Jazz & Blues Lounge

Sorry blues fans that I am a little late on this one. Another sad day and another sad report because another light has been snuffed out and snuffed out way too soon. A very popular and talented blues guitarist, out of Atlanta, named Sean Costello, was found dead on Tuesday.
Not much in the way of details seems to be available at this time. Wednesday would have been his 29th birthday. There was a musical tribute given by his friends and family at The Howell Mill Road Blues Bar where Costello practically set up a second home …read more

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Another elderly member of the jazz world has shuffled off this mortal coil and this one had a definite local Chicago tie-in.  For a full detail, check out the “Post No Bills” blog by the Chicago Reader.  John Young was 86-years-old and he passed away last week.
According to Peter Margasak, who writes the “Post No Bills” blog, “Although he released only six albums under his own name during a career that spanned as many decades, he was a crucial presence on the city’s bop scene. (Sadly, only his excellent 1959 album, Serenata, on Delmark, is currently in print.) He was …read more

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One of the key deaths in January of 2008 I seemed to have missed was the death of legendary jazz bassist, Earl May. He is a name that may not jump immediately to the minds of the casual jazz listener, but he is one of those guys every jazz musician wants. You know, every genre of music has people like that. These are the guys who just want to play because they want to play and are happy to sit in the background while the bigger, flashier guys stand out front.
Earl was one of those guys. You can find more …read more

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The problem with being such a fan of classic jazz is that, for the most part, the musicians who played that great music are either dead or quite elderly and, therefore, likely to pass away.  I am sorry to report that another musician who was key to my early jazz days, especially during my time working for KSLH radio, piano great Oscar Peterson has passed away in his home near Toronto.  Oscar was 82-years-old and, really, one of the best there ever was.
Within the music vaults of KSLH we had several Oscare Peterson Trio CDs.  The best ones were the …read more

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I am going to confess that I was never a particular fan of the seminal jazz band Weather Report.  I mean, I was aware of them and I played their music during the days when I worked at the jazz radio station.  I didn’t dislike them or anything, but there is just such a diverse plate to choose from when it comes to jazz that it becomes impossible to appreciate and listen to all of it.
Still, I knew the name of Joe Zawinul.  He was the influential electronic keyboard player who helped bring that synthesizer sound to jazz.  He was …read more

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