May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins Passes Away at 95
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
Frank Sinatra Jr. (1944–2016) performs at the Seminole Casino in Coconut Creek, Florida, in 2012.
(Photo: Stephanie Shacter)Frank Sinatra Jr., who helped extend his father’s legacy into the 21st century while carving out his own distinct voice as a singer, songwriter and conductor, died on Wednesday of a massive heart attack while on tour in Daytona Beach, Florida. He was 72.
Sinatra Jr. was the middle child of his father, Frank Sr., and Nancy Barbato Sinatra. He began performing in his mid-teens for the Sam Donahue band, and later spent time in ensembles led by Duke Ellington and Nelson Riddle.
In 1963, when Sinatra Jr. was 19, he was kidnapped from a Lake Tahoe hotel by three men who demanded a ransom for his release. He was returned to his family two days later after his father agreed to pay the kidnappers $240,000.
Onstage, Rollins would move about restlessly, thrusting his tenor sax in the air as he blew.
May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
To the world, James Blood Ulmer was a legend, a visionary and a musical force whose sound was distinctive and unique. To his family, he was their teacher, their storyteller and a source of strength.
Jun 9, 2026 10:54 AM
With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
How best to mark Miles Davis’ centennial? By allowing the stories to flow, and cross-discussions to happen.
May 26, 2026 10:40 AM
Editor’s Note: The iconic trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis would have turned 100 today (May 26, 2026).…
Clockwise from top left, Mary Halvorson, Patricia Brennan, Adam O’Farrill, Keith Jarrett’s At the Deer Head Inn: The Complete Recordings, Sheila Jordan and Jaki Byard.
Jul 16, 2026 1:34 PM
The DownBeat Critics Poll never ceases to amaze! And the 74th Edition offered plenty of accolades for poll veterans and…
Ibrahim was an early jazz acolyte, studying the music via 78s he would buy from soldiers stationed in South Africa — who also gave him the nickname “Dollar.”
Jun 30, 2026 3:19 PM
Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
