cleaning up the apartment this morning

waiting for you to come and I’m sitting here

singing songs that we’re going to do in the fu-

ture. And we’re laughing, ‘cause I’m just doing

the unconscious rehearsal method. He’s back

there doing his work, trying to get ready, and

I’m singing a couple of new songs that I’m try-

ing to bring in. I know it’s sinking in, but I said

this counts as real rehearsal time because we

both are very busy, but we always find some

way, backstage, someplace, some way just to

talk about new material, get it together, and or-

ganize it. So that’s what we’re doing now.

We’re just trying to rehearse and keep up our

other commitments. And Wycliffe’s talking to

me about in “76 Trombones,” they had the think

method of learning to play, which I must admit I

did not see The Music Man. Now I have to go

and see it.

JL: I noticed that Wycliffe writes differently

than I do. His song “This Rhythm on My Mind”

which totally explains to me how he does it—

[sings] “I got this rhythm on my mind,” and the

melodies and the lyrics start to curve and sud-

denly and then halfway through the song he

stops, because he didn’t come up with anymore

lyrics. So he just goes [scats], and it turns out to

be a beautiful song.

WG: That’s true.

JL: The lyrics are the last thing to come to him,

I think. The melodies, the rhythms, and I’m,

“C’mon, man, write some lyrics to it. C’mon,

C’mon,” ‘cause I know a ton going on in that

brain, but he’s just not used to putting the lyrics

down. 20, 30 years ago back when I was in high

school, I started writing poems and lyrics just

because I loved rhymes. I didn’t really care

about…I loved rhymes. I didn’t care what they

said. I had no interest expressing myself defin-

ing a flower, but I wanted to make flower rhyme

with power, rhyme with hour, rhyme with dour.

And I loved that. I thought that was the hippest

thing that four lines could rhyme with each oth-

er. So I would write anything and then I realized,

well, you gotta make a little bit of sense. Then

suddenly what I meant started growing into what

I was writing. And I’m still not big on express-

ing myself; I’m just not. I just like to have fun

with my lyrics and I end up expressing myself

anyway and so does Wycliffe. I’m not trying to

turn him into Ira Gershwin, but I am encourag-

ing him to write a lot, because he’s very good at

it.

JI: Years ago, when I studied arranging with

Manny Albam, he said “Just make sure you

write every day.”

JL: That’s what you gotta do, because you get

that unconscious flow of lyrics and rhymes and

thoughts and rhythms, and it becomes rather

simple to just sit down and write an original

piece, at least simple to write the first draft of it.

And writing is found in like the 17th draft.

“… my first time playing with the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, I played lead trombone. I had been playing with Wynton Marsalis; I’d been on the scene for minute, and I didn’t get the big head, but … I was kind of saying to myself ‘I’m doing a little something ... out here’ … And here

comes Dave Steinmeyer—and I’m playing second trombone .... I’m like, ‘I should be playing first.’”


Interview & Photo By Eric Nemeyer

JI: You recorded an album with Ron Carter and

Paul Motian for Nonesuch a couple of years ago.

It was somewhat of a departure from the many

musical things you’ve done previously. Could

you talk about the group, the music and the ap-

proach given these are the musicians with whom

you will be performing at The Blue Note for

several days.

BF: That was kind of a dream situation for me.

I’ve been playing with Paul for more than 25

years—so I have a really close relationship with

him. He’s been such a huge inspiration, and such

an important part of my musical life. It’s hard to

even express what an impact he’s had on me,

and continues to. Then there’s Ron who I’ve met

more recently—maybe ten or eleven years ago,

when I first played with him. I’ve played with

him much less than I’ve played with Paul. But

he’s another one of these kind of larger-than-life

heroes of mine. It’s just kind of immense and

overwhelming when I think of it. This gets to be

a long story about my feelings about Ron. When

I was in high school, I first heard a Wes Mont-

gomery record. I think of that as “the opening of

the door” to me getting into jazz music. Ron was

on that record. Then it seemed like as soon as I

started getting into jazz, everywhere I looked, it

seemed like Ron was on just about every other

thing that I listened to. First, I got the Wes

Montgomery record—the Tequila album. It had

this song “Bumpin’ On Sunset.” I learned that

song for the all-school talent show when I was in

high school. Then I went and bought a Kenny

Burrell record and he was on that. Then I bought

a Miles Davis

record and he was

on that. Then a

Wayne Shorter

record, a Herbie

Hancock record, a

Sam Rivers rec-

ord. It just sort of

went on and on

and on and on.

JI: So you real-

ized that he was the only bass player in jazz at

that time, and with the shortage of bassists, he

had to simply summon everything and make all

those dates.

BF: [laughs] Yeah. It’s kind of gargantuan that

there is this sort of backbone throughout so

much music that he has been a part of—or at

least music that was just incredibly important to

me. When I finally got to meet him and play

with him, it was a really big deal for me. Soon

after that — since I starting to hook up with Ron

and since I had this really close relationship with

Paul—I started having this fantasy about putting

them together. I knew that they had played a

little bit in the 1960s. They’re on an Andrew

Hill record that they played together on a gig

somewhere. They had hardly played at all to-

gether. I just had this feeling that for me, it

would really be something to have them together

in the same room. It took awhile to turn it into a

reality.

JI: Could you talk about how your association

with Paul Motian began to develop around

1981? And, how did his influence begin to im-

pact you?

BF: I feel so lucky. Prior to that I had gone to

school and lived in Boston. That’s where I met

Pat [Metheny]. Pat was in Boston at that time,

when he was playing with Gary Burton in the

late 1970s. From there, I went to Europe for a

year. Then I met my wife in Europe, and then

finally moved to New York in 1979. Those first

years in New York were pretty rough—just try-

ing to make a living. I was meeting a lot of

great musicians and playing a lot—more like

jam sessions. As far as actually working, it was

pretty lean. I was doing a lot of weddings. Noth-

ing wrong with that. But that’s not exactly what

I had in mind. I was getting a little discouraged.

Then I got this call out of the blue from Paul,

just asking if I wanted to come over and play.

That was kind of a big deal for me. He wanted a

guitar. But I felt he wanted me for my music. I

wasn’t getting a call to be just another guitar

player—like when you go do a wedding or some

kind of club date. So I went over to his place.

The first time we played was with Marc Johnson

playing bass—who I also never met at that point.

It wasn’t that long after Bill Evans had died. I

showed up at Paul’s place and they were both

reminiscing about Bill Evans. I’m thinking

“Wow, here I am with these two guys who were

so closely associated with Bill Evans, and I’m

playing guitar and I’m supposed to play trio.”

Bill Evans was another one of those gigantic

inspirations for me. I remember the first tune we

played was “My Man’s Gone Now.” It just

seemed like such a heavy... It’s a George Gersh-

win song, but I really associated it with Bill Ev-

ans. I found myself in this intense moment—to

be playing trio with those guys and to be playing

this song which I associated with Bill. So, things

just slowly developed. He [Paul Motian] called

me back to come play the next week and the

next week. It was a long time before we actually

did a gig. I think it was about nine months be-

fore we went up to Boston and did a gig. By that

time, Joe Lovano was playing, and Ed Schuller

was playing bass. But it was a long period of

going over to his apartment and playing before

we actually did a gig. But then once we started

doing gigs, it just turned into …. It’s been one of

my main things that I do ever since then.

JI: By comparison to many drummers, Paul

Motian is someone who plays much more

sparsely, and is much more attuned to being an

accompanist rather than overpowering the group

or the soloist by imposing an array of impressive

technical wizardry to direct the music. Could

you comment, if this is relevant?

BF: The overall picture of the whole group—

whoever all is playing—that, with him is the

priority. It’s not about the drums or the soloing.

It’s just about the communication amongst who-

ever is playing. That is what is always so inspir-

ing and intense about playing with him. I know

that even the slightest gesture or anything that I

play is affecting what he does—and vice versa.

It’s a real intense listening kind of thing. For me

it just doesn’t get any better than that. And, it’s

always evolving. After a quarter of a century of

playing with him, every time we play, I still

have to be on my toes. You can’t really settle in.

You never know what’s going to happen. It’s

completely about what’s going on at that partic-

ular moment—even when we play a song that

we’ve played hundreds of times, or a standard,

or one of his songs—there’s always something

new to uncover in it. He writes these songs, or


INTERVIEWINTERVIEW

Bill Frisell It’s just about the communication

“When I was in high school, I first heard a Wes Montgomery record. I think of that as ‘the opening of the door’ to me getting into jazz music. Ron was on that record. Then it seemed like as soon as I started getting into jazz, everywhere I looked, it

seemed like Ron was on just about every other thing that I listened to.”



compositions or melodies, or whatever you want

to call them — tunes… People don’t talk about

him as a composer that much. He hasn’t written

a string quartet or an orchestra piece. But he

writes these little beautiful melodies. That’s

another thing that brought something unique to

what we were doing. Early on, 95% of the music

was all his original music. Each one of those

tunes helped to develop some sort of language

that we’ve been working on all this time. More

recently, we began playing more standard tunes,

or Monk tunes. We’re able to use whatever the

language is for whatever we play.

JI: Did Paul discuss with you how his associa-

tion with Bill Evans might have impacted his

approach or perspective?

BF: I don’t think that that’s anything he specifi-

cally talks about. He talks about people he’s

played with and memories of this or that. I think

it just comes through more in his playing, that

there’s all that history that’s in there, that

doesn’t have to be talked about. When we play a

Monk tune, you know, he played with Theloni-

ous Monk. He played with Oscar Pettiford. He

sat in one time with Coltrane, and played with

Sonny Rollins. There’s this immense history

there. Whatever the music is, he’s playing it

from really having lived it. He doesn’t hold back

talking about anybody. But, being there playing

though is where I get the most information.

JI: Could you talk about the first recording you

did which was on ECM, and the kind of direc-

tion that was provided?

BF: When I think back on my first album there,

it was sort of a difficult birth. I don’t know if I

was really ready. Well, I guess you’re never

ready. I tried a lot of things and some things

didn’t seem to gel with what Manfred [Eicher]

wanted. It was such an exciting time for me.

There were so many ideas floating around in my

mind. They do the albums so fast. It’s usually

two days of playing and then one day of mixing.

So I went in and played for one day, and I

thought everything was going pretty good. Then,

somehow Manfred thought I was going in the

wrong direction or something—and I ended up

not finishing the album in the first two days. I

came back a few months later and finished it. It

was kind of a scary experience for—going by

myself all the way over to Oslo, carrying my

guitar. I traveled around a little bit. But doing it

all by myself ... I hadn’t really had much experi-

ence at all at playing alone—playing solo guitar.

So there I am in this big room, just all by my-

self—just me and the engineer and Manfred

Eicher. Oh man. I think my confidence has

grown a little bit since then, 20 some years ago.

I had a sort of on-again, off-again with ECM for

a little while. I did a whole bunch of things at

the beginning. A real key moment was my being

able to do my first album with my band, a few

years later—the Look Out For Hope album. That

was another turning point. My daughter was

born in 1985 and that’s when I felt like I needed

to have my own band. That’s when I started this

band with Kermit Driscoll, who is one of my

oldest friends, Joey Baron, and Hank Roberts. I

guess it was a year later when we did that re-

cording.

JI: What kind of preparation went into that re-

cording? Were you writing new material?

BF: Like I said, it was the first time I actually

had my own working group, where we actually

did gigs and tours. By the time we had recorded,

we had done one tour in Europe and had played

a bunch around New York—that place Visiones.

Stan Getz’s son, Steve Getz, early on, was really

cool about giving us gigs—before anyone knew

who we were or anything—like at Fat Tuesdays.

So it wasn’t a project just for the studio. It was

more like a real band. When we went into the

studio, the music had already started taking

shape. You know a lot of times you write music

and go in, and get a bunch of guys and do it in

the studio. This was more like a real working

situation.

JI: After ECM, you eventually developed an

association with Nonesuch Records. Have there

been strictures and structures there that differed

from what you experienced at ECM?

BF: By that time, everything had speeded up. I

was playing with all these different people, and

wanting to do lots and lots of things in different

ways. I couldn’t really fit in with the ECM

schedule. Even the way I wanted to work in the

studio didn’t always fit with the way things went

there. Manfred had been such a huge inspiration

and influence on what I was doing. But I felt that

I needed to leave—sort of like leaving home,

leaving your parents, and standing up on your

own, and seeing what you can do. I appreciate so

much what Manfred did for me, and I learned so

much during those years. I’m still doing a few

things with them. But during that early 1980s

time, I did so many albums on that label. There

came a point where I felt I needed to try other

things and stand up on my own. With Nonesuch,

the situation was more like whatever came into

my head at a given moment ... the music seemed

to be able to be recorded according to the timing

of when I was feeling it. It was really a luxury.

I’ve used different producers on different things.

Sometimes I could do things in a couple of days,

or I could work on it and come back to it. The

process could change from album to album—

which was really great.

JI: Talk a little bit about your composing activi-

ties.

BF: When I’m home, and I have time, and I’m

in that mode. The way it seems to work now and

for quite awhile is that I try to just write stuff

down, and don’t judge it. It’s easy to get into

being too self-critical. Then nothing will come

out at all. I try to get into a routine of every day

letting it happen. There’s a lot of stuff that’s not

that interesting. But I don’t want to decide that

at the moment. I want to get into that stream of

consciousness. It’s almost like when you’re

walking down the street, and you see some guy

who is whistling, and he’s not really thinking

about anything. He’s not thinking about whis-

tling. It’s just sort of happening. I try to get into

that kind of zone. Then a lot of stuff comes out.

I’ll fill up pages and pages of melodies. Some-


Bill Frisell

“”It does not take a majority to prevail... but rather an irate, tireless

minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.”

- Samuel Adams

“I was doing a lot of weddings. Nothing wrong with that. But that’s not exactly what I had in mind. I was getting a little discouraged. Then I got this call out of

the blue from Paul [Motian], just asking if I wanted to come over and play. That was kind of a big deal for me. He wanted a guitar. But

I felt he wanted me for my music. I wasn’t getting a call to be just another guitar player.”


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times I’ll have my guitar with me. Sometimes

I’ll just write something I hear in my head and

let it come out. Sometimes I’ll try to make a

complete statement of a phrase or a melody and

make it into a tune.

JI: Are you working with pencil and paper?

BF: The computer thing… I just haven’t got-

ten… I know I’ve gotta get to it. I’ve just got to

face up to the computer at some point. I still do

it the old fashioned way– sitting there with pen-

cil and paper, and my guitar. When it’s time that

I need music for an album or some project, or a

film music thing, then it’s the panic stage. I’ll

either try to write new stuff or I’ll start looking

back into these piles of accumulated stuff. Then

I have enough distance from them so that some

stuff that I didn’t have much of a feeling about

at the time it becomes “well, that seems like it’s

kind of cool.” I’ll use those and build on that.

That seems like the way it usually happens. I

don’t end up using anywhere near all of it. I go

back mining through it and find stuff… Seems

like I can hear it better when I look at it later. I’ll

find a little cell of something and that’ll really

generate something else. You have to avoid the

thoughts of self-criticism. If we’re just doing it

[the music], that’s what’s important.

JI: I read on your website that someone wrote

that Bill Frisell is the Clark Kent of guitar. I’m

sure all of the accolades and compliments are

very flattering. How do you maintain your bal-

ance in the face of the many glowing reviews

that have the potential to inflate your ego, and

perhaps lead anyone away from, or otherwise

cloud the purity of purpose of making music?

BF: Boy! That’s a good question. I’d like to say

that I’m not affected by any of that stuff. But, I

can’t help it. It’s sort of this weird “how did I

get myself into this situation?” It wasn’t that

many years ago that I wasn’t actually making a

record at all, or having someone write something

about me at all, or actually be listed in a poll. I

would never have even dreamed that that kind of

stuff would be happening. We’re the only ones

that know for sure what we’re doing. Inside,

when I’m playing my instrument, my own per-

sonal feelings about it—it still feels the same,

and not much different from the first time I

picked it up. It’s like, what is this thing? What

am I going to do with this? I’ve told this story a

bunch of times. I got to meet Bill Evans once.

This was in the early 1970s. Soon after I had

started to get into this music—trying to figure

out what jazz was… I was living in Denver. I

was in college. Bill Evans was one of my big-

gest heroes. He was playing in this little club in

Denver for a week, and I went every night.

Night after night I would go, and I was just hav-

ing these religious experiences. I just couldn’t

believe what they were playing. I thought if you

practiced real hard, you’d get to a level that was

just taking off all the time—that it would be this

ecstatic, amazing thing that you’d be playing

music that way. So one night after the perfor-

mance, I was with my friends, and we were go-

ing to my car. The streets were all deserted. We

go around the corner, and there’s Bill Evans just

standing there all by himself—in the middle of

the street, lost. I guess his ride didn’t show up.

So we started talking to him. I gave him a ride

back to his hotel. We were saying, “Oh, Mr.

Evans, we can’t believe how amazing the music

is.” And, the first thing that he said was “Oh

man, tonight I couldn’t play sh*t.” I was think-

ing, “What? You’ve gotta be kidding me!” To

me it was just this heavenly music. And, it sud-

denly dawned on me that you have to face up to

whatever it is every time you play. It’s a long

way around to say that no matter what anybody

says positive … I appreciate when people say

positive things about what I do. But whether it is

positive or negative, they still don’t know what’s

really going on, and whatever it is I’m going

through to try to make it.

JI: Could you comment on the infinite nature of

the music, and the lifelong pursuit that goes with

it, and it’s relevance for you?

BF: That’s the other realization. There’s not a

finish line with music. It just goes on and on and

on. That’s what’s amazing about music. It’s

infinite. You can never finish anything. Some-

times people ask if I have any specific goals.

The only goal is to just stay in it and keep going.

JI: You’ve maintained this starry-eyed humility

in the face of all of the success you’ve had and

the wonderful players you’ve had the opportuni-

ty to play with. Yet it appears that you have not

been overly consumed with copying other influ-

ential players, or working to develop an identifi-

able voice. Yet, somehow in staying on the path,

you have come to just that.

BF: I haven’t avoided … I do try to absorb

whatever I can of whoever it is I’m playing with.

But, I never can get it right. [laughs]…. So it

ends up… I think a lot of what our individual

voices are, are a result of our limitations. I think

that whatever my voice it, is …. I do try to copy

everything. But I just can’t duplicate it. For me,

music is about that exchange and the conversa-

tion and the give and take when you’re with

other players. I’m trying to get whatever I can

from them. I listen and try to learn. There’s that

story about Miles Davis. When he was young he

couldn’t play stuff like Dizzy Gillespie could.

So he’d play it in a lower range. I’m oversimpli-

fying what the story was. But if Miles could

have played exactly like Dizzy Gillespie, that

would be great. But then we wouldn’t have had

Miles Davis. With music, it’s a world where you

can try anything and you don’t have to do it any

particular way.

JI: The greatest obstacle to discovery is the illu-

sion of knowledge, according to Dan Boorstin,

former Librarian of Congress. What do you

think?

BF: It’s clear to me that I don’t know much

about anything. To me it’s important to do the

work. You can really get yourself bogged down

in being too self critical or thinking that you’re

really happening. You have to be critical to a

point and good enough to a point, but you have

to just get deep into what you’re doing. That to

me is the best feeling—those moments when I’m

trying to write or when I’m on a gig playing.

When the stuff is really happening, you’re im-

mersed in it and you’re not thinking about

whether it’s bad or good, you’re just inside of it.

There are moments where you just forget all that

stuff and you just get lost in the process of doing

it. Or, if you’re on a gig, and everything is hap-

pening—as soon as you have the realization that

it is happening, it usually crashes down.

“The overall picture of the whole group—whoever all is playing—that, with him is the

priority. It’s not about the drums or the soloing. It’s just about the communication amongst whoever is playing. That is what is always so inspiring and intense about

playing with him. I know that even the slightest gesture or anything that I play is affecting what he does—and vice versa.

It’s a real intense listening kind of thing.”

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No one does “vintage” better, and you deserve the best.

Steve Maxwell

Midtown Manhattan 242 W. 30th Street, New York, NY 10001 Ph: 212-730-8138 Hours: 11–7 M–F; 11–6 Sat

Chicagoland 2000 Bloomingdale Road, Unit #110 Glendale Heights, IL 60139 Ph: 630-237-4997 Hours: 11–6 Fri; 10–5 Sat | Additional hours by appointment.

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Community of

Professional

Drummers and

Drum Lovers

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Bob Baldwin AS PIANIST, CONTEMPORARY

KEYBOARD ARTIST, LEADER —

RECORDINGS featuring Eric

Essix, Kim Waters, Gerald

Albright, Lenny White, Larry

Coryell, Chuck Loeb, Russ

Freeman (Rippingtons), Euge

Groove, Najee, Walter

Beasley, Marion Meadows ...

AS PRODUCER/COMPOSER/

ARRANGER for Paul Brown/

Bob James (#1 Radio), Regina

Carter, The Four Tops, Grover

Washington, Jr., Richard El-

liot, Marion Meadows, Ragan

Whiteside, Euge Groove, Ra-

gan Whiteside, Lori Williams,

Will Downing . There's more

to come, including some

strong indie artists. Stay

tuned...

AS RADIO HOST: With over 40

stations and a following of

500,000 listeners weekly,

the NewUrbanJazz Radio pro-

gram

ORDER THESE

RECORDINGS

VISITVISIT BobBaldwin.comBobBaldwin.com NewUrbanJazz.comNewUrbanJazz.com

http://www.bobbaldwin.com

Documents

Eric Nemeyer’s · how to solo around the changes. It was this period when I was learning all about jazz. I found my musical style leaning more towards a modal sound versus a bebop