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…
German organist Jermaine Landsberger will release his North American debut, Gettin Blazed (Resonance) on April 14.
The CD, produced by George Klabin and Joe Donofrio, features guitarists Pat Martino and Andreas Öberg, saxophonist/flautist Gary Meek, keyboardist Kuno Schmid, bassist James Genus and drummer Harvey Mason.
“Jermaine is totally unknown here,” said Klabin, who recorded the album in Los Angeles. “I had told Andreas that one day I would love to record a good organ player, and he recommended Jermaine, whom I had never heard of. I went to his MySpace page and what I heard was wonderful. So we invited him here—it was his first time in the U.S.—and put together a stellar band that would challenge him. The album turned out to be everything that I thought it could be.”
Landsberger’s style is distinctive in that he doesn’t play many left-hand bass lines.
“George wanted James Genus to handle the bass so that I was free to play my two-handed style at all times,” Landsberger said. “I can be more flexible, and you will hear different approaches on various tunes. George’s open attitude inspired me to be creative, to use my pianistic abilities to interpret each song in whatever way I wanted. Playing with these great musicians also challenged me to be my best.”
Details: resonancerecords.org
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.”
Mar 30, 2026 10:30 PM
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.
Mar 2, 2026 9:48 PM
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,…
