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…
All of Miles Davis’ recordings with his namesake nonet are compiled on The Complete Birth Of The Cool.
(Photo: ©Herman Leonard Photography, LLC)If you’re shopping for gifts this holiday season, DownBeat has got you covered with our 2019 Holiday Gift Guide.
We’ve got articles on vinyl releases, archival recordings and musical gear/accessories. Plus, our Yuletide Music Roundup shines a spotlight on the best holiday albums of 2019.
Check out our features on the new Blue Note documentary, a batch of blues box sets, some early work by Nat “King” Cole, Miles Davis’ nonet, Erroll Garner reissues, late-period Art Pepper and a Stevie Ray Vaughan biography.
Keep in mind that many independent record shops do not sell out of all their Record Store Day inventory on Black Friday. So, stop by your local shop to see if it has any goodies left from RSD Black Friday. Our preview also provides a Top 10 list of the best releases for Record Store Day Black Friday.
Additionally, DownBeat makes the perfect gift for anyone who loves jazz. We’ve got great deals on subscriptions, whether you want to read DownBeat in print, online or on your tablet. And don’t forget to sign up for our monthly newsletter.
To read the Holiday Gift Guide from our December issue, click here.
To read the Yuletide Music Roundup for 2019, click here.
To order a subscription to DownBeat, or to buy a DownBeat book, hat or T-shirt, click here. DB
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.…