| Show All |
2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 |
| Wil Blades (2012) | |
|---|---|
| Born in Chicago, organist Wil Blades (he's used that spelling for years, having adopted it because he thought it looked cool) has been part of the Bay Area music scene for more years than his youth would seem to make possible.
Early on, Wil played with John Lee Hooker and Dr Lonnie Smith. Since then, he's played and recorded with Melvin Sparks, Idris Muhammad, Joe Louis Walker, Don Braden, Donald Harrison, Karl Denson, Will Bernard, Scott Amendola, and Charlie Hunter. He's done TV and radio, and has attracted international attention. In 2007-08, Wil was on the Down Beat list of rising stars. He has kept alive the hard-driven B3 sound of Jimmy Smith, Larry Young, and Richard "Groove" Holmes. And he brings an original sound to what he does: harmonically unique, funky and swinging. Currently Wil has out not one but two recordings, one with Will Bernard, and the other with drummer Billy Martin, "Shimmy". |
| Pick | Artist | Album | Song | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| # 1 | Eddie Harris | The In Sound | Cryin' Blues | Atlantic |
| # 2 | Jimmy Smith | Organ Grinder Swing | Blues for J | Verve |
| # 3 | Miles Davis | Porgy and Bess | Bess, You Is My Woman Now | Columbia |
| # 4 | Aretha Franklin | Amazing Grace | You'll Never Walk Alone | Atlantic |
| # 5 | Ella Fitzgerald | These Are the Blues | How Long, How Long Blues | Verve |
| # 6 | Charlie Haden and Keith Jarrett | Jasmine | Where Can I Go without You? | ECM |
| # 7 | Stevie Wonder | Talking Book | Tuesday Heartbreak | Motown |
| Book | The complete works of Kurt Vonnegut | |||
| Luxury Item | An espresso maker and coffee beans | |||
| Tim Garland
26 Apr Ben Goldberg 01 Mar Lua Hadar 08 Mar | Molly Holm
19 Apr Remy Le Boeuf 15 Mar Stephanie Nakasian 18 Jan | Marlena Shaw
29 Mar Ben Sidran 12 Apr |