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…
Hal Gaba, who, along with Norman Lear helped to build Concord Records from a small independent jazz label to one of the largest independent record labels in the world, died at his Los Angeles home on March 9 of prostate cancer. He was 63.
Gaba and Lear bought Concord Records in 1999, and immediately began to expand the company. From the purchase of Fantasy Records and Telarc to the company’s partnership with Starbuck’s that led to releases such as the Grammy winning Ray Charles album Genius Loves Company—in addition to a devotion to signing and promotion jazz artists at a time when few companies are—Concord became the preeminent label in jazz.
“A life-long passion, knowledge and commitment to popular music and film formed the basis of the close friendships he developed with many of the artists and colleagues he worked with and admired, always making sure that the artists’ creativity and careers were properly in the spotlight,” wrote Joel Amsterdam, Concord vice president of publicity, on Concord’s web site. “His genuine love, appreciation and generosity sustained those relationships throughout his life.”
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.”
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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.
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The first wave of artists scheduled to perform at the 2026 DC JazzFest have been announced. This year’s headliners…
Blindfold Test proctor Ted Panken, left, with the Grammy-winning Nicole Zuraitis.
Feb 24, 2026 12:00 PM
After earning the 2024 Best Jazz Vocal Album Grammy for her seventh album, How Love Begins (La Reserve), comprising 12…
“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,…
