Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest — Winning Author Profiles, Group 5

February 4th, 2019

 

..

.

___

..

.

…..On March 11, 2019, .Jerry Jazz Musician .will publish the 50th .winning story in our thrice-yearly Short Fiction Contest. To celebrate this landmark event, we have asked all the previous winners (dating to 2002) to reflect on their own winning story, and how their lives have since unfolded.

…..Beginning on January 7 – and on every Monday through March 4 – we will publish five or six profiles of participating authors, along with their winning story.

…..For this feature, authors were provided with a list of the following questions as a guideline for creating their profile:

.

What do you remember about your winning story?

Did winning this contest impact your writing career? 

What did the publication of your story mean to you?

Are you still writing?

What are five books you have recently read that you would recommend to others?

.

 

…..Many writers responded in a short essay, and others did so via a “question and answer” format.

…..These profiles are an entertaining, enlightening, and at times emotional look at the stimulating, rewarding process of creative writing, and the people whose work has made important contributions to this publication over the years.  Many thanks to everyone who took the time to so thoughtfully participate.

…..I would also like to thank everyone who has thought enough of this publication to submit their work for consideration.  In 49 contests spread out over 16 years, we have chosen 46 winners from over 7,000 stories submitted — a stark reminder of the challenges of this art form.

.

This week’s edition covers authors of winning stories #’s 24 – 28

.

*

.

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 1 – 6, click here

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 7-11, click here

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 12 – 16, click here

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 17 – 23, click here

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 29 – 34, click here

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 35 – 38, click here

 To read the edition for winning stories #’s 39 – 44, click here

To read the edition for winning stories #’s 45 – 49, click here

 

 

.

_____

.

.

 

 

Abby Cummins

Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #24

“Alone: A Love Story”

Published July, 2010

.

.

*

.

.

Ms. Cummins responds in a “Question and Answer” format:

.

Q: What do you remember about your winning story?

A: I wrote this story when I was 18, and I recall writing it partially in my high school senior year Topics class (so sorry, Ms. Richardson) and finishing it in a burst of inspiration while sitting outside in the woods in the middle of a very cold hike. I began this story after watching a spate of horror movies with my boyfriend in October, and I couldn’t get the idea out of my head that it must be a singularly odd experience to be a child actor in a film that would end up terrifying and captivating adult audiences. Then I thought, “What happens later when you grow up and understand more about that experience?” I read voraciously and couldn’t remember ever coming across a book about the topic, so I decided to write it for myself.

 

Q: Did winning this contest impact your writing career? 

A: This contest absolutely impacted my writing career! This was the first writing contest that I won that had a paid prize, and my first published story. I felt extremely flattered, and proud of my own achievement for the first time as a professional writer. It contributed to giving me the necessary drive to continue writing and to enroll in a BFA Creative Writing program for undergraduate work the next year.

 

Q:  What did the publication of your story mean to you?

A: The publication of my story was very much a validation of hard work, as well as an exciting entree into the world of publishing for me. I had only just begun writing short stories that year, and had had no real instruction in the medium at the time. This remains my favorite story from that period in my life. I was also part of a jazz music program in high school, playing in a youth big band that tours internationally, and now as an adult I work part-time for that same organization. So to be published in a contest by a site that values and promotes my other near-and-dear passion was a real thrill.

 

Q:  Are you still writing?  

A: I am still writing! I published a few stories in various university journals throughout the course of my undergrad, and have since turned to novel writing. I write every day and am hard at work on the final draft of a piece that I’ve been tinkering with for some time now. Fingers crossed that the world might get to see it as well in the future.

Q:  What are five books you have recently read that you would recommend to others?

In no particular order:

1) Into the Drowning Deep .by Mira Grant

2) The Witch Elm. by Tana French

3) My Best Friend’s Exorcism .by Grady Hendrix

4) VE Schwab’s .Shades of Magic Trilogy

5) Katherine Arden’s. The Winternight Trilogy

.

My biography:

I grew up in Northern Virginia, and while I have traveled extensively, have lived locally all my life. When I’m not writing, I’m working a couple of different “to pay the bills” jobs around town, as both a Legal Assistant for a Fairfax family law firm and as Operations Manager for Virginia Music Adventures, a non-profit that takes youth jazz musicians overseas to perform internationally. I have previously published stories in .Volition, and in .Juxtaposed Journal. in addition to this story in Jerry Jazz Musician. I’m currently working on the latest draft of a novel about a crime set in Northern Virginia. You can find out more about my writing life on my Facebook page:https://www.facebook.com/crimewritergirl/

.

.

___

.

.

Alone:  A Love Story

by

Abby Cummins

(Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #24.  Published July, 2010)

.

___

.

…..When I was ten, I was in a movie. It was a very famous movie. It ran in theaters for over a month, bringing in more and more revenue for the production company. When it finally came out on VHS (it was old enough that it was a tape, with reels inside it), the film grossed in the millions. The director was hailed as “visionary”, the actors as “superb”. The film itself became famous for having been one of the best horror movies of the year (1992). Critics said that it had “truly ushered in a new era of horror, one in which the innocent and benign murder recklessly”. The review that held these words was taped to my wall, for I’d been mentioned by name, praised, and it was a very well known newspaper, indeed. “Sharon Ellis, a real child actor who will no doubt amount to something great, gives a phenomenal debut performance. Her emotion and sensual expression are truly remarkable for such a young girl so new to the scene.” I used to read those words, over and over again, and imagine the critic who had written them watching me on the big screen before them.

…..They didn’t know me, but they thought they did. This was what I came to find out. The critics and movie lovers, basically the spectators of the game, were sure they understood me and all of my motivations. I could be classified. The Shirley Temple of horror, I was even called once. (What a moniker, as if anyone wanted to be associated this way!)

.

Click here to continue reading the story

.

.

.

________

.

.

Danny C. Knestaut

(photo from 2010)

Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #25

“Farenheit”

Published November, 2010

 

.

*

.

Attempts to reach Mr. Kenestaut for this feature were unsuccessful. “Farenheit,” is a tender story of an elderly man’s loss, and how a note from a trumpet — and the use of tobacco — helps him deal with it

___

.

.

Fahrenheit

by

Danny C. Knestaut

(Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #25.  Published November, 2010)

.

 

.

________

.

A trumpet squealed in the hospital halls. The note, like a brass rabbit, zipped past room 334. Moments later Mr. Fahrenheit watched two orderlies jog past the open door: not too fast, not real slow. It appeared to be the speed of indicated hurry. A few more notes from the trumpet whizzed down the hall before they too slowed to a jog, and then drew themselves out into expressions of gold, blue, green – then stopped before Mr. Fahrenheit could call the name of the song to mind. The next few notes he tapped out on the back of the hand he held in his own. His wife did not respond. Even he had begun to forget to expect a response. She inhaled. She exhaled. The eyes beneath her blue lids quivered and shimmered.

Outside Mr. Fahrenheit’s study, a blue jay grasped a birch tree’s branch. The limb bobbed. The blue jay fluttered its wings, shook its head. It squawked. Mr. Fahrenheit dropped his concentration. The effort to recall the notes of the old jazz tune lifted from his mind as if made of steam and then disappeared into the air of the room. He tapped at the oak of his desk where several bills from the hospital and statements from an insurance company laid, splayed like soiled laundry. He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest as he regarded the bird, the marks on its wings. It shook itself again, the autumn mist repelled. Above, snow fell from clouds, but the air clasped too much heat yet for it to reach the ground.

.

Click here to continue reading the story

.

.

.

_________

 

.

.

J. A. Reynolds

(photo from 2011)

Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #26

“The Improvisational Distance”

Published March, 2011

 

.

*

.

Attempts to reach Mr. Reynolds for this feature were unsuccessful. “The Improvisational Distance,” is about a jazz musician’s quest for authentic love

___

.

.

.

The Improvisational Distance

by

J. A. Reynolds

(Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #26.  Published March, 2011)

.

___

.

Everyone is afraid to knock on the door when they hear the trumpet behind it. A closed door is like an On Air sign or a red light outside a dark room. Still, they have to talk to him. Sonny is nowhere to be found. And Thibodeau is too busy eye-fucking the women at the hotel bar to practice. And Baldwin is just tired.

They wait for a lull, a break. Three minutes waiting outside the door, and it comes. They knock soft, one of those we didn’t want to have to bother you but didn’t see any other recourse knocks; a musician has a way of using sound, its timbre, its breadth, to say everything. Knocking is no different.

Dress-shoe footsteps and then unlocking, the door opens. A tall, lean man with fingers to match wipes the sweat from his eyes, sighs heavy-like, but says nothing, nods.

.

Click here to continue reading the story

.

.

.

_________

 

.

.

Ben Murray

(photo from 2011)

Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #27

“The Open Marriage”

Published July, 2011

 

.

*

.

Attempts to reach Mr. Murray for this feature were unsuccessful. “The Open Marriage,” is a musician’s dreamy, poetic appreciation of and connection to the love of his life

___

.

.

.

The Open Marriage

by

Ben Murray

(Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #27.  Published July, 2011)

.

___

.

ten minutes into sound and I have begun to lean, to lean forward in these shared chairs towards glissando, towards pluck and sizzle and crash. Ellen is a grace note, a cello curve beside me in this dark, lovely, smitten club of jazz.
that I know it’s Ellen’s thigh and hip accompanying mine is a testament to the radii of our ring fingers, the shiny bands there that play so seriously at patience and time.
the sax guy’s finished his bit. he was fierce, his alto breathing, exhuming Dolphy and Jackie Mc. my applauding hands dream of trading fours with his, a mischievous dream because I keep his hands, refuse to trade them back, knowing fully well they’re just ordinary digits without the brain above, all those synapses full of next notes, phrases, pauses. but that doesn’t matter, it’s my crazy-ass dream and his fingers will be enough. enough to put this non-playing buff on stage to blow rings around standards and originals, around these club walls coated in the royal spit and exhale of kings and dukes and counts and birds.

.

Click here to continue reading the story

.

.

.

_________

 

.

.

.

 

 

N. Barry Carver

Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #28

“Resolution”

Published November, 2011

.

.

*

.

Mr. Carver responds in a “Question and Answer” format:

 

 .

Q:  What do you remember about your winning story?

A:  My father died when I was 10. He worked on the assembly line at a Ford plant just outside of Detroit and suffered his second heart attack after coming home from work one night. This means I’m somewhat trapped in trying to figuring out what I should think of the few real memories I have left. I’m more than a decade older than he was when he passed and, while I had a few father figures (in older brothers, uncles, and employers) I’m continuously processing all the missing parts of that relationship.

My dad, a veteran of WWII and Korea, was very mechanically inclined and didn’t speak much even when he had time. However, his love for me, and my siblings felt (still .feels) obvious and reassuring.  As I sat to write “Resolution,” I tried to imagine it the other way around. As if I’d been abandoned and thought myself unwanted. The inciting action would be the reunion in the story, and all the anger and pathos such a moment had to offer.

It is exceedingly rare that I look down at the page when I’m done and truly like the work. In this one, I marvel at it as if it’s someone else’s. I’m really proud of it and wish I could more often duplicate the journey in it and, of course, the resolution.

Q:  Did winning this contest impact your writing career?

A:  I have been writing for a long time. I have many versions of the stories I like always clunking around in my head. This contest came along at a low point for me.  A crucial teleplay I’d written had originally been turned down and, in my opinion, plagiarized by the same outfit for a major film. There really wasn’t much I could do about it, ideas are not after all .copyright-able. So to dredge up feelings in a really brief piece and have it come together well was really satisfying for me. Then, to win a place and publication for it, that was a ton of affirmation I really, desperately needed.

Q:  What did the publication of your story mean to you?

A:  It simply meant that I was telling a story that touched something in people. I had deep doubts – doubts that resurface unexpectedly when little rejections come in, or an audience just stares at you and clearly didn’t get what you meant in the least. I haven’t ever had those big wins, or the “being discovered” moment, but there are certainly bright spots which I can look back on that remind me that, every so often, I can hit the nail on the head. This particular bit of vindication has been a beacon for me.

Q:  Are you still writing?

A:  As long as I can afford a pencil, I’ll write. I have recently finished my first novel and am now skulking about searching for an agent and/or publisher for it. It’s SciFi, deeply convoluted, and (I hope) packs a similar emotional wallop in the end.  We’ll see. I’m grateful for the ongoing interest from the site (in the person of Joe Maita) that this bit of work has earned me and I look forward to continuously reading and participating here in every way I can.·

Q:  What are five books you have recently read that you would recommend to others?

A:  While a good question, it’s a little tough on me. I have been so buried in writing my own that I’ve been away from the bookstore longer than I should.  I’m going to have to fall back on things everyone says they’ve read and yet, in a discussion, on which they seem a little sketchy.  I highly recommend this fellow named Shakespeare, and that means all the plays your primary English teachers hoped you’d read (Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, Henry V, and Macbeth – at least). You’ll find, even if you need to translate a few words on each page, he really had a good grip on who we’ve always been and likely ever to be. Buckle down and read them. The other mind builder is all that stuff from Plato. I can’t tell you how many folks cite “the cave analogy” and then lose themselves in the shadow of retelling it. Now neither of those guys need any help from me in generating book sales – for most of recorded history – but it is so good that it’s still worth all the head-scratching it takes to get through them.  And, I’d be remiss, if I didn’t mention Douglas Adams too. I’m afraid that will have to take the place of my list of five.

.

.

Mr. Carver’s Biography

Barry Carver is an author, actor and disabled veteran. Grammarly says he’s a bit long-winded, but he’s a fairly unique word-stringer and occasionally hits the sweet spot of a sentence, paragraph, or story, that makes it worth all the crazy turns and clauses. He’s a father of two boys who are presently in their teens – so kind thoughts are welcome. He still wishes he’d been an astronaut, or a bit taller, but not both. We’re all still waiting to see what he grows up to be.

.

.

_____

 

.

.

.

Resolution

by

N. Barry Carver

(Winner…Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest #28.  Published November, 2011)

.

____

.

…..It’s a shame that, in the 21st century, there are still men of my age who do not know who fathered them.

…..Setting aside the moral issues, I need to know about my family medical history and bloodlines. What if, trough twisted fate, my one true love was revealed to be my half sister? Or to find out, while facing an ill-informed press, that I am the progeny of some great hero, or desperate criminal, and under the presumption of similar habits. At forty-eight, I still don’t know if I should be honoring the birth of a savior, celebrating the miracle of lights, or dancing naked in the woods on the dark of the moon.

…..But morality has its part too. I never married. I have been very careful not to father a child… for, after all, what kind of man am I? In my cells and down in my secret soul, what am I destined to become? I have held the “nature versus nurture” debate my whole life and, I believe, I have been a good man. I am not deformed or handicapped. My brain functions at the level of my peers and my demeanor is such that I dare not speculate aloud that it is actually slightly superior. My development has been uneventful. I never had a stitch or broke a bone until I fell on my wrist two years ago.

.

Click here to continue reading the story

.

.

Share this:

Comment on this article:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Publisher’s Notes

News about upcoming publishing dates, collections, interviews, and recent posts…

In This Issue

The Modern Jazz Quintet by Everett Spruill
A Collection of Jazz Poetry — Summer, 2023 Edition

A wide range of topics are found in this collection. Tributes are paid to Tony Bennett and Ahmad Jamal and to the abstract worlds of musicians like Ornette Coleman and Pharoah Sanders; the complex lives of Chet Baker and Nina Simone are considered; devotions to Ellington and Basie are revealed; and personal solace is found in the music of Tommy Flanagan and Quartet West. These are poems of peace, reflection, time, venue and humor – all with jazz at their core. (Featuring the art of Everett Spruill)

The Sunday Poem

Reijo Koskinen / Lehtikuva, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
“Miles” by Charlie Brice

Interview

IISG, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Interview with Judith Tick, author of Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song...The author discusses her book, a rich, emotionally stirring, exceptional work that explores every element of Ella’s legacy in great depth, reminding readers that she was not only a great singing artist, but also a musical visionary and social activist.

Poetry

The poet Connie Johnson in 1981
In a Place of Dreams: Connie Johnson’s album of jazz poetry, music, and life stories...A collection of the remarkable poet's work is woven among her audio readings, a personal narrative of her journey and music she considers significant to it, providing readers the chance to experience the full value of her gifts.

Community

Nominations for the Pushcart Prize XLVIII

Interview

photo courtesy of Henry Threadgill
Interview with Brent Hayes Edwards, co-author (with Henry Threadgill) of Easily Slip Into Another World: A Life in Music...The author discusses his work co-written with Threadgill, the composer and multi-instrumentalist widely recognized as one of the most original and innovative voices in contemporary music, and the winner of the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Poetry

"Jazz Diva" by Marsha Hammel
A brief collection of poetry devoted to jazz…and love...Seven poets combine the music of jazz with an act of love…

Book Excerpt

Book Excerpt from Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song, by Judith Tick...The author writes about highlights of Ella’s career, and how the significance of her Song Book recordings is an example of her “becoming” Ella.

Poetry

photo of Bill Evans by Veryl Oakland
Six poets, six poems on Bill Evans...A poetic appreciation for the work of the legendary pianist

Feature

Joel Lewis
True Jazz Stories: “Well You Needn’t: My Life as a Jazz Fan” by Joel Lewis...The journalist and poet Joel Lewis shares his immensely colorful story of falling in love with jazz, and living with it and reporting on it during his younger days in New Jersey and New York

Poetry

"The Dancer" by Elaine Croce Happnie
“The Dancer” – a poem by Zoya Gargova

Playlist

photo by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
“A Baker’s Dozen Playlist of Ella Fitzgerald Specialties from Five Decades,” as selected by Ella biographer Judith Tick...Chosen from Ella’s entire repertoire, Ms. Tick’s intriguing playlist (with brief commentary) is a mix of studio recordings, live dates, and video, all available for listening here.

Poetry

painting by Henry Denander
A collection of jazz haiku...This collection, featuring 22 poets, is an example of how much love, humor, sentimentality, reverence, joy and sorrow poets can fit into their haiku devoted to jazz.

Poetry

photo of Cab Calloway by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
“Zoot Suit Times (Rhythms From the Past)” – a poem by Oliver Lake

Community

Nominations for the Pushcart Prize XLVIII...announcing the six Jerry Jazz Musician-published writers nominated for the prestigious literary award

Poetry

Trading Fours, with Douglas Cole, No. 18: “The Sermon”..."Trading Fours" is occasional series of the writer’s poetic interpretations of jazz recordings and film. This edition features organist Jimmy Smith's 1958 Blue Note recording, "The Sermon"

Poetry

photo of Sarah Vaughan by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
”Sarah” – a poem by Connie Johnson

Short Fiction

photo vi Wallpaper Flare
Short Fiction Contest-winning story #63 — “Company” by Anastasia Jill...Twenty-year-old Priscilla Habel lives with her wannabe flapper mother who remains stuck in the jazz age 40 years later. Life is monotonous and sad until Cil meets Willie Flasterstain, a beatnik lesbian who offers an escape from her mother's ever-imposing shadow.

Photography

photo of Anthony Braxton by Giovanni Piesco
The Photographs of Giovanni Piesco: Anthony Braxton...Beginning in 1990, the noted photographer Giovanni Piesco began taking backstage photographs of many of the great musicians who played in Amsterdam’s Bimhuis, that city’s main jazz venue which is considered one of the finest in the world. Jerry Jazz Musician will occasionally publish portraits of jazz musicians that Giovanni has taken over the years. This edition is of the saxophonist Anthony Braxton, taken in January, 2015.

Interview

Chick Webb/photographer unknown
Interview with Stephanie Stein Crease, author of Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat That Changed America...The author talks about her book and Chick Webb, once at the center of America’s popular music, and among the most influential musicians in jazz history.

Poetry

photo by Ric Brooks Knoxville, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
“Four Sides Live” – a poem by Justin Hare

Community

FOTO:FORTEPAN / Kölcsey Ferenc Dunakeszi Városi Könyvtár / Petanovics fényképek, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
.“Community Bookshelf, #1"...a twice-yearly space where writers who have been published on Jerry Jazz Musician can share news about their recently authored books. This edition includes information about books published within the last six months or so…

Short Fiction

photo via joogleberry.com
“A Song and Dance Proposition” – a short story by Richard Moore...Because of his childhood experiences, the story’s narrator loses his singing voice and as an adult neither sings nor dances. But when his marriage falls apart he meets a ‘song and dance man’ who turns out to be Iris, a woman with multiple sclerosis. With her help, he comes to grip with his inhibitions.

Playlist

photo by Bob Hecht
This 28-song Spotify playlist, curated by Jerry Jazz Musician contributing writer Bob Hecht, features great tunes performed by the likes of Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughan, Charlie Parker, Sonny Rollins, Bill Evans, Lester Young, Stan Getz, and…well, you get the idea.

Jazz History Quiz #168

photo of Coleman Hawkins by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
Jazz History Quiz #168...In addition to being a top bassist between 1945 – 1960, he was the first major jazz soloist on the cello. He also played on Coleman Hawkins’ 1943 recording of “The Man I Love,” and appeared with Hawkins and Howard McGhee in the film The Crimson Canary. Who is he?

Short Fiction

Tents at Nuseirat, southern Palestine, UNRRA's biggest camp for Greek refugees/via United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
“Remember to Forget” – a short story by Amadea Tanner...Ms. Tanner's story, a finalist in the recently concluded 63rd Short Fiction Contest, is about a war correspondent's haunting revelations after she comes across musicians in a refugee camp.

Interview

photo by William Gottlieb/Library of Congress
Interview with Alyn Shipton, author of The Gerry Mulligan 1950’s Quartets...Long regarded as jazz music’s most eminent baritone saxophonist, Gerry Mulligan was a central figure in “cool” jazz whose contributions to it also included his important work as a composer and arranger. Noted jazz scholar Alyn Shipton, author of The Gerry Mulligan 1950s Quartets, and Jerry Jazz Musician contributing writer Bob Hecht discuss Mulligan’s unique contributions to modern jazz.

Photography

photo by Giovanni Piesco
Giovanni Piesco’s photographs of Tristan Honsinger

Short Fiction

Mary Pickford, 1918/trialsanderrors, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
“Bashert” – a short story by Diane Lederman...This story, a finalist in the 63rd Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest, looks at the hopes one man has that a woman he meets the night before he leaves for Camp Devens will keep him alive during World War I so he can return and take her out for dinner

Book Excerpt

“Chick” Webb was one of the first virtuoso drummers in jazz and an innovative bandleader dubbed the “Savoy King,” who reigned at Harlem’s world-famous Savoy Ballroom. Stephanie Stein Crease is the first to fully tell Webb’s story in her biography, Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat that Changed America…The book’s entire introduction is excerpted here.

Feature

Hans Christian Hagedorn, professor for German and Comparative Literature at the University of Castilla-La Mancha in Ciudad Real (Spain) reveals the remarkable presence of Miguel de Cervantes’ classic Don Quixote in the history of jazz.

Short Fiction

“In the Church Library” – a short story by Zary Fekete

Book Excerpt

Book excerpt from Easily Slip Into Another World: A Life in Music, by Henry Threadgill and Brent Hayes Edwards

Contributing Writers

Click the image to view the writers, poets and artists whose work has been published on Jerry Jazz Musician, and find links to their work

Art

Designed for Dancing: How Midcentury Records Taught America to Dance: “Outtakes” — Vol. 2...In this edition, the authors Janet Borgerson and Jonathan Schroeder share examples of Cha Cha Cha record album covers that didn't make the final cut in their book

Pressed for All Time

“Pressed For All Time,” Vol. 17 — producer Joel Dorn on Rahsaan Roland Kirk’s 1967 album, The Inflated Tear

Coming Soon

An interview with Gary Carner, author of Pepper Adams: Saxophone Trailblazer; A new collection of jazz poetry; a collection of jazz haiku; a new Jazz History Quiz; short fiction; poetry; photography; interviews; playlists; and lots more in the works…

Interview Archive

Eubie Blake
Click to view the complete 22 year archive of Jerry Jazz Musician interviews, including those recently published with Richard Carlin and Ken Bloom on Eubie Blake (pictured); Richard Brent Turner on jazz and Islam; Alyn Shipton on the art of jazz; Shawn Levy on the original queens of standup comedy; Travis Atria on the expatriate trumpeter Arthur Briggs; Kitt Shapiro on her life with her mother, Eartha Kitt; Will Friedwald on Nat King Cole; Wayne Enstice on the drummer Dottie Dodgion; the drummer Joe La Barbera on Bill Evans; Philip Clark on Dave Brubeck; Nicholas Buccola on James Baldwin and William F. Buckley; Ricky Riccardi on Louis Armstrong; Dan Morgenstern and Christian Sands on Erroll Garner; Maria Golia on Ornette Coleman.

Site Archive