Leon Spencer I grew up in the Tri State area, which is the hotbed of the legendary Hammond Organ players. Along with Larry Young and Lee...

Merl Saunders The year was around 1986. My girlfriend's godfather of her daughter was one of the Grateful Dead’s Road managers. Her Ex...

Ozzie Cadena Ozzie Cadena, he was THE producer/engineer for PRESTIGE RECORDS. When I met him it was during its transition from Bop to...

SAL MARQUEZ Sal Marquez is one of the baddest trumpet players of all time hands down. I met him through Richie Cole when Richie was...

Lonnie Youngblood A great sax player and the only top notch musician I ever met that owned a real club with a legit liquor license....

Trevor Lawrence Another sax great whom, as a high school kid, I had transcribed solos of; then ended up meeting was Trever Lawrence. In...

George Adams When I first started becoming aware of “jazz” it was the funky fusion of Miles, Grant Green, Eddie Harris, John Klemmer,...

Phil Woods I met and hung out with Phil through my teacher Harry Leahey who worked in his famous quintet in the years of 1976 to 1978....

Tom Chapin Although Tom died young and did not gain the fame of others in this missive, he was unique in his achievements. He recorded...

James Spaulding I grew up in the New Brunswick area just a stone’s throw from Rutgers college. In 1960's, Rutgers started one of the...

Right out of high School in 1975 I was still very focused on mastering "jazz" particularly the Coltrane Love Supreme/Sun Ship style. I...

John Goodsall I can’t remember where I first met him I think it was at Cat and Fiddle around 1985. I had always been a fan of Brand X and...

Eddie Fisher In 1971, when I was 15 years old, I got the record "Eddie Fisher and the Next Hundred Years." I learned every note. This LP...

Pat Martino Pat Martino, a renowned guitarist, had a close friendship with my teacher, Harry Leahey. During my time in high school, I had...

Louis Johnson My first major tour was 1978 when Fatback on the strength of a hit "I Like The Girls" opened up for THE OJAYS, and BROTHERS...

Roland Prince One of the biggest influences on my jazz guitar journey was Roland Prince, an Antiguan guitarist. I first saw him perform...

Patrick Butler, a versatile and talented musician, has journeyed through the realms of Funk, Rock, Jazz, and Celtic music, studying and...