Jul 1, 2019 11:09 AM
Billie Holiday for the First Time Tells Why She Left Shaw & Basie: ‘Too Many Bad Kicks’
CHICAGO—You sit with Billie Holiday and watch her smoke cigarettes chain fashion. The first thing that strikes you is…
Billie Holiday and her dog, Mister, in New York City during February 1947
Jul 1, 2019 11:09 AM
CHICAGO—You sit with Billie Holiday and watch her smoke cigarettes chain fashion. The first thing that strikes you is…
Oscar Peterson (1925–2007)
Jun 3, 2019 9:54 AM
I have long been disturbed about what I’ve seen of the state of mind of the average young jazz musician around the…
Mahalia Jackson (1911–1972)
May 6, 2019 9:00 AM
“Mahalia, she was a girl in the slave days. She was dreaming of jubilee all the time. Of better days to come. My…
Ornette Coleman (1930–2015)
Apr 1, 2019 2:35 PM
Ekkehard Jost’s description of Ornette Coleman’s music—despite being a little too academic for such a soulful and…
“Doing shows and festivals under your own name, it’s a surprisingly big difference compared to playing with someone else,” saxophonist Kamasi Washington said, discussing the attention he’s received since the release of The Epic (Brainfeeder). “There is a lot of responsibility.”
Mar 1, 2019 9:00 AM
Considering Kamasi Washington’s bold, dramatic ascendancy on the international jazz scene during the past year, it…
Galt MacDermot (1928–2018)
Jan 31, 2019 2:01 PM
Long before he wrote the scores for Hair and Two Gentlemen of Verona, Galt MacDermot had made his mark in popular…
Nancy Wilson (1937-2018)
Dec 14, 2018 9:29 AM
Grammy-winning jazz and r&b vocalist Nancy Wilson has died, according to a statement from her manager. Devra Hall Levy…
Kenny Werner
Nov 27, 2018 11:25 AM
On a warm June evening, a small crowd of clean-cut young adults stood in front of the Manhattan jazz club Iridium…
Pianist Teddy Wilson (1912–1986)
Oct 26, 2018 9:00 AM
Hundreds of pianists have tried to create something new and worthwhile in jazz piano improvisation, but only a handful…
Pianist and bandleader Lynne Arriale once told a journalist: “Jazz should not be only for jazz lovers.”
Oct 1, 2018 9:00 AM
A few years ago, in conversation with a reporter from London’s The Sunday Times, Lynne Arriale made the quietly…
