Jun 9, 2026 10:54 AM
In Memoriam: James Blood Ulmer, 1940–2026
With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
Conguero Ray Barretto, one of the leading forces on the Latin Jazz scene, died Friday morning at at the Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. Barretto had suffered a heart attack in January, shortly after he received the NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship. He was 76.
The son of Puerto Rican parents, Barretto was born in Brooklyn on April 29, 1929, and grew up in the Bronx and Spanish Harlem. While he was reared with Afro-Latin music, he became involved with jazz in the late ‘40s by sitting in at various sessions. After a tour with the U.S. Army in Europe in the early ‘50s, he became a music professional in 1954. He first worked with Jose Curbelo for two years, then joined Tito Puente, replacing Mongo Santamaria. Following four years with Puente, he left to join Herbie Mann, then formed his own band after four months.
Barretto had also been working and recording as a first-call Latin percussionist with jazz players such as Red Garland, Gene Ammons, Lou Donaldson, Cannonball Adderley, Dizzy Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard and others. His leadership credentials were cemented by the 1963 crossover hit “El Watusi” and he has continued to lead groups since that time, including New World Spirit, which he formed in 1992, the most directly linked to his Latin-jazz roots.
To the world, James Blood Ulmer was a legend, a visionary and a musical force whose sound was distinctive and unique. To his family, he was their teacher, their storyteller and a source of strength.
Jun 9, 2026 10:54 AM
With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
Clockwise from top left, Mary Halvorson, Patricia Brennan, Adam O’Farrill, Keith Jarrett’s At the Deer Head Inn: The Complete Recordings, Sheila Jordan and Jaki Byard.
Jul 16, 2026 1:34 PM
The DownBeat Critics Poll never ceases to amaze! And the 74th Edition offered plenty of accolades for poll veterans and…
A drummer’s drummer, Rodney Holmes gigged with everyone from Joe Zawinul and Carlos Santana to Steve Kimock and the Brecker Brothers.
Jul 22, 2026 12:37 PM
Drummer Rodney Holmes, a powerful presence behind the kit who emerged as an in-demand player on the New York scene…
Ibrahim was an early jazz acolyte, studying the music via 78s he would buy from soldiers stationed in South Africa — who also gave him the nickname “Dollar.”
Jun 30, 2026 3:19 PM
Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
Joe Lovano’s Paramount Quartet will record live at New York’s Village Vanguard for ECM records on Aug. 26–27.
Jul 22, 2026 12:46 PM
One of Joe Lovano’s buzz terms is “the moment of now” and with seemingly infinite patience — despite a schedule…
