Talking 2 Musicians

Daily articles carefully curated by the All About Jazz staff. Read our popular and future articles.

Talking 2 Musicians

Brandon “Taz” Niederauer: A Minor with a Major Future

by Alan Bryson
July 7, 2020

Though only seventeen, guitarist/singer/songwriter Brandon Niederauer has amassed a staggering list of accomplishments. At age ten he was a guest and performer on The Ellen DeGeneres Show--the YouTube clip of which has over 3,200,000 views. Two years later he landed a role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Broadway Musical, School of Rock. He has performed a Hendrixesque version of the National Anthem at games for Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association. He has worked with Lady Gaga, and ...

Talking 2 Musicians

Jazz Musicians Up Against A Virus

by Rob Rosenblum
June 17, 2020

In the last year or so Good Times became the first jazz club in years to operate in Savannah, Forte Jazz Lounge sprouted up in Charleston and Middle C arrived in Charlotte. The Charleston Jazz Orchestra became a hub renamed to Charleston Jazz, providing both big band and small group concerts with unprecedented success. And, of course, the Spoleto festival showcased some of the most experimental and adventurous jazz concerts every Spring. Then came the Corona virus and all our ...

Talking 2 Musicians

Talent, Tenacity, Tequila & a Tale of Two Texas Teenagers

by Alan Bryson
July 6, 2019

Train to Nowhere “Train to Nowhere" by Dave Dupree was the aptly named single released by Challenge Records on January 15, 1958. Newly founded by Gene Autrey, “The Singing Cowboy" of Hollywood fame, the jny: Los Angeles based label was looking to land its first hit record. The single itself was on the road to “nowhere" until something highly unlikely happened--a disc jockey in jny: Cleveland, Ohio listened to the flip side of a single by an unknown artist on ...

Talking 2 Musicians

Remembering Kofi Burbridge: 1961-2019

by Alan Bryson
May 29, 2019

Kofi Burbridge, keyboardist, flutist, arranger, and composer with the Tedeschi Trucks Band, passed away on February 15, 2019 at the age of 57. His health issues became public in the summer of 2017 when he underwent emergency heart surgery. Things seemed hopeful after his return to the band and his participation in the recording of what was to be his final album with the TTB. The aptly titled Signs, in a seeming display of cosmic synchronicity, was released on the ...

Talking 2 Musicians

Etienne Mbappe: Silky Master of the 4th Dimension

by Alan Bryson
May 17, 2019

Etienne Mbappe plays bass so smoothly that you could imagine he wears silk gloves—and you would be correct. In fact he is the only musician in the world who has an endorsement deal with a silk glove manufacturer. He is a musician's musician, a world class bassist based in Paris. Originally from Cameroon in Western Africa, he began his musical career in Paris in the 80s, playing with the leading names on the African music scene. He toured with the ...

Talking 2 Musicians

The Multifaceted Mike Seal

by Alan Bryson
December 8, 2018

He's an extraordinarily talented guitarist whose musical interests range from jazz and bluegrass to classical music. Mike Seal has been active on the Southern music scene for over a decade and is based in Nashville, Tennessee. His grandfather was a gifted self taught gospel guitarist in rural Virginia, and his older brother, Rob Seal, is a multi-instrumentalist (guitar/mandolin/violin/banjo) who is active on the bluegrass music scene. Mike is married to a professional musician who is also a very accomplished lap ...

Talking 2 Musicians

Oteil Burbridge: Long Live the Dead

by Alan Bryson
August 24, 2018

In 2015 rhythm guitarist Bob Weir and drummer Bill Kreutzmann, founding members of the Grateful Dead, formed the band Dead & Company, along with longtime Grateful Dead keyboardist Jeff Chimention and drummer / percussionist Mickey Hart. They enlisted some fresh blood into the band with the addition of singer/guitarist John Mayer, and bassist Oteil Burbridge. A couple of months prior to their first summer tour I interviewed Oteil Burbridge, and published it here on All About Jazz in audio form. ...