Jazz Backstory

The jazz life is not an easy one and the life skills learned along the path can be relevant to anyone, in any field of endeavor. Season 4 ends with profound statements from Charles McPherson, Stefon Harris, Karolina Strassmayer, Maria Schneider, Denis DiBlasio, Joe Williams, Harold Ousley and Gregory Caputo.

Veteran jazz musicians share their wisdom in the form of advice to those who wish to follow in their footsteps. Phil Woods, Jerry Bergonzi, Dan Barrett, Wayne Bergeron, Tom “Bones” Malone, Teri Lynne Carrington and Rick Montalbano offer practical guidance, gained from decades of gigs.

Music played a positive, even lifesaving role for soldiers during the Korean and Vietnam War years. In this episode, we hear from Jake Hanna, Frank Foster, Onaje Allan Gumbs, Junior Mance and Hal Espinosa.

Jazz musicians were not exempt from service in the U.S. military. Jay McShann, John Bunch, Louis Bellson, Terry Gibbs, Clark Terry, Orrin Keepnews, George Wein, Joe Bushkin and Bobby Johnson speak about their experiences during WWII.

A band leader sampler. Veteran sidemen Eddie Bert, Peter Erskine, Don Menza and Marshall Allen provide inside stories about Glenn Miller, Stan Kenton, Buddy Rich, Sun Ra and Joe Zawinul. Maria Schneider weighs in on the role and responsibility of a leader.

Benny Goodman played a marvelous clarinet and his bands sold a ton of records while packing audiences into dance halls and Carnegie style halls. He was also enigmatic and frequently oblivious of his surroundings. Jerry Jerome, Sonny Igoe, Bucky Pizzarelli, Flip Phillips and Skitch Henderson share their memories of working with The King of Swing.

For pure swing, the bands lead by William “Count” Basie will never be equaled. Harry “Sweets” Edison, Ed Shaughnessey, Snooky Young, Gerald Wilson and Joe Williams offer personal anecdotes and insights that help us understand the man who personified big band swing.

Our first four episodes look at iconic big band leaders, beginning with Edward “Duke “ Ellington. Former sidemen and associates including Clark Terry, Phoebe Jacobs, Bill Berry, Buster Cooper, Grover Mitchell, Louis Bellson and John Lamb offer inside stories that illuminate the Duke's unique talent and personality.

Season 3 wraps up with powerful stories of aspiring jazz players who were willing to follow their passion even if it meant leaving their homeland. Joe Temperley, James Moody, Pierre Boussaguett, Ada Rovatti , Arturo Sandoval and Rossano Sportiello help us understand the jazz calling.

Jazz was the first American music to be embraced and copied around the world. Its infectious swing and message of democracy between musicians rang a bell from Scotand to Japan. Steve Allen, Dave Brubeck, Alan Raph, Ignacio Berroa, Eiji Kitamura and Toshiko Akiyoshi speak to the magnetic attraction of American jazz.

For many black musicians, jazz was more than a gig and a way to make bread. Cecil McBee, Jon Hendricks, Rashied Ali, Doug Carn and Vincent Pelote speak about the importance of this music in their lives and its role in bridging the distance between races, on and off the bandstand.

Jazz is one of America's most original art forms. Its origins are well documented but controversy regarding ownership and race vs. skill persist. The opinions that matter most are offered by the practitioners. Jon Hendricks, Frank Foster, Lionel Hampton, Clark Terry and Louis Bellson weigh in on the topic of jazz and race.

Current arrangers including Oliver Nelson Jr., Steve Turre, Maria Schneider, Dave Rivello, and Lisa Parrott share their philosophies about music software, deadlines and enabling other musicians to sound good.

In the early days of jazz, musicians engaged in group improvisations, creating arrangements on the fly. As bands became larger, the writing down of parts for individual players became a requirement. Present and past jazz arrangers including Stefon Harris, Mike Abene, Ray Conniff, Bill Holman and Frank Foster speak about their craft.

Los Angeles eventually rivaled New York as a center for recording with an emphasis on pop music and film scores. Jazz players were the go to hires once again. Paul Smith, Ernie Watts, Bobby Shew, Wayne Bergeron and Tom Scott take us inside the L.A. recording studios.

After the big band era played itself out, the most versatile jazz musicians found plentiful work in the studios, recording every genre of music imaginable. Episode 19 focuses on the East Coast recording scene, specifically New York City. Dick Hyman, Bucky Pizzarelli, Alan Raph and Manny Albam share their studio stories.

Helen Dance, George Avakian, Orrin Keepnews and Joel Dorn do their best to describe the role of a jazz producer, the person “behind the glass.”

A second spin on the recording business with stories from James Moody, Alicia Olatuja, Bela Fleck and Steve Allen.

One nighters, life on a bus and minimal salaries may seem worth it when jazz musicians finally find themselves in a recording studio. Doc Cheatham, Toshiko Akiyoshi, John Best and others speak about memorable records and recording sessions.

Sonny Igoe, Al Grey, Ruth Brown and Joe Wilder offer more road tales both poignant and humorous. Racial discrimination plays a role in these road travails.

Musicians need gigs and they need to go anywhere they can find them. The “romance” of the road becomes realistic with tales from Bucky Pizzarelli, Kenny Davern, Carmen Leggio and Jimmy Lewis.

Swing is inseparable from jazz, yet remains an elusive quality. Episode 11 takes a deep dive in what makes music swing and calls on Ed Shaughnessey, Steve Allen, Bernard Purdie and Gerald Wilson for expert input.

The “rich jazz musician” oxymoron is the focus of Part 2. Billy Bauer, Ellis Marsalis, Marshall Allen and others address the issue of money, or lack thereof, that is an ever present concern in the jazz life.

What possesses young musicians to start down the jazz path and keep following it, simply liking the music isn't nearly enough. Artists including Sheila Jordan, Don Alias, Ron Carter and Flip Phillips attempt to describe the devotion to the music.

We wrap up Season 1 with a second slice. Stories from Benny Powell, Bill Watrous, Charles Davis, Ronnie Zito and Glenn Zottola make it clear that the jazz life itself is an improvisation.

The life of a jazz musician is never boring. George Shearing, Marian McPartland, Terry Gibbs and Milt Hinton regale us with behind-the-scenes scenarios, both poignant and absurd.

The task of defining the undefinable falls to a second group of improvisors. Bill Watrous, Jane Ira Bloom, Dr. Denny Zeitlin and Michael Weiss add their personal perspectives.

Improvisation is at the core of a jazz performance and we called on Joe Wilder, Dianne Reeves, Bill Charlap and Charles McPherson to describe what it is and how it is done.

Dr. Billy Taylor, Phil Woods, Holly Hofmann and Jerry Jerome continue the tales of entering the jazz life before the music was accepted by academia.

Inspiration set the path to jazz, the subsequent learning process required mentors, trial and error and “dues paying." Sweets Edison, Clark Terry, Eddie Locke and John Pizzarelli share their memories.

A second set of engaging “a-ha” anecdotes from Kenny Davern, Nat Adderley, Annie Ross and Junior Mance.

It all starts somewhere, and often early on. Jazz Backstory begins with tales of childhood inspiration, moments that in retrospect, launched careers. Interviewees include Jon Hendricks. Sherrie Maricle, Dave Valentin and Ed Shaughnessey.