Category Archives: Past Featured Artist

The Trumpet That Listens by MARK ALLRED “Every listener to jazz has had a few experiences so startling that they are literally unforgettable. One of mine took place during an engagement the Dizzy Gillespie big band had at Birdland in … Continue reading →

Biography: Joni Mitchell (born Roberta Joan Anderson; November 7, 1943) – Part Two by Mark Allred As promised this 2nd part of Joni Mitchell will delve a little deeper specifically in the individual Mitchell songs from the CDs in the … Continue reading →

Biography: Joni Mitchell (born Roberta Joan Anderson; November 7, 1943) – Part One: Joni Mitchell by Mark Allred “A singer, composer and lyricist of exceptional talent and unmatched influence, Joni Mitchell has crafted an extraordinary body of work spanning more … Continue reading →

Biography: Indianapolis-born trombonist/composer J. J. Johnson virtually reinvented the trombone for the purposes of postwar jazz.  A perfectionist in the realm of music and a man utterly dedicated to making the trombone do what he wanted, Johnson evolved a level … Continue reading →

Biography: Hubbard started playing the mellophone and trumpet in his school band, studying at the Jordan Conservatory with the principal trumpeter of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In his teens Hubbard worked locally with brothers Wes and Monk Montgomery and worked … Continue reading →

Biography: (b. November 1, 1959 Lawton, Oklahoma, USA) by Mark Allred “But the great thing about jazz is that nothing is so sacred that it can’t be recomposed and reinvented and rediscovered.”  – Conrad Herwig New York jazz trombonist Conrad Herwig has … Continue reading →

Biography: DAVE DOUGLAS (born March 24, 1963) “Trumpet Player of the Year”, “Jazz Artist of the Year”, the Guy with Two First Names by Mark Allred By now, Dave Douglas has been named “Trumpet Player of the Year” and “Jazz … Continue reading →

Biography: “This is not music to roller skate by,” wrote A.B. Spellman of jazz multi-instrumentalist Eric Dolphy’s 1964 release Out to Lunch.  Consisting entirely of compositions written by Dolphy, Out to Lunch demands attention from the listener from its first notes.  By the third song … Continue reading →

Biography For many, Bing Crosby’s musical legacy remains nothing more than the annual Christmas ritual of watching the 1954 film White Christmas.  He appears to some as the antiquated song and dance man in black and white; the old fashioned … Continue reading →

Biography: Julian Edwin “Cannonball” Adderley, a legendary alto saxophonist, was born in Tampa, FL on Sept. 15, 1928. The nickname “Cannonball” came to him early on in his childhood and referred to his portly stature. He will always be known … Continue reading →