Dr. Brame's Suggested Jazz Listening
Instruments Essential Artists – Players you need to Current Stars – These are the artists know! making news today!
Flute Hubert Laws, Herbie Mann Nicole Mitchell, Jamie Baum, Jane Bunnett
Clarinet Bennie Goodman, Eddie Daniels Anat Cohen, Paquito D’Rivera
Soprano Sax Sidney Bechet, John Coltrane Wayne Shorter, Branford Marsalis, David Liebman, Jane Ira Bloom
Alto Sax Johnny Hodges, Charlie Parker, Cannonball Kenny Garrett, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Adderley, Ornette Coleman, Phil Woods Miguel Zenón, Steve Coleman, Tia Fuller
Tenor Sax Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, Stan Getz, Joshua Redman, Joe Lovano, Chris Potter, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Joe Branford Marsalis, Charles Lloyd, Melissa Henderson, Wayne Shorter, Michael Brecker Aldana
Baritone Sax Harry Carney, Gerry Mulligan Gary Smulyan, James Carter, Claire Daly
Trumpet Louis Armstrong, Roy Eldridge, Dizzy Wynton Marsalis, Roy Hargrove, Nicholas Gillespie, Clifford Brown, Miles Davis, Payton, Dave Douglas, Tom Harrell, Freddie Hubbard Ambrose Akinmusire
Trombone J.J. Johnson, Steve Turre Steve Turre, Robin Eubanks, Wycliffe Gordon
Piano Art Tatum, Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Keith Jarrett, Brad Mehldau, Jason Moran, Bill Evans, McCoy Tyner, Chick Corea, Vijay Iyer, Kenny Barron, Fred Hersch Herbie Hancock, Geri Allen
Organ Jimmy Smith, Joey DeFrancesco Joey DeFrancesco, Larry Goldings, John Medeski, Dr. Lonnie Smith
Guitar Charlie Christian, Django Reinhardt, Wes Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell, John Scofield, Mary Montgomery Halvorson, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Julian Lage
Bass Ray Brown, Charles Mingus, Paul Christian McBride, Dave Holland, Esperanza Chambers, Ron Carter, Jaco Pastorius Spalding, Stanley Clarke, Linda May Han Oh
Drums Max Roach, Art Blakey, Elvin Jones, Tony Jack DeJohnette, Roy Haynes, Jeff "Tain" Williams Watts, Brian Blade, Terri Lyne Carrington
Vibes Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, Gary Burton, Stefon Harris, Jason Adasiewicz, Warren Bobby Hutcherson Wolf
Violin Joe Venuti, Stephane Grappelli, Jean-Luc Regina Carter, Jenny Scheinman Ponty
Big Bands Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Mingus Big Band, Maria Schneider Herman, Stan Kenton Orchestra, Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra
A Dozen Classic Albums Everyone Should Listen To
You can listen to most of them on Spotify or borrow the CD from Dr. B.
Hot Fives and Sevens, Vol. 3, Louis Armstrong (1927-1928) Ken Burns Jazz: Duke Ellington, Duke Ellington (1927-1960) Best of the Complete Savoy and Dial Recordings, Charlie Parker (1944-1948) Moanin’, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers (1958) Kind of Blue, Miles Davis (1959) Mingus Ah-Um, Charles Mingus (1959) Speak No Evil, Wayne Shorter (1964) Mercy, Mercy, Mercy – Live at the Club, Cannonball Adderley (1966) Headhunters, Herbie Hancock (1973) Black Codes from the Underground, Wynton Marsalis (1985) Prime Directive, Dave Holland (2000) The Epic, Kamasi Washington (2015)
Jazz on the Air and Online
The only Chicago radio station still playing jazz is:
WDCB, 90.9 FM, College of DuPage. Online at
You can also listen to the following jazz stations online:
KJAZZ 88.1 from Long Beach, CA. www.kkjz.org
WBGO, Jazz 88.3 from Newark, NJ. http://www.wbgo.org
A great jazz podcast is The Checkout from WBGO – you can subscribe through iTunes.
A great website for album reviews and articles is allaboutjazz.com.
Remember, the key to playing jazz well is immersing yourself in the sounds on a regular basis. Just like speaking a language, you can’t learn it from a book!