Multi-instrumentalist Roger Glenn with Mal Sharpe

Saxophonist David Murray with Alisa Clancy

Guitarist Dr. Pascal Bokar Thiam with Kathleen Lawton

Saxophonist Sonny Simmons with Greg Bridges

The Rhythmakers: A Gathering of Jazz Titans
A celebration of the 1930’s multiracial recording group The Rhythmakers, which included luminaries like Fats Waller, Eddie Condon and Red Allen. Jim and the Band welcome guests New Orleans trumpeter Duke Heitger and San Francisco guitarist Clint Baker.

Love, Hollywood Style: Romance and the Silver Screen
Listener favorites Rebecca Kilgore and Nina Ferro join The Jim Cullum Jazz Band to perform love songs made famous in the silver screen’s golden age. Included are clips from classic romantic Hollywood movies like Shall We Dance and Babes on Broadway.

Porgy & Bess: An Original Jazz Transcription Part 1
Encore Presentation: Stage legend and Grammy award-winning narrator William Warfield tells the story as The Jim Cullum Jazz Band performs their original jazz transcription of George Gershwin’s opera Porgy & Bess. Part One of this two-part series introduces the characters of Catfish Row and the Gershwin classics Summertime and Bess, You is My Woman Now.

Porgy & Bess: An Original Jazz Transcription Part 2
In Part Two of this encore presentation of Porgy & Bess, William Warfield returns in his acclaimed role as narrator in which Porgy’s love for Bess is put to the test. Compositions include, It Ain’t Necessarily So, A Red-Headed Woman, and Oh Lawd, I’m On My Way.

Nate Najar's Trio
From The Second Annual Ybor Jazz Festival in Tampa, Florida, recorded November 3rd, 2011, guitarist (pronounced Nuh-jar) Nate Najar's trio, with bassist John Lamb and drummer Stephen Bucholtz, recorded at the Mainstage Theatre of Hillsborough Community College.

The Billy Strayhorn Project
The Billy Strayhorn Project, recorded March 26, 2010 at the Hillside Club in Berkeley, featuring the Adam Shulman Quintet, with Erik Jekabson, Patrick Wolff, Smith Dobson V and Marcus Shelby.

John Calloway and the Latin Jazz Collective
John Calloway and the Latin Jazz Collective, recorded at Campbell Recital Hall, July 23rd, 2011, at the Stanford Jazz Festival. With Mike Olmos, Nina Ott, Sam Bevan, Brian Andres, Carlos Caro, Rebecca Bouc and special guest, Cuban trumpeter Yazik Manzano.

The Broun Fellinis
The Broun Fellinis, celebrating their 20th anniversary, recorded December 14th, 2011 at Yoshi's in San Francisco. With Kevin Carnes, David Boyce and Kirk Peterson, electric bass.

Wilber Deparis, Jelly Roll Morton, Omer Simeon Trio, Reuben Reeves, Jabbo Smith, Earl Hines, Jimmy Lunceford, Kid Ory

Doc Evans, Jay McShann, Alex Bartha, Johnny Varro

Jack Teagarden, Glen Gray's Casa Loma Orchestra, J. C. Higginbottom, Benny Morton Trombone Choir, Roy Palmer, Wally Rose Band, New Orleans Rythm Kings, George Brunies

Ziggy Elman, Eddie Kirkeby, Al Wynn's Creole Jazz Band, Bob Havens and his New Orleans All Stars, Victor Young, Bennie Krueger

Pianist Dave Brubeck
Innovative pianist/composer David Brubeck has been a true jazz phenomenon - he and his quartet were the first instrumental group to sell over a million records. This widely popular band had several top ten chart hits, sold out concerts everywhere, and landed Brubeck on the cover of Time magazine. This group's music is among the most familiar in jazz, including the classic "Take Five."

Vocalist Ella Fitzgerald
You recognize that voice instantly. The sound is youthful, exuberant, and swings! And when you hear Ella Fitzgerald, you don't just recognize her - you feel good! This show celebrates the music of one of the greatest singers of our time with interviews that include Ella herself; vocalists Betty Carter, Jon Hendricks and Joe Williams; writers Gene Lees and Albert Murray; and pianist Oscar Peterson.

Pianist Art Tatum
Though Tatum was almost completely blind from birth, such an obstacle never held him back. He often doubled and even tripled the tempo of a piece without losing any articulation or sacrificing his light touch. This technique enabled him to express an enormous flow of ideas in just a few measures, in a way that no one before or since has been able to duplicate.

Timbalero Tito Puente
The late Afro-Cuban jazz giant Tito Puente, "El Rey," was the king of the timbales and the mambo, and a recipient of the Presidential Arts Medal. This tribute takes us inside the man, probing the source of that energy and uncovering the secrets to Puente's prolific and creative life.

The Music Bud Powell and Earl Hines
The story of the modern jazz piano can be heard in the hands of Earl “Fatha” Hines and Earl “Bud” Powell. Hines worked with Louis Armstrong and brought a new dimension from ragtime; Powell’s inventive, emotional soloing brought the piano into the bebop era. Pianist Marcus Roberts and his nonet take us through theses innovators of piano with songs such as Bubbling Over and Dance of the Infidels.

Danilo Perez: Panamonk Revisited
The angular sounds of Thelonious Monk connect with the clave of the Afro-Cuban rhythms. Pianist Danilo Perez tells the story of Monk through his own Panamanian roots. Hear Round Midnight and Bright Mississippi through a new set of ears.

Monty Alexander: Harlem-Kingston Express
The West Indies meet West Harlem when Jamaican-born pianist Monty Alexander and the Harlem-Kingston Express make a stop at the House of Swing. Alexander brings his disparate worlds and singular voice to explore the new ‘Calypso bebop’ - called “mento”. He’s joined by drummer Herlin Riley and bassist Hassan Shukar.

Sweet Honey in the Rock
Grammy winning a-capella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock shines a new light on the work of Odetta, Abbey Lincoln and Nina Simone – and mark their own 30-year anniversary with something new: a backing trio.

Tammy McCann
Vocalist Tammy McCann discovered jazz while she was an opera student in her native Chicago. She decided to apply her considerable vocal range to a broad palette of musical styles, touring as a backup singer for Ray Charles and with her own successful gospel ensemble. Host Jon Weber accompanies McCann on Daydream, Why Was I Born, and Easy Living.

Kris Bowers
Kris Bowers began classical piano studies as a toddler in Los Angeles. In 2011, he walked away with the top honor at the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition—a major career boost for the Juilliard student. He brings his award-winning chops to the Piano Jazz studios for this set of tunes.

Sachal Vasandani
Sachal Vasandani is already earning critical acclaim as the next great male jazz vocalist. And today’s listeners agree—his 2011 album, Hi-Fly, shot straight to the number one spot on the iTunes jazz chart. Vasandani also penned some of the tunes on the album. On this week’s program, he swings on a set of standards and originals with host Jon Weber.

Aaron Diehl
Dubbed “the Real Diehl” by Wynton Marsalis, pianist Aaron Diehl is bringing the music of keyboard giants like Scott Joplin, Art Tatum, and Duke Ellington to a whole new generation. Diehl was named the 2011 Cole Porter Fellow in Jazz by the American Pianists Association. On this session, hear Diehl’s modern take on the music of the time honored masters of stride and swing.

Chris Dingman
Chris Dingman is one of a small group of elite musicians keeping the role of vibraphonist/leader alive in jazz today. He cut his teeth at the Thelonious Monk Institute, and his album Waking Dreams was a surprise hit of summer 2011. Dingman performs his original tune, Zanetta, and duets with Weber on Manhattan Bridge and Dolphin Dance.

Arturo O'Farrill and The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra
O'Farrill is making his big dreams for Afro-Latin jazz come true. This set from Newport presents three generations of composers, from Arturo O'Farrill's father Chico to Arturo himself to Dafnis Prieto and Gabriel Alegría from Cuba and Peru respectively, and one big exuberant ensemble to play them.

Steve Wilson and Bird with Strings at the Kennedy Center
Bebop met chamber music at the 1949 Charlie Parker with Strings recording session. Steve Wilson brings a fresh, original take to this classic material, including a piece or two that did not get recorded. He beamingly calls his string quintet "the crown jewels with his working group -- Bruce Barth, Michael Bowie and Lewis Nash -- at the KC Jazz Club.

The Mingus Orchestra: Better Get It In Your Soul at St. Bartholomew's Church
Charles Mingus (1922-79) wrote, ". . . it is time our children were raised to think they can play bassoon, French horn, English horn, full percussion, violin, cello. If we so-called jazz musicians who are composers, the spontaneous composers, started including these instruments in our music, it would open everything up. This acoustic concert, held on the weekend of the annual Charles Mingus High School Competition in New York, effectively follows through on his premise.

An Either/Orchestra Premiere: "The Collected Unconcious" by leader Russ Gershon
After visiting Ethiopia in 2004 and 2011, the adventurous E/O (together since 1985) now improvises in the modes and rhythms of the country's music, on this multi-part suite. As an appetizer, Gershon adapts songs by Nerses Nalbandian, an Armenian who left a strong imprint on Ethiopian music. Thanks to Chamber Music America's New Jazz Works program, funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.