Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
A select number of musicians throughout history have left indelible marks, taking the music to new heights on their instruments. J.J. Johnson was one of those. He was the first to adapt the complexities of bebop to the trombone, and every subsequent style on the instrument has been shaped upon the building blocks he diligently constructed. When the opportunity arose to celebrate his 100th birthdate in Indianapolis, the place where his life both began and ended, and to do it in the city’s acclaimed jazz club, The Jazz Kitchen, trombonist John Fedchock couldn’t pass it up. “Justifiably J.J.,” recorded in March of this year, also features some of top players from the Indy area including pianist Steve Allee, bassist Jeremy Allen and drummer Sean Dobbins.
Formed in 2019, Free Spirits—led by pianist and composer Teri Parker—was originally conceived as a tribute to the talents of legendary pianists Mary Lou Williams and Geri Allen. Whether performing Parker’s originals or songs from Allen and Williams, the group has a playful, soulful sound all its own, a deep chemistry that has developed over years of performances, rehearsals and recordings. The new album, “Peaks and Valleys,” was recorded after a residency at Toronto’s Rex Hotel, and has all the energy and nuanced interplay one would expect from some of Canada’s best musicians. It features compositions from Williams and Allen, and a brand new five-song suite written by Ms. Parker.
Also this week, celebrated jazz vocalist Rebecca Kilgore pays tribute to a frequent collaborator of hers, the late composer and pianist Dave Frishberg, with “A Little Taste”; London-born saxophonist, composer and bandleader Nubya Garcia shares her new album, “Odyssey”; and saxophonist Javon Jackson highlights some of his favorite film music with “Javon and Nikki Go to the Movies.”