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…
Billy Childs will release a new album for Mack Avenue Records on March 24.
(Photo: Courtesy of the artist)Mack Avenue Records has announced the addition of three major artists to its roster: keyboardist Cameron Graves, organist Joey DeFrancesco and composer/pianist Billy Childs, each of whom is scheduled to release an album in early 2017.
Graves—West Coast Get Down founding member and frequent Kamasi Washington collaborator—will launch his anticipated debut album, Planetary Prince, with Mack Avenue Records on Feb. 24. The album, an expansion of a four-song EP, features numerous West Coast Get Down regulars, including saxophonist Washington, trumpeter Philip Dizack, trombonist Ryan Porter, bassist Stephen “Thundercat” Bruner, bassist Hadrien Feraud and drummer Ronald Bruner, Jr.
Organist Joey DeFrancesco, who also plays trumpet and sings, will debut his first-ever quartet, Joey DeFrancesco & The People, with the release of Project Freedom on March 10. The new ensemble features guitarist Dan Wilson, saxophonist Troy Roberts and drummer Jason Brown. A tour in support of the album is planned.
Four-time Grammy Award winner Billy Childs returns to his jazz roots with the March 24 release of Rebirth. Joined by saxophonist Steve Wilson, bassist Hans Glawischnig and drummer Eric Harland—along with guests such as vocalists Alicia Olatuja and Claudia Acuna, trombonist Ido Meshulam and percussionist Rogerio Boccato—the album serves as a career retrospective and marks the 40th anniversary of Childs’ recording debut with trombone legend J.J. Johnson.
In April 2016 Mack Avenue Records acquired the St. Louis-based jazz imprint MAXJAZZ, expanding its roster to include such notable musicians as Mulgrew Miller, René Marie, Russell Malone and Geoffrey Keezer. For more information on the label’s website. DB
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…
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