The Final Chorus

The jazz community lost a true legend with the passing of vocalist-bandleader Pat Yankee on Memorial Day, May 30, at the age of 94. The

Clarinetist and bandleader George “Skip” Parsons, died April 21, following a stroke. He was 86. For 66 years, Skip Parsons’ Riverboat Jazz Band reigned as

My dear friend and fellow musician, Jim Maihack, passed away Saturday, April 30, 2022. His death was not really a surprise but the shock of

Important Australian Jazz Trumpet player Bob Barnard died on May 7th, he was 88. Along with his older brother, drummer Len Barnard, he was integral to the

Haldane Stanley Duff (Stan) Huddleston, longtime banjoist with the High Sierra Jazz Band, passed away peacefully at home on February 10, 2022. Stan was born

Conrad Janis passed away on March 1st, he was 94. Janis began acting with a road company at age 13, did voice work for radio,

Nancy Pauli, co-director of the Alexandria Bay Ragtime/Jasstime Festival and the Kitchener-Waterloo Dixieland Jazz Club, passed away peacefully on Saturday, February 5, 2022, in Kitchener,

Mike Currao, a proud member of The Banjo Hall of Fame passed away February 7th, after a brief illness. Mike was born into a musical

One of the greatest Polish jazzmen, Zbigniew Jacek Namysłowski, died on February 7th, he was 82. Namysłowski was a multi-instrumentalist – by education a pianist

Richard Hadlock of Berkeley, California was born in Schenectady, NY, spent his childhood in rural New England and his teenage years in Rio de Janeiro (his

Dick Rippey passed away in the first hour of 2022. He was 88 years old. His remarkable jazz family was profiled in our December 2017

Cornetist Dave Holo passed away November 25, 2021, he was 73. After moving from his home state of Montana to Seattle several decades ago he

Chet Jaeger of the Night Blooming Jazzmen died on January 4th, he was the best 97 year old cornet player around. His father was a

Terry Teachout died on January 13th, he was 65. He was well known for his biographies of Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and H.L. Mencken. He

The Wikipedia entry for Sandra Jaffe reads, in full, “Sandra Jaffe (March 10, 1938 – December 27, 2021) was an American club owner. She founded

Pianist and composer David Frishberg died on November 17th, he was 88.  He was known for witty and often humorous lyrics of a style that

Tubist, Mike Walbridge, 84, passed away November 20, after a brief illness. Renowned for his magnificent bass playing and extensive recording credits, Mike was also

Dan Zeilinger, a well know Southern California jazz musician and host of Trad Jazz Today, died  on October 31st.  His mother was from the Philippines,

Trombonist Dave Donohoe passed away on October 23, he was 81. Well known among jazz musicians inn the UK he shared the local focus on

Banjoist and guitarist Ken Salvo passed away peacefully in Florida on September 15th, he was 74. Sandra, his wife of 52 years predeceased him by

Trombonist, broadcaster, writer and jazz historian, Mike Pointon died on November 1st at the age of 80. A well known figure on the UK jazz

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

Jazz trumpeter Roy Tate, Jr., died on July 3d of this year, he was 84. He recorded his first album with the Queen City Jazz

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.