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…
Marquis Hill benefited from time spent at the Velvet Lounge, a jazz room on the South Side of Chicago run by saxophonist Fred Anderson (1929–2010).
(Photo: Todd Rosenberg)“It was blatant that this person was following me around the store, to the point that it felt like a shadow,” he said. “I had never felt like that in my life. After dinner, we got back on the tour bus and I wanted to put that feeling into music. I turned that negative situation into a tune.”
The agitation Hill felt is palpable in the skittery rhythms he employs, yet the piece maintains its lyrical bearings. For all the social concerns at the heart of Hill’s art, his music does not dwell in the darkness. That, he said, is due in no small measure to the influence of his grandmother, a constant touchpoint.
She was the inspiration for “The Watcher,” a reference to her role as an elder who, in the absence of police, kept an eye out in the neighborhood for developing problems. The tune, from Modern Flows Vol. 2, has its moments of alarm, heralded by ominous horn figures repeated over a rumble of bass and drums. Still, it displays a sense of equanimity throughout.
Another tune from Hill’s most recent work inspired by his grandmother, “It’s All Beautiful,” casts a soft glow as vibraphonist Ross’ harmonies illuminate the horns’ simple melody. By Hill’s account, the piece, rendered without embellishment, echoes his grandmother’s spirit—and, by extension, his own.
“She had a way of coping with the hardships of life by reminding us we have a choice,” he said. “In these crazy times, we can live in Hell. But I’d rather put my energy into something that’s beautiful.” 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…
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…
The Free Slave, Cosmos Nucleus and Sunset To Dawn: three classic Muse albums being reissued this fall by Timer Traveler Recordings.
Aug 26, 2025 1:32 PM
Record producer and “Jazz Detective” Zev Feldman has launched his next endeavor, the archival label Time Traveler…
