Aug 26, 2025 1:53 PM
Blindfold Test: Buster Williams
Buster Williams, who at the age of 83 has been on the scene for 65 years, had never done a Blindfold Test. The first…
“I’m self-taught, an autodidact as they call it,” said composer Gregg Hill.
(Photo: Lynne Brown)At a recent performance at the Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe in the Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe, Michigan, bassist Rodney Whitaker celebrated the release of his new album, Mosaic (Origin). During a set that included the tunes “Sloe Gin Fizz” and “Unknown Ballad,” listeners stayed glued to each note he played. Even the bartender was transfixed.
Unbeknown to the audience, the music was written by a Lansing-based composer named Gregg Hill. Jazz musicians including Whitaker, guitarist Randy Napoleon and trombonist Michael Dease have recorded Hill’s music, with “The Music of Gregg Hill” in all their album titles. So, the question must be asked: Who is Gregg Hill, and why have musicians clamored to record his music?
“I’m self-taught, an autodidact as they call it, but the passion hasn’t diminished. This is a 60-year-old thing, and it’s still going strong,” Hill said about his love for jazz.
To put Hill’s music into a conventional shell is impossible. Sometimes you hear a little Billy Strayhorn and John Coltrane, but always with a modern twist. His compositions allow for interpretation and in his melodies are elements of surprise and freedom. He’s not writing to impress anybody. He’s just writing to write.
Hill, 79, is a slender, white-haired gentleman who never fashioned himself a professional musician. His journey as a sought-after jazz composer came later in life. He grew up in Midland, Michigan, and his love for music was nurtured by his parents, big band fans who would travel anywhere Duke Ellington performed.
Hill played saxophone and wanted to attend the Berklee School of Music back in the day, but his parents refused to send him. So, he attended Michigan State University, dropped out and moved to New York. There, he soaked up the 1960s jazz scene at clubs such as Slugs Saloon, where Sun Ra, Yusef Lateef and Archie Shepp held court.
Between 1968 and 1973, Hill bounced around a bit, with short stints in Detroit, California and Denver. He eventually returned to his hometown of Lansing and started a family. He was a professional truck driver for 25 years and worked for his son’s technology firm.
After settling down, Hill felt the urge to write. He composed 60 tunes over a 20-year period. In 2013, he decided to transcribe and record them, then put out a sample book. That’s when he connected with Whitaker, who heard his tunes and wanted to record the material. The two had been friends for years from living in Lansing.
“I was floored when Rodney said he wanted to record my tunes,” recalled Hill. “I didn’t expect that from him because he is definitely higher up on the music scene, and I was just sort of an unknown composer.”
Their first collaboration was 2019’s Common Ground. Since then, they have recorded four albums together, the latest being Mosaic. Released in February, the record is Whitaker’s favorite to date. “I think the selection of tunes was incredible, and this is the third project that I’ve done with this particular band, so I think people know Gregg’s writing style and his music more than when we did the first one,” the bassist said.
Much of the magic stems from the solid collaborative relationship Hill has established with musicians. “I just give them the compositions, and I give them the freedom to arrange as they please and hire the musicians as they please,” Hill said. “It’s like they’re providing a second layer of creativity to what I’m doing.”
Napoleon has a similar bond with Hill, collaborating with him twice. Their 2024 release, The Door Is Open (Origin), was named one of the best albums of the year by DownBeat and topped the Roots Music Report charts. Long before teaming up, they were good friends who met on a jazz cruise some 15 years ago. Napoleon didn’t know Hill was a composer until much later. Their upcoming album, Waking Dream, features five guitars and rhythm section.
“Each progressive project has been more expansive and adventurous,” Napoleon said. “And sometimes it’s hard to know where Gregg’s music ends and where mine starts, because he is so deeply collaborative and open to anything you want to do.”
According to Napoleon and Dease, common denominators that make Hill’s compositions distinct are his complex melodies and harmonies, as well as his unconventional writing. Those differences drew Dease to Hill’s music while recording Whitaker’s 2021 album OUTROSPECTION. After hearing Napoleon and Whitaker’s records of Hill’s music, he decided to join them. Hill was the first composer that Dease worked with outside of recording standards and his own music.
“That was a big moment for me,” said Dease. “Because it really felt like connecting with someone else’s musical mind but still trying to keep my own identity. In a way, it kind of refines your identity and challenges it to stay relevant.”
Dease has released three recordings of Hill’s music. City Life, the most recent, features bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts.
In 2019, Hill started his own label, Cold Plunge Records. He has published five songbooks with more than 170 compositions (160 songs have been performed or recorded so far), and his sixth songbook is pending.
Hill is also a jazz philanthropist. He formed the nonprofit organization Jazz Alliance of Michigan with his wife, Lois, and has been a main sponsor of the East Lansing Jazz Festival for years. He also helps support musicians in the Lansing community and holds weekly jam sessions in the area.
“Playing is not my calling. Composing is my calling,” he said. “Do you work on your weak points, or do you work on your strong points? In my case, I unanimously show strong points in composing, so I’m going to stick with that.” DB
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