Feb 3, 2026 12:10 AM
In Memoriam: Ken Peplowski, 1959–2026
Ken Peplowski, a clarinetist and tenor saxophonist who straddled the worlds of traditional and modern jazz, died Feb. 2…
Composer, multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Gordon Goodwin knows that accolades can’t make his music better or worse.
(Photo: Joe Meyer)Axt, preferring a sportier analogy, said, “The Big Phat Band is like a Ferrari: It’s capable of doing a lot of things really well.”
As for Goodwin, the man with two Hondas in his garage, ruminating about luxury vehicles could strike a nerve. “Do you know what kind of car I’d be driving if I didn’t spend $75,000 on a record?” he asked, incredulously. “How many vacations did we miss? I was lucky that my family was supportive.”
He paused to reflect.
“Having said all that, there are reasons to do things besides money, and that’s of course why I’m doing this.”
The numerous awards he has received provide only so much motivation. The four-time Grammy winner recalled what he said to an interviewer after one of his triumphs: “As good as this feels to my ego, I know that this Grammy doesn’t make my music any better. Just as there are four guys out there who just lost, that doesn’t make their music any worse.”
A theme all the instrumentalists kept coming back to was how the Phat Band represents for them a chance to reclaim the music as a labor of love, a meaningful shared experience that transcends the workman-like industry model they have entered into (and profited from). “It’s like if you were a sous-chef in a restaurant,” Marienthal suggested, “and you just respect the head chef so much that you want to work as hard as it takes to make sure that the dream of a leader is realized. That’s how we feel about Gordon.”
Goodwin recognizes their loyalty in the context of fulfilling his dreams. “I am amazed by the chances I’ve had ... and the life I’ve been able to lead,” he said. “I’m stumbling as I say these words because it feels like I’m just getting started. I hope that I always feel that way. That’s how you stay alive and relevant.
“Music has been my driving force since I was very young. I know that whatever else is going on—on my worst day, I still get to write music—and what’s better than that? What’s better than having a kid come up and tell me, ‘I listened to the Phat Band, and it inspired me so much I want to learn music.’ What’s better than that? Is a Grammy better than that? I don’t think so.” DB
Peplowski first came to prominence in legacy swing bands, including the final iteration of the Benny Goodman Orchestra, before beginning a solo career in the late 1980s.
Feb 3, 2026 12:10 AM
Ken Peplowski, a clarinetist and tenor saxophonist who straddled the worlds of traditional and modern jazz, died Feb. 2…
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