Richard Simon taught English in the Los Angeles Community College District before taking up the bass at the age of 30. He studied with the legendary Red Callender, and began working with LA’s elder jazz elite, including Buddy Collette, Teddy Edwards, Lorez Alexandria, and Plas Johnson. He wrote of meeting and jamming with the late King Bhumibol of Thailand for our November issue. Visit him online at www.richardsimon.com; write him at ufobass@aol.com.
Becoming an overnight sensation is no small feat—especially in the unpredictable world of jazz, and particularly in its very birthplace, New Orleans. But here, for
