Jazz Backstory – Details, episodes & analysis

We end Season 5 as we began, with a variety of jazz life stories. From piano nightmares to surviving on potatoes and onions, these cats have seen it all. See you on the flip side.

Your host, Monk Rowe, directs the spotlight on himself and speaks about licks, riffs, bumper music, inspiration and the creative process.

Music played a positive, even lifesaving role for soldiers during the Korean and Vietnam War years. In this episode, we hear from Jake Hanna, Frank Foster, Onaje Allan Gumbs, Junior Mance and Hal Espinosa.

Jazz musicians were not exempt from service in the U.S. military. Jay McShann, John Bunch, Louis Bellson, Terry Gibbs, Clark Terry, Orrin Keepnews, George Wein, Joe Bushkin and Bobby Johnson speak about their experiences during WWII.

A band leader sampler. Veteran sidemen Eddie Bert, Peter Erskine, Don Menza and Marshall Allen provide inside stories about Glenn Miller, Stan Kenton, Buddy Rich, Sun Ra and Joe Zawinul. Maria Schneider weighs in on the role and responsibility of a leader.

Benny Goodman played a marvelous clarinet and his bands sold a ton of records while packing audiences into dance halls and Carnegie style halls. He was also enigmatic and frequently oblivious of his surroundings. Jerry Jerome, Sonny Igoe, Bucky Pizzarelli, Flip Phillips and Skitch Henderson share their memories of working with The King of Swing.

For pure swing, the bands lead by William “Count” Basie will never be equaled. Harry “Sweets” Edison, Ed Shaughnessey, Snooky Young, Gerald Wilson and Joe Williams offer personal anecdotes and insights that help us understand the man who personified big band swing.

Our first four episodes look at iconic big band leaders, beginning with Edward “Duke “ Ellington. Former sidemen and associates including Clark Terry, Phoebe Jacobs, Bill Berry, Buster Cooper, Grover Mitchell, Louis Bellson and John Lamb offer inside stories that illuminate the Duke’s unique talent and personality.