Lest We Forget 2020

“He was a horrible guitar player.” So said Rocco Prestia’s closest friend and bandmate, Emilio Castillo. After a music teacher persuaded Prestia to switch to bass, he and Castillo would…

Gary Peacock was an American jazz bassist. He recorded a dozen albums under his own name, and also performed and recorded with a number of major jazz figures. For over…

Mario DeSantis was a pianist and big bandleader in Syracuse, NY for over 50 years. The DeSantis Orchestra began as a nine-piece in 1947 and continues to perform under the…

When people say Miles Davis marched to the beat of a different drummer, they were talking about Jimmy Cobb. As the backbone of Miles’s rhythm section on the epic “Kind…

Some would say Richie Cole was born with a silver saxophone in his mouth. Growing up in his father’s jazz club, he earned a Downbeat Scholarship to the Berklee School…

Whoever said size doesn’t matter never saw or heard Neil Peart’s epic drum kit in action. With more than thirty sound generating devices arrayed before him, Peart was the locomotive…

There may have been such a thing as air guitar before Eddie Van Halen shredded his way into the public ear in 1978, but, armed with a hand-built axe he…

Brian Howe stepped into some of the biggest shoes in rock when he assumed the front man role from Paul Rodgers in the 70s supergroup Bad Company. Having cut his…

He was by far the most celebrated soundtrack composer of all time, but for Ennio Morricone, that was just the tip of the musical iceberg. A serious orchestral composer by…

When Elvis Presley sang about “a little less conversation,” he was quoting his friend Mac Davis. Davis would go on score a host of hits in his own voice in…

Lee Konitz was cool before cool was a concept. Chicago born in 1927, he was twenty when he broke into Stan Kenton’s band. He made his name in the forties…

It’s not surprising to hear that a Los Angeles teenager in the 1960s would pick up a guitar. But where other kids were drawn to surf rock, Tony Rice had…

John Prine was an iconic American country folk singer-songwriter who continues to influence musicians all over the world. So much has been made of his legend. Boyhood summers in Paradise…

If there’s a Temple of Hard Rock, Leslie West’s name is etched in stone with letters shaped by lightning. Known for his blazing licks and signature thundering tone, West came…

He was a heartthrob who supported himself as a carpenter before he recorded his first country album at age 35. He honed his craft in the company of alt-country legends…

As a songwriter, Johnny Mandel is best known for the haunting love song, “The Shadow Of Your Smile.” As a composer, his movie and TV themes, including the Theme From…

It was the jazz equivalent of a movie star getting discovered in a coffee shop when 19-year-old Steve Grossman caught the ear of Miles Davis at the Village Vanguard in…

In most every major city, you can find musicians just about everywhere you look…some in clubs, restaurants, theaters, schools, music stores…and others, simply “busking” on the streets – performing just…

At five foot three inches, Jimmy Heath was a towering figure in 20th century jazz. Nicknamed “Little Bird” for his early alto sax sound that owed a debt to Charlie…

“Sweet Pea” Atkinson was a passionate – yet highly underrated – soul singer. He is perhaps best known as the lead singer for the band “Was (Not Was)”…a band that…

For a man who made it sound so easy, Bill Withers worked hard. After leaving the Navy as a young man, he worked in factories and driving a milk truck…

Name a bass player who has a gift for crafting unforgettable melodies, a genius for crisp arrangements and the soul of a storyteller. If you guessed Paul McCartney or Sting,…

They started as an instrumental jazz band on the New York scene in the sixties. And it was that instrumental training that gave Kool and the Gang a sound that…

Lyle Mays was a highly accomplished pianist, composer, arranger and orchestrator. He was also co-founder of the legendary multi-Grammy Award winning Pat Metheny Group.

Wallace Roney was a lifelong student of jazz. From the age of five when he first heard Miles Davis, Roney’s path was clear. At twelve, he auditioned for Clark Terry…

Len Barry was a high school basketball star with the looks of a matinee idol, a sweet tenor voice and a deep appreciation for classic R&B, but for all that,…

From the streets of Oakland to a star on Hollywood Boulevard, Bonnie Pointer came a long way in a too-short life. She inspired her three sisters to unite their voices…

“I’m Not My Brother, I’m Me” was not just a catchy album title for Freddy Cole. Though a formidable jazz and blues song stylist in his own right, he could…

Benny Mardones came to New York in the 1960s and soon made a name for himself writing songs for the likes of Brenda Lee, Tommy James and Chubby Checker. He…

Bobby Comstock was a born performer. At age seven he made his radio debut playing and singing country songs with his brother. But when rock ‘n roll broadcasts from Nashville…

McCoy Tyner was born in Philadelphia in 1938. His talent developed at a very young age, helping him to develop a unique and powerful approach to the piano that quickly…