Pianist Arthur Tatum Jr. was born October 13, 1909 in Toledo, Ohio. Tatum was born with poor eyesight that only worsened as the years went on. He began playing the piano when quite young, totally by ear at first although he later had some classical-oriented lessons. Inspired by Fats Waller and Earl Hines, Tatum developed […]

October 10, 1928 The veteran pianist is heard at his most soulful Pianist Julian Clifford Mance, Jr. was born on Oct. 10, 1928 in Sept. 25, 1923 in Chicago, Illinois. Always known as Junior, he began playing piano when he was 5, started playing gigs at 10 (back in 1938), and regularly performed in Chicago […]

Pianist-composer Thelonious Sphere Monk was born on October 10, 1917 in Rock Mount, North Carolina. Monk began playing the piano when he was six and was largely self-taught. His first gig (when he was a young teenager) was touring with an evangelist for whom he accompanied on organ. Monk was the house pianist at Minton’s […]

Tenor-saxophonist, flutist and oboeist William Emanuel. Huddleston (who later changed his name to Yusef Lateef) was born October 9, 1920 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. After a brief period in Ohio, he moved with his family to Detroit where his father changed their last names to Evans; yes, Yusef Lateef for a time was known as Bill […]

The personnel on this Red Sea Jazz Festival clip is: Kurt Elling – vocals, Laurence Hobgood – piano, Rob Amster – bass, Arale Kaminsky – drums

Guitarist Howard Roberts was born October 2, 1929 in Phoenix, Arizona. Roberts began playing guitar when he was eight and as a teenager he worked in Phoenix. He moved to Los Angeles when he was 20, gigged locally, and by 1956 was working with pianist-singer Bobby Troup and recording as a leader for Verve. For […]

Pianist Earl Rudolph “Bud” Powell was born on September 27, 1924 in New York City, New York. Powell was the son of a stride pianist and the brother of Richie Powell, a bebop pianist. Thelonious Monk befriended the young Bud and introduced him to the city’s burgeoning bebop scene, later composing “In Walked Bud” in […]

Bassist and composer Dave Holland was born on October 01, 1946 in Staffordshire, England. Largely self-taught, Holland learned the double bass by playing along with jazz records and the radio. He is best known for his work with Miles Davis, appearing on the trumpeters acclaimed fusion LPs In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew. Holland […]

Bernard “Buddy” Rich was born in Brooklyn, New York on September 30, 1917. Born to a family of vaudevillians, Rich began playing drums when he was 18 months old, and at three he was appearing with his family on stage. Known as “Baby Traps, the Drum Wonder,’ he was one of the highest paid acts […]

Violinist Jean-Luc Ponty was born on September 29, 1942 in Avranches, France. Part of a family of classical musicians, Ponty had classical violin lessons from an early age, graduating from the Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique de Paris at 18. He was part of a major symphony orchestra for three years but also played clarinet […]