Category Archives: New Orleans
An Interview with Kidd Jordan, July 2002
This interview with speculative improviser Kidd Jordan, best known internationally for his white-heat inventions on the tenor saxophone (and also the father of master musicians Kent Jordan [flute], Marlon Jordan [trumpet], and Stephanie Jordan [singer]) was taken for a short … Continue reading
Filed under Cadence, DownBeat, Kidd Jordan, New Orleans, Tenor Saxophone
A Jazziz Feature on Nicholas Payton From 2001
Although “never assume” is a motto I try to abide by, I would be surprised if anyone who checks out this way-station is unfamiliar with the latest firestorm that Nicholas Payton has combusted with his always thought-provoking blog with the … Continue reading
Filed under Article, Interview, Jazziz, New Orleans, Nicholas Payton, WKCR
A 2006 DownBeat Feature On Wynton Marsalis, Who Turned 50 Yesterday
I couldn’t attend Wynton Marsalis’s four 50th birthday concerts in which he presented repertoire from his 30+ years in the music business. All accounts state — no doubt accurately — that to witness them was an extraordinary experience. I’ve admired … Continue reading
Filed under Article, DownBeat, New Orleans, Wynton Marsalis
Dr. John (Mac Rebennack), Uncut Downbeat Blindfold Test, 2006
With Dr. John and the Lower 911s sharing the bill with Chuck Brown in Prospect Park tomorrow night, it seems like a good time to run the uncut version of the DownBeat Blindfold Test that I did with Mr. Rebennack … Continue reading
Filed under Blindfold Test, DownBeat, Dr. John, New Orleans
Two Interviews with Drummer Brian Blade
Continuing our mini-series on drummers informed by the Afro-diasporic elements of New Orleans culture, here are a pair of interviews with Brian Blade, who turned 41 on July 25th. The first conversation, which originally ran on www.musician.com, comes from 2001, … Continue reading
Filed under Drummer, Interview, Jazz.com, New Orleans
Idris Muhammad and George Coleman, WKCR, April 5, 1995
Continuing our mini New Orleans drummer series, here’s an encounter with Idris Muhammad from a week in 1995 when he was working with George Coleman at the Village Vanguard, one of three successive Vanguard gigs in an 18-month span that … Continue reading
Filed under Drummer, Interview, New Orleans, WKCR
Herlin Riley: New Orleans Drummer, 1999 Interview
Following up on yesterday’s post of a 1986 interview with Edward Blackwell, rich in cultural implication, here’s a dialogue with drummer Herlin Riley, the nephew of Melvin Lastie, Blackwell’s close friend. Riley’s c.v. includes a five-year run with Ahmad Jamal, … Continue reading
Filed under Drummer, Interview, New Orleans
Edward Blackwell, WKCR, May 4, 1986
Six or seven months after I began broadcasting on WKCR, Eustis Guillemet, a bass player from New Orleans, asked if I’d be interested in interviewing the iconic drummer Ed Blackwell (October 10, 1929 – October 7, 1992) on the Sunday … Continue reading
Filed under Drummer, Ed Blackwell, Interview, New Orleans, WKCR
Donald Harrison Turns 51 Today
This evening, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison, “Duck” to his friends, observes his 51st birthday with opening night of a three-night run at the Jazz Standard linked to his participation in the acclaimed HBO series Treme, for which his personal biography … Continue reading
Filed under Alto Saxophone, Article, DownBeat, New Orleans
