Aug 12, 2025 10:24 AM
Vocalist Sheila Jordan Dies at 96
Sheila Jordan, a vocalist who was celebrated for her scatting and lyric-improvising abilities, died Aug. 11 at her home…
Pianist Joey Alexander recently performed at the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival in June alongside bassist Kris Funn and drummer Jonathan Pinson.
(Photo: Courtesy of Artist)His method for developing his musicianship also was simple. “The more I listened, the more I played,” he remembered. “My dad would have me listen to records and follow along. I tried to feel like I was playing with that group on the record. That helped me listen and interact with other musicians around me when I did start playing live. So, for me, it wasn’t just about technique. To learn this music, I had to learn to communicate. That’s what jazz is, to me.”
In addition to his playing, Eclipse documents Alexander’s growth as a composer. He wrote six of its 11 cuts and—to make sure bassist Reuben Rogers and drummer Eric Harland had internalized them by the time they tracked—he booked three dates with them just before heading into Dreamland Recording Studios in Hurley, New York. But when he brought Joshua Redman in to record “The Very Thought Of You” as a duo, his approach differed.
“This was the first time we ever played together,” Alexander explained. “I chose this one because it’s one of my favorite ballads. I have other favorites as well, but I wanted to try this one out. We rehearsed it only one time. He really listened and got the feel right away. I’m really thankful that that song is on the album.”
Since his 2015 debut, My Favorite Things (Motéma), Alexander has reached a position few musicians achieve: being informed equally by youth and experience. With this perspective, Alexander can reflect on what he might have sacrificed, as well as achieved, to reach this crossroads.
“There are some challenges,” he acknowledged. “It’s not that easy to be in jazz, especially being young. Sometimes, people don’t take your music seriously. Sometimes, they look only at how young you are and how good you are being young. But that’s the path I’ve been given. I’m just grateful to be able to play for people everywhere I go.” DB
Jordan was a dyed-in-the-wool bebopper whose formative musical experiences were with Charlie Parker.
Aug 12, 2025 10:24 AM
Sheila Jordan, a vocalist who was celebrated for her scatting and lyric-improvising abilities, died Aug. 11 at her home…
“I don’t guess I’m going to excite you; I know I’m going to excite you,” Palmieri said in an August 1994 DownBeat feature.
Aug 12, 2025 10:33 AM
Famed Latin jazz composer, bandleader and pianist Eddie Palmieri passed away in his New Jersey home on Aug. 6. He was…
“What I got from Percy was the dignity of playing the bass,” Buster Williams said of Percy Heath.
Aug 26, 2025 1:53 PM
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 love the place that fate or whatever has positioned me in Gil Evans’ life and legacy,” said Ryan Truesdell.
Aug 5, 2025 12:26 PM
“I originally set out to give two years of my life to Gil,” Ryan Truesdell said of his mindset in 2009, when he…
Don and Maureen Sickler serve as the keepers of engineer Rudy Van Gelder’s flame at Van Gelder Studio, perhaps the most famous recording studio in jazz history.
Sep 3, 2025 12:02 PM
On the last Sunday of 2024, in the control room of Van Gelder Studio, Don and Maureen Sickler, co-owners since Rudy Van…
