Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM
In Memoriam: John Hammond Jr., 1942–2026
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
Bassist John Patitucci has released his new Line By Line (Concord). He plays acoustic and electric basses on the disc, which also features an array of colleagues, including guitarist Adam Rogers, drummer Brian Blade and tenor saxophonist Chris Potter.
Most of the disc is comprised of Patitucci’s compositions, which draw on his experiences in jazz, classical and Brazilian music. He also interprets Thelonious Monk’s “Evidence,” Rogers’ “Dry September” and the spiritual, “Jesus Is On The Mainline.”
“I’ve always been averse to having one sound or orchestration for an entire record,” Patitucci said. “My goal was to have a lot of variety, hopefully without being too schizoid. Various heroes over the years have reinforced the idea of doing things with colors and expanded instrumentations—Wayne Shorter tops the list. I wanted to find a way to do it that was comfortable for me, and try to find a personal path.”
Hammond came to the blues through the folk boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s, which he experienced firsthand in New York’s Greenwich Village.
Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
“Cerebral and academic thought is a different way to approach music,” Flea says of his continuing dive into jazz. “I’ve always relied on emotion and intuition and physicality.”
Mar 30, 2026 10:30 PM
In the relatively small pantheon of certifiable rock stars venturing into the intersection of pop music and jazz, the…
Vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater will be among the headliners at this year’s DC JazzFest.
Mar 2, 2026 9:48 PM
The first wave of artists scheduled to perform at the 2026 DC JazzFest have been announced. This year’s headliners…
“These days, with curated news, where people only get half the story, people can’t even speak to family members anymore,” Schneider laments.
Mar 10, 2026 1:43 PM
Maria Schneider is doing her part to try to fix what ails America. Which got her thinking about crows, specifically,…
Each of the 25 JAMs has delivered a poster featuring a jazz legend that is sent out to schools across the nation. This year’s poster features Tony Bennett.
Mar 30, 2026 10:20 PM
Every April for the past quarter century, something remarkable has happened across the United States and far beyond.…
