Ben Fitzpatrick

Marshall Gilkes and WDR Big Band: Life Songs

by Jack Bowers
January 28, 2024

Maryland-born trombonist Marshall Gilkes, who spends much of his time working in and around various jazz bases in North America, returns to his “second" home, Cologne, Germany, for Life Songs, his eighth album as leader and third with his former employer, Cologne's world-class WDR Big Band. Gilkes spent the years 2010-13 in the WDR trombone section, shortly before he and the ensemble released the widely praised albums Koln (Alternate Side, 2015) and Always Forward (Alternate Side, 2018). ...