Jazz
James Singleton was born in Chicago and took to playing bass at an early age. After performing in the Chicago area and briefly attending the University of North Texas, James was called to New Orleans to perform with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. As he cut his teeth further with Brown, James became a...
Donald Harrison Jr. was born in New Orleans to a deeply musical family steeped in all styles of music: brass bands, jazz, R&B, funk, and world music. His father was a Mardi Gras Indian Big Chief, an offshoot of the cultural tradition that goes all the way back to the time of Congo Square. ...
Neil Leonard began playing saxophone at a young age and it's no wonder, his father was a noted Jazz historian and author. After being greatly influenced by the Pink Floyd album "Dark Side of the Moon", Neil registered for classes at Berklee in Boston (1979). He fully embraced electronic...
Billy Arnold played drums behind several Motown recordings including those with saxophonist, Junior Walker. While he often played a Gretsch kit, Billy never fussed about having to set up his kit in the recording studio and gained a reputation for using the drums that were already set-up. After...
Emilio Lyons would often have his well-known customers such as Stan Getz and Benny Carter meet him at his home whenever they needed work done on their saxophone. Emilio was the manager for a music store in Boston while also repairing instruments whenever he could. Over the years he built a...
Ramsey Lewis had a monster hit record with his jazz version of "The In Crowd." The song, which is considered to be the quintessential instrumental jazz hit of the 60s, led to a series of other recordings including sessions with Earth, Wind & Fire. Ramsey began playing organ and piano in church...
Bob Koester was the founder of the Delmark label who began recording blues and jazz in 1953 in St. Louis. He later moved to Chicago where he helped define the music scene by recording artists such as Bud Powell, Donald Byrd, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy, Luther Allison, Magic Sam, Otis Rush, Sonny Stitt...
Bernard Van Doren is the grandson of the founder of Vandoren Paris, the world famous reed maker. His grandfather, Eugene, formed the company in 1905 based on his technique of making high quality reeds. His father, Robert, expanded the company to include other products and introduced the renowned...
Papa John DeFrancesco was taught music by his father, a saxophonist for several big bands during the great Swing era. Papa John first played trumpet and later began playing the organ, which became his main instrument. He turned his two sons, Johnny and Joey, onto music and recorded with both over...
Jim Plank grew up in San Diego, California and can tell you all about the music stores in and around the area, especially since he began playing drums in the 1950s. Jim became a professional musician playing with the likes of Mike and Joe Pass. He later added to his musicianship by mastering the...