There’s no place like home. KCSM Station Manager Robert Franklin traveled to Jackson, Mississippi, home of Bobby Rush, the legendary and acclaimed 2024 Grammy Award Winner for Best Traditional Blues Album. We had a great time talking about his love of the South, his life, legacy and current plans for the coming year. Rush headlined the 47th Annual Mississippi Delta Blues and Heritage Festival held in Greenville, Mississippi in September.

San Francisco's GG Park featured, "A Love Supreme: A Tribute to John Coltrane" on September 21st Tem saxophonists (representing the entire family, from sopranino to bass) and a drummer performed a suite of Coltrane music arranged by the late Andrew White, a life-long Coltrane devotee. The event is a yearly labor of love brought together by Craig Bright's organization tranetraxx.org. Craig is an avid and passionate supporter of Jazz in all of its forms, and of KCSM as well. The saxophonists (left to right) included Lyle Link, Dave Salvator, Steve Nelson,Bob Kenmotsu, Charles McNeal, Jared Cruz, Jayn Pettingill, Dan Gonda, Doug Rowan, Michael Young. Drummer Deszon Claiborn kept it all inspired and Charles McNeal not only played but conducted. James Graves MC'd. Stay tuned for next year!

On Saturday night, June 15, The Dick Conte Quartet (Dick on piano; Steve Webber, bass; Steve Heckman, saxophones; Jimmy Hobson, drums) performed at the California Jazz Conservatory in Berkeley during their annual concert to benefit the Dick Conte Piano Scholarship Fund which helps young jazz pianists.

This week, it's part 6 of a 10-part series on the great King Record Label, 1952, out of Cincinnati. Syd Nathan, who began putting out records under the King logo in 1943, developed King as a hillbilly music label. After seeing the sales potential in the Rhythm & Blues market, Nathan launched the Queen Records subsidiary in 1945, but folded it into King in 1947 and transferred his R&B acts over. King established itself in the R&B field with Bull Moose Jackson, Ivory Joe Hunter, Wynonie Harris and Lonnie Johnson all scoring enormous hit records. This week in part 6, we take a look at King's spectacular releases during 1952. The great Sonny Thompson has his final 2 career charting singles in '52 and Bill Doggett begins his long stint with King, though he wouldn't have a hit until '56. Even though Todd Rhodes didn't have a hit this year, he is all over this week's "Juke" with a risque number, "Rocket 69" with Connie Allen on lead and "Trying" with LaVern Baker on lead. Rhodes also backs up Wynonie Harris on "Keep on Churnin'" and Moose Jackson on "Big Ten Inch Record." We'll also dig on 2 tunes that would become much bigger hits for other artists later; The Swallows' version of "I Only Have Eyes For You" and Dave Bartholomew's original "My Ding-A-Ling."

Béla Fleck and Edmar Castañeda (UPDATED). Two virtuosos, on two unique instruments, from two parts of the globe. Banjo star Béla Fleck joins Colombian folk harpist Edmar Castañeda for a string throwdown at the 2019 Big Ears Festival in Knoxville TN.

The Outcasts (Originally aired 08/12/2007). The outcasts in this episode of the Annals of Jazz does not refer to people but to instruments. Host Richard Hadlock was fascinated by instruments that were rejected by jazz musicians but sometimes brought back. Whether it’s the kitchen bands where jugs, spoons, pots and pans, and washboards are the sounds of merry-making, or toy type instruments like the kazoo, tissue paper over a comb, or suitcases played with whisk brooms, this is a fun listen!

John Beasley wears numerous hats in the music world: pianist, composer, arranger, band leader and so on and so forth... He has made quite a name for himself and gained the respect and admiration of his peers as well as the movers and shakers in the industry. He has twelve Grammy nominations to his name and actually won two - one of which was for Best Instrumental Album. He has worked with the Frankfort Radio Big Band for a number of years and is currently enjoying the release of their latest collaboration: 'Returning to Forever' (the music of Chick Corea re-imagined as John likes to say). Recently his 'Monk'estra' recordings and public appearances have also raised his profile as a musician with eclectic tastes and universal appeal. His musical partner Magnus Lindgren often accompanies him in the studio and on the road. Fortunately, we caught John just before leaving for Europe and yet another tour. Enjoy tracks from John's 'Returning to Forever' as well as a few from other recordings... all with John's vocal narrative.

This episode features a set-in memory of Emily "Cissy" Houston (pictured) (Drinkard Singers, Sweet Inspirations), samples from the new four-CD retrospective on the Roberta Martin Singers, Jimmy Ellis & Riverview Spiritual Singers, Brooklyn All Stars, Inez Andrews, Rev. Gatemouth Moore, Howard Lemon Singers, and more.

How the Legacy of Colonialism Keeps Puerto Rico’s Healthcare System in Shambles. Almost half of Puerto Rico's doctors have fled the island over the past decade, leading to a lack of specialists and treatment and incredibly long wait times. And this isn't just an inconvenience. People are dying from lack of care. Why is Puerto Rico's health care system collapsing, and why are doctors fleeing the island?We take a look at its deeply dysfunctional private medical system and why attempts to fix it, and create a universal health care plan on the island, are being hindered by Puerto Rico's status as a US colony. Its massive unpayable debt, held by investors in the US, means that it cannot make its own economic decisions, even when it affects the livelihood of poor Puerto Ricans living there. But there might be a fix, getting rid of Puerto Rico's debt and rethinking its colonial relationship to the US.

Dr. Michael Van Noord is a member of Bay Area Medical Missions (BAMM). BAMM is a company that was formed by doctors and nurses in California that supports urgent medical needs of many homeless populations in northern California, specifically, the San Francisco tenderloin district.Time: 8:30-9:00 a.m.

Trevor Parham, CEO of Oakstop Inc, and Executive Director, Oakland Xchange. Oakland Xchange established a partnership with Jaylen Brown, a National Basketball Association (NBA) player with the World Champions Boston Celtics and NBA Hall of Fame player Jason Kidd and current coach of the Dallas Mavericks. The Oakland Xchange is focused on bridging the racial gap in cities across the country with economic opportunities in underserved communities in Oakland, California.