Prologue I was in high school—still a freshman, I think—when I first heard the iconic recording of “Sing, Sing, Sing” by Benny Goodman’s band. Goodman
I have often thought about how much chance, or fate, dictates the direction of one’s life. Some—including me—might also attribute surprising occurrences in their lives
One morning not long ago, I’d awakened to the sound of music. It wasn’t from the neighbor’s all-rock radio station. It wasn’t my son Andrew
Jeff Barnhart: My erstwhile collaborator, Hal Smith, needs a while to erst on other projects this time around and requested I invite a guest. I’ve
My wife Laura I lived in New York City for nearly fourteen exciting years, from early 1983 until the summer of 1996. It seemed that
In our March issue, Dan Barrett recalled a gig with trumpeter George Orendorff and the story that George told about playing the trumpet break before
Along with the dearth of jazz clubs around the country, especially clubs which feature anything resembling traditional jazz, another venue for the music that has
See, Part 1 A Real New York Story We had been recording double sessions, often earning overtime to complete more difficult or complicated arrangements. We
I could not have been more pleased when Mike Zirpolo contacted me, and asked me to share my memories about having played for the soundtrack
I owe a debt I can never repay to the community of African-American musicians who had settled in the Los Angeles area years ago. They
Viola Smith passed away on October 21st, 2020 at home in Costa Mesa, California at age 107. In the fall of 2018 trombone legend Dan
Dan Barrett shares some of his experiences in playing with legendary trombonist Spiegle Willcox (1903-99) and gives insight as to the interplay among musicians while
I was twenty-two years old, on my first trip to Europe with a now-legendary band called the Sunset Music Company. People often ask me for
