The Final Chorus

It was with his band that she started taking drum lessons in the late 1940s. She began playing drums professionally in the early 1950s and

On September 17, 2021, Paweł Tartanus, singer, banjoist and guitarist died in Warsaw after a long illness. One of the leaders of traditional jazz in

After being in failing health for the last couple of years, Phil Kirk died on Oct. 1, 2021.  Phil was the leader and trumpet player

Music educator Jim Widner, passed away from a heart attack on October 3rd. He was 75 years old. Primarily a bass player he toured with

In August, we lost a towering titan of ragtime and hot jazz piano. Mark Allen Jones passed away in his home in Carmel, CA. He

“I should have gone in and pounded the table,” he said, “but that isn’t my style.” Wally Holmes didn’t need to pound tables; throughout his

George Wein, jazz promoter, pianist, and producer, died in Manhattan on September 13; he was 95. He was the founder of the Newport Jazz Festival,

Phil Schaap, who moved on to another bandstand yesterday, was an unusually complex figure: he was his own novel, someone who deserves a Moliere or

Joyce Prima Ford, Louis Prima’s eldest daughter, died July 23 at 89 years old. Despite her father’s wish that she pursue a life off stage

Colin Bowden, widely regarded as one of the top New Orleans style drummers in Europe died on August 1st. Born in 1932 he began drumming

Popular New York City trumpet player Joey Morant died on July 29th at age 82. He was likely the last musician raised in the  Jenkins

Donald M. Marquis passed away on July 29th, he was 88. Like so many in his generation he caught the jazz bug after hearing Louis

Bob Ringwald, the Sacramento based musician, known to the world as the actress Molly Ringwald’s father, and to many of our readers as a friend

John was born in Elmira, NY on December 21, 1937. His father was a general manager for the W.T. Grant Company and traveled a bit

Elliot Lawrence, one of the last-living bandleaders of the Big Band Era, died on July 2, 2021. He was 96. Lawrence was born Elliot Lawrence

James Donald Jones, Jr., age 89, of Apple Valley, California passed away on Wednesday, May 26, 2021. “Don” was born January 20, 1932 in Oakland,

David Mallette, energetic advocate for Texarkana (Arkansas and Texas) and director of the Regional Music Heritage Center there, died On Saturday June 5, 2021, at

Trombonist Sonny Helmer died on May 25th, he was 90 years old. Helmer was a veteran of the Korean War, a member of the 392nd

Bandleader, songwriter and cellist Leo Crandall died suddenly on May 29, in Syracuse, N.Y. He was 67 years old. Born in Detroit, he moved to

Jazz drummer Al Hartland died May 23 of heart disease, in Ithaca, N.Y. He was 71. Born Alexander S. Micucci in Philadelphia, Pa., Al grew

Clarinetist and vocalist Bob Schroeder passed away April 27th at age 92.  Bob played professionally for 75 years, beginning in his hometown of St. Louis,

Veteran trumpet tester Jim Anastasi passed away on April 13. He was 95 years old. Jim served as the trumpet tester for the King Band Instrument

Stan McDonald, best known globally as a traditional jazz musician for his soaring and passionate soprano saxophone and clarinet inspired by Sidney Bechet, died on

Band leader Tim Gill, and his wife Joylani were killed on April 18th when their small plane crashed in Arizona. Tim was 37 years old

Edward J “Jazzman Joe” Lynch, Jr., died on May 13, 2021 due to complications following Covid. Joe was born September 18, 1934 in Passaic, NJ.

Jazz critic W. Royal Stokes passed away on May 1, 2021, he was 90 years old.  He was a boogie woogie fan as a teenager

Bob Koester, founder of Chicago’s Delmark Records and operator of one of the most beloved record stores in the world died on May 12th, he

Andrew “Jazzman” Smith of White Bluff, TN passed on March 28, he was 83. He served his country honorably for 20 years in the US

Marek Boym passed March 31, a few days after his 80th birthday. I’ve been a lifelong Jazz enthusiast and, at age 76, considered myself fairly

Jack Bradley died on March 21, he was 87. He discovered Louis Armstrong recordings as a child in the 30s and 40s and would go

George Segal died March 23. 2021 near his Santa Rosa, California home. He was perhaps best known for the broad scope of his television and

Richard Karner, drummer for the Salty Dogs Jazz Band in the mid 1950’s, passed away at home, March 12. He was 85.   A native of Lafayette,

Chris Barber, one of the most important figures in the history of British jazz, and a pioneer of both the Trad Jazz and Skiffle crazes, 

A little over 30 years ago, Ted Huff and I met as a result of our mutual interest in jazz, both playing it as a

Well known sheet music collector and music aficionados Janice Cleary died February 8, 2021 in Omaha, Nebraska, she was 96. She had recently donated her

Trumpet player Robert “Bobby Tess” Tessitore, died peacefully at home on January 16, 2021, he was 85. Alongside his several other professions, Tessitore was a

Jazz guitarist Ron Anthony passed away on January 19th, he was 87. After picking up the guitar at 16 he quickly developed to a professional

Arnold Koch, the former manager of the Salt City Five (later the Salt City Six) died Jan. 13 at his home in Melrose, Mass. He

Warren W. Hicks died on Thursday January 7 2021, he was 89.  Hicks turned his love of classic jazz into a respected record auction business

British bandleader, pianist, and vintage jazz authority Keith Nichols passed away on January 21st in a London hospital, he was 75. He fell ill with

Samuel Louis Nestico died on January 17th, he was 96. He began writing arrangements while still in high school learning trombone in the school band.

Carol Leigh Whitman passed away on December 22, 2020 at age 86 in her home in Ansonia, CT. For the past nine years she suffered

Phyllis McGuire died on December 29th, she was 89. The youngest of the McGuire Sisters she was the star of the group, always seen in

Burt Wilson, trombonist and leader of the Silver Dollar Jazz Band died of Covid-19 on January 6th, he was 87. While in college he arranged

David “Red” Lehr died on January 5th, he was 83. He was from a musical family with his mother playing piano for their church and

Carol Leigh (Whitman), highly-regarded classic jazz vocalist, died December 22nd.  Carol was a consummate performer of both familiar and obscure 20’s jazz and blues tunes,

Alto Saxophonist and flautist Jeff Clayton died from Kidney cancer of December 17th. He was 66 years old. He trained on oboe and English horn

Sadly, Steve Radeck informs us that “Professor” Don Burns has died at the age of 81. Don was a familiar ragtime entertainer in western New

Jack Kuncl, 86, passed away December 7 from complications of Coved-19. He was best known as the banjoist with the Salty Dogs Jazz Band since

Joseph Brem, a past president of the Arizona Classic Jazz Society, passed away on November 22 in Scottsdale, AZ, he was 90 years old. A

Michael Brooks passed away at home in Newark, NJ on November 20, 2020. Born in 1935 his early career was spent as an editor and

We are saddened by the news of the passing of legendary drummer Viola Smith, who died October 21 at her home in Costa Mesa, California.

Ira Sullivan died of metastatic pancreatic cancer at home in Miami on September 21. He had performed for a couple of Pensacola JazzFests and had

Ragtime pianist Richard Eugene Kroeckel died October 11th, he was 75. Though he was born in Indianapolis most of his career was centered in Colorado.

Dr. Cleve Baker died on  August 12, 2020, he was 85 years old. He loved the history of ragtime and jazz and how it intersected

One of the most recognizable jazz writers of recent decades, Stanley Crouch, died on September 16th, he was 74. In 1979 he renounced the black

Dan Reid filled the lives of so many with his wisdom, his wit, his generosity and his love Daniel J. Reid, Jazz aficionado, true friend,

Trombonist, vocalist, and band leader Steve Yocum died of leukemia on September 4th, he was 69. Born in St. James, New York he started playing

A journalist and jazz promoter, David Booth Cooper died on August 15th, he was 87. Following in his grandfather’s footsteps he was a life long

Known for its musical heritage, Mason City has produced a number of successful performers and educators and is the site of the annual North Iowa

A lifelong “Friend of Jazz”, Al White passed away on July 20, 2020, at his home in Hot Springs, Ark., he was 92. With his

William (Bill) Howland Kenney III, died on July 26th, he was 80 years old. He was a professor at Kent State from 1966 on, teaching

Helen Elizabeth Jones Woods died in Florida of Coronavirus on July 25th, she was 96. As a little girl she was fascinated by the trombone

Dr. James McCauley Vandivier died on July 14th, he was 86. Over 48 years as a physician he took on leadership rolls within his field

Rudy Emilio Torrini, a jazz and aviation enthusiast well loved in the St. Louis area, succumbed to his illness on June 7, 2020, he was

Nora Louise Hulse, of Lawrence, Kansas passed away July 24, she was 88. Her mother had trained at Chicago’s American Conservatory of Music, so when

Bent Fabricius-Bjerre, who was known by his stage name Bent Fabric, died on July 28th, he was 95. He is remembered for the catchy hit

Annabelle Allan Short, known professionally as Annie Ross, died on July 21 in New York City, four days ahead of her 90th Birthday. She was

Lisa Canjura-Clayton passed away on May 31st, she was 57. She was a prominent member of the San Francisco area LGBT community. At every stage

Johnny Mandel died on June 29th at 94. As an 11 year old a visit from an older cousin who was a member of Harry

Chris Barham, who died on June 19th at 87, is most famous in his home country for taking an iconic photograph of Queen Elizabeth on

Bassist Jerry Bruno (January 10, 1920 – June 22, 2020) graduated at the age of 100. He was born in Rochester, New York into a

Pianist Freddy Cole died on June 27th in Atlanta, he was 88. Born in 1931 in Chicago, he had called Atlanta home for the last