Short List with Bob Naujoks
Monday – Friday at 8:35 AM and Saturday at 7 AM
The Short List: Cats On The Keys 3 (Hampton Hawes)
West Coast pianist Hampton Hawes was called “one of the finest jazz pianists of the 1950s” by writer and critic Scott Yanow. Hampton Hawes came out of the bebop school of jazz, strongly influenced by the great Bud Powell. He was a key player in the hotbed of 1950s modern jazz on Central Avenue in Los Angeles. His recording history began with the brilliant but unsung trumpeter Howard McGhee in 1947, and he would record with many who became jazz greats. His heroin addiction put him in Federal Prison, but he received a Presidential pardon from John F. Kennedy.
Jazz Profiles with Nancy Wilson
Monday at 6:00 PM
Doc Cheatam: Jazz History’s Eyewitness
Doc Cheatham
Doc Cheatham was a part of virtually all of jazz’s history from his own early groups in the mid 1920s to the McKinney Cotton Pickers and Cab Calloway’s band in the 30s, and on into the 70s with numerous other bands. Late in life, Doc emerged from his role as an ensemble player and blossomed into an expressive soloist in small group settings. His articulation and clarity on the trumpet were the pillars of his style.
Jazz Corner of the World with Craig Kessler
Monday, 7:00 PM – 11:00 PM (follows Jazz Profiles)
“Important Jazz Performance Venues of the Past—The Black Hawk — Part Two”
Once again, Craig spotlights the legendary nightclub, THE BLACK HAWK, which was located at the corner of Hyde and Turk in San Francisco, California. We’ll hear more fabulous performances from the likes of Mongo Santamaria, Cal Tjader, Miles Davis, Ahmad Jamal, Shelly Manne, Thelonious Monk, and others. Some truly astonishing music!
New Orleans Calling with George Ingmire
Tuesday at 6:00 PM
Champion Jack Dupree: Pieces of The Puzzle Part One
Champion Jack Dupree
The story of New Orleans boogie-woogie piano player Champion Jack Dupree is hard to track down – there’s no biography, and the twists and turns of his life took him all over the world. Orphaned as an infant, he taught himself piano in the Waif’s Home, and went on to play barrelhouse piano alongside some of the greats of the 1920s and 1930s. And then he became a championship boxer. And then he was a prisoner of war in the Pacific for two years. And only then did he became a successful recording artist — but he then left America for Europe, not returning for over thirty years. The facts of his life are scattered — in archived papers and recordings, and in the memories of those who knew him or saw him perform. In this episode, part one of this special two-part program of New Orleans Calling, we go searching for pieces of the puzzle, to try to figure out who Champion Jack Dupree really was.
Jazz Night in America with Christian McBride
Wednesday at 6:00 PM
The Music of Trombonist J. J. Johnson
Vincent Gardner
Jazz Night in America presents the music of trombonist J. J. Johnson curated by Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra trombonist Vincent Gardner. Gardner invites his section parter Elliot Mason to tackle material from the “Jay and Kai”project, which featured trombonist Kai Winding. We hear from both Gardner and Mason about what made this project so special. Also, Jazz Night in America pulls back the curtain on Johnson, the composer, courtesy of archival interview tape provided by biographer Joshua Berrett and we learn about Johnson, the man, from Carolyn Johnson who was Johnson’s wife from 1992 until his death in 2001.
Elliot Mason
Wednesday Night Special
7:00 PM (Follows Jazz Night in America)
First Friday Jazz: The Blake Shaw Quintet at Opus Concert Café (Encore Broadcast)
The Blake Shaw Quintet at Opus Concert Café
Blake Shaw is an upright/electric bassist, composer, bandleader and private lesson teacher from Lisbon, Iowa who now resides in Iowa City. He started his college career in the fall of 2008 at Kirkwood Community College and moved on to the University of Iowa to pursue a Bachelor’s of Music in classical double bass performance, and completing that degree in 2013.
Along with playing in the University of Iowa Symphony Orchestra and UI Chamber Orchestra, Shaw played in a variety of jazz ensembles. These ensembles included guitar ensemble and small jazz ensembles both led by Prof. Steve Grismore. Some time was spent in Latin Jazz ensemble led by Prof. Jim Dreier and the Jazz Repertoire ensemble led by Prof. Brent Sandy as well. Shaw was fortunate in his senior year to play in the top jazz big band, “Johnson County Landmark” and in the Jazz Vespers. Both were under the direction of jazz area head Prof. John Rapson.
Shaw’s influences come from various genres and instrumentalists. He has made it a mission to become diverse and proficient in different contexts. His experience stretches from jazz, rock, classical, bluegrass, to latin, funk, R&B, and anything in between. His main bass influences at the moment are Dave Holland, Christian McBride and John Clayton.
Shaw released his first album of his own compositions “Listen Here” in March of 2016. Shaw has also been in featured with Laranja on the main stage of the Iowa City Jazz Fest and with the same group again at the Twin Cities jazz Fest in 2015. He also was one of several local, professional musician/educators to mentor high school student players as part of KCCK’s Corridor Jazz Project Volume VIII during the 2014-2015 school year.
The First Friday Jazz Series features an eclectic mix of jazz, Latin and contemporary music the first Friday of every month. Doors at Opus open at 4:30 p.m. with live music from 5-7 p.m.
If you can’t be there in person, the first set of each performance of the series is broadcast live on KCCK. The Opus Concert Cafe is operated by Orchestra Iowa. More information at:
Jazz Corner of the World with Craig Kessler
Saturday, Noon – 4:00 PM and Monday, 7:00 PM – 11:00 PM
“The Music of Herbie Hancock — 1968 to 1969” 
Craig looks at the evolution of this important artist during the critical years of 1968 and 1969. We’ll hear high art from Herbie on his own recordings of the period (“Speak Like A Child”; “The Prisoner”: and “Fat Albert Rotunda”), as well as stunning keyboard work with groups led by Wes Montgomery, Kenny Burrell, Joe Henderson, Miles Davis, and others! Essential listening!!
Tropical Heat (hosted by Kpoti Senam Accoh)
Sunday, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Featured Album: The Jazz Album: Watch What Happens” Studio album by Thomas Quasthoff 
http://www.allmusic.com/album/watch-what-happens-the-jazz-album-mw0000576927
The Jazz Album: Watch What Happens is a 2006 studio album by the German baritone Thomas Quasthoff. The album was arranged by Alan Broadbent, Steve Gray, and Nan Schwartz.
Quasthoff was traditionally a singer of opera and lieder and this was his first album of jazz vocal music. The Jazz Album peaked at 19 on Billboard magazine’s Top Classical Crossover Chart and was included on their European Top 100 Albums list.
In an interview with John Lewis in The Guardian, Quasthoff said that jazz standards and show tunes could be compared favorably with his usual repertoire of German lieder saying that “Of course I love Schubert lieder, but technically they are often simple folk songs. American show tunes are also folk songs in a way, but they are of a very high intellectual level. If you look at the quality of these compositions – harmonically, emotionally, lyrically – it is pure heaven”.
KCCK’s Midnight CD
The Monday – Sunday Midnight CD for this week can be found at: