Open To The Public! Everyone is Welcome! Free Parking! Celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month with KCSM. Our theme, "Passing the Torch," honors jazz's tradition and its influence on generations of musicians. Whether you're a jazz enthusiast or new to the genre, there's something for everyone. Join KCSM at the KCSM studio in the lower level of the CSM Library (Building 9) for a day of music, culture, and celebration with light refreshments.

If you missed the original airing of Harry Duncan's (producer and host of In The Soul Kitchen) exclusive interview with Van Morrison during his recent run of five sold out shows at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts, you can still listen to this great interview. Van and Harry sat down for an exclusive interview to talk about his new album, Somebody Tried To Sell Me A Bridge. The album features covers and fresh interpretations of some of Van’s favorite blues, R&B and soul artists by Van and his band plus special guests Taj Mahal, Buddy Guy and Elvin Bishop. Van and Harry share a love and deep respect for these artists and their music. Both the artists Van honors on Somebody Tried To Sell Me A Bridge and beyond. This interview was a welcome opportunity for them to talk freely about the inspiration these artists provided and the influence these artists have had on both of them. (click the story subject to hear the interview)

JAZZ in IRELAND: Part 1 of a new series of articles from Ireland and Europe for KCSM.org INTRO by Melanie O’Reilly, jazz singer, radio host & producer, jazz educator. Happy St Patrick’s Day! On this day when Irish culture is celebrated around the world, we begin a new series of regular articles on Jazz in Ireland on the KCSM website. Jazz is alive and well in contemporary Ireland with jazz festivals, jazz workshops, and jazz education in third-level institutions flourishing, with bebop, swing, blues, fusion, ethno-jazz, jazz rock, Celtic jazz, Latin-jazz and improvised explorations being the norm. (click story subject to continue)

Part 1. Clarinetist/saxophonist, Ken Peplowski had his first professional gig when still in elementary school and went on to play with everyone from Marianne Faithfull and Leon Redbone to Peggy Lee and Charlie Byrd. Ken was only sixty-six when he passed away February 1, 2026 after a five-year battle with multiple myeloma. Ken was a joyful, generous spirit and one of the first musicians I played with when I came to New York when we were paired in a jazz festival in front of thousands. I was nervous and he was cool, and his lovely attitude carried me along musically and otherwise, so no one knew I was shaking in my boots except me. This is the first of my two-part conversation with Ken, recorded in 2016 in Manhattan.

Venturing onward to New York seems to be a necessary step in the careers of most aspiring jazz artists. Guitarist Tim Picard has been a Northeast Ohio mainstay, equally adept in straight ahead and free jazz. But time marches on and opportunities abound in the Big Apple, so Tim is off to New York, but not before one last performance of originals and favorites. Backed by Theron Brown on Piano, Jordan McBride on Bass and Zaire Darden on Drums, and from a July 24th, 2025 performance, Daniel Peck is your host for the Tim Picard Quartet . . . Live at the Bop Stop.

Imperial Records, Part 1 - 1947-50. Imperial Records was a major player among the indie labels of the late 1940s and the entirety of the 1950s. Started in Los Angeles in 1946 by Lew Chudd, a Canadian raised in Harlem, Imperial began filling the ethnic and cultural voids left by the majors at the time. Chudd knew there was a large market for Latino Music in America, so he headed to Mexico City and recorded some Mexican jump bands that sold very well. He then included square dance records which also racked up sales as now square dances could be held without callers. He began recording Rhythm & Blues in 1947 and by '49, he had hired Dave Bartholomew to scout talent in fertile New Orleans. The Braun Brother had beat him to The Crescent City by recording Paul Gayten and Annie Laurie first, but with Bartholomew's help, Chudd was able to sign Fats Domino, Smiley Lewis, Archibald and Jewel King, dominating the New Orleans R&B scene. This week, we begin a series looking at the huge impact that Imperial Records had on R&B during the late 1940s into the mid-1950s. In part 1, Matt The Cat will showcase Imperial's earliest R&B releases from 1947-1950. We'll see how the boogie woogie stylings of Dick Lewis, "Poison" Gardner, Charlie "Boogie Woogie" Davis and Lloyd Glenn gave way to the New Orleans blues of Tommy Ridgley, Jewel King, Smiley Lewis and Fats Domino, who would become the biggest artist ever on the Imperial label.

The low end gets some love with a profile on Stanley Clarke. We hear music from the 2022 NEA Jazz Master’s storied career as a leader, and as a founding member of Return to Forever.

Venturing onward to New York seems to be a necessary step in the careers of most aspiring jazz artists. Guitarist Tim Picard has been a Northeast Ohio mainstay, equally adept in straight ahead and free jazz. But time marches on and opportunities abound in the Big Apple, so Tim is off to New York, but not before one last performance of originals and favorites. Backed by Theron Brown on Piano, Jordan McBride on Bass and Zaire Darden on Drums, and from a July 24th, 2025 performance, Daniel Peck is your host for the Tim Picard Quartet . . . Live at the Bop Stop.

An interview with W. Keith Eason, author of "The Houston Gospel Sound," plus recordings from Houston-based artists such as Olivia Branch Walker, Kathy Taylor, V. Michael McKay, Lee Ida Brown, Yolanda Adams, and others.

Elissa Glickman is the Executive Director of the West Alameda Business Association. Host Scott Piehler talks with Elissa about what it takes to cultivate a vibrant, thriving district that supports local businesses, engages the community, and celebrates the unique character of West Alameda.

A portrait of the late, internationally acclaimed jazz musician, Ethel Ennis is the featured guest. Ennis spent most of her professional career in her hometown of Baltimore, Maryland, where she was affectionately known as the "First Lady of Jazz". She began performing as a church pianist at a very young age. Embarking on a solo singing career, she recorded a number of songs for Atlantic Records before her album debut, Lullabies for Losers, was released by Jubilee Records in 1955. In 1957, she left Jubilee Records and moved to for a two-album contract, and released A Change of Scenery. Soon after the 1958 follow-up LP Have You Forgotten, Ennis took a six-year hiatus from recording, during which she toured Europe with Benny Goodman.