CLASSIC JAZZ FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
"Cullum’s cornet and his band are brilliant—arrangements, spirit, class. Fine jazz with a savvy touch!" says jazz critic Phil Elwood of the San Francisco Examiner. The Jim Cullum Jazz Band and their guests embrace Jazz with passion and stunning expertise each week on Riverwalk, Live From The Landing.
Riverwalk celebrates the lives and music of America’s top jazz musicians, past and present. Each week, The Jim Cullum Jazz Band salutes these jazz pioneers in live performances and fascinating stories that bring to life remarkable moments in the history of jazz.
Riverwalk is produced with a passion and love for the music and offers listeners a glimpse of the cultural context and historical setting in which jazz first reached out to a national audience. The 52-week series is produced by Pacific Vista Productions for Texas Public Radio, is distributed weekly on about 200 stations nationwide by Public Radio International and is sponsored by See's Candies of California. First broadcast in 1988, the program celebrates the lives and music of America's greatest jazz musicians, past and present. Each program is co-hosted by the Grammy-award-winning storyteller David Holt and San Antonio bandleader and jazz night club owner Jim Cullum Jr.
Here are some highlights from our upcoming fall 2001 season:
Jelly Roll Blues. Vernel Bagneris performs excerpts from his critically acclaimed show, Jelly Roll. The Jim Cullum Jazz Band, with Mr. Bagneris on vocals, performs Jelly Roll Morton classics Jelly Roll Blues and Sweet Substitute.
Relaxin' at the Touro: Muggsy Spanier and His Ragtime Band. The Jim Cullum Jazz Band honors the musical legacy of cornetist, Muggsy Spanier and his remarkable recordings known as the "Great 16."
Long Way From St. Louis: The Story of Jazz Pianist Ralph Sutton. The Jim Cullum Jazz Band welcomes piano great Ralph Sutton. Paris in the Thirties: Bill Coleman & Django Reinhardt. Visit the rich musical scene in the bistros and nightclubs of Paris in the 30s with The Jim Cullum Jazz Band and special guest jazz guitarist, Paul Mehling. Louis Armstrong: A Portrait of the Man and His World. Louis Armstrong's personal writings brought to life by actor/writer Vernel Bagneris with music by The Jim Cullum Jazz Band. Early Chart Toppers: Pop Hits of the 20th Century. The Jim Cullum Jazz Band, along with special guests Carol Woods, Vernel Bagneris, and Rebecca Kilgore perform some of the most recorded pop songs of the early 20th century. Amazing Grace: A Program of Spirituals and Hymns. The The Jim Cullum Jazz Band performs an evening of exceptional music with special guests, piano legend Dick Hyman and the First United Methodist Church choir, live from First United Methodist Church in Houston
For more information on the new season, see our Program Guide at http://www.riverwalk.org/proglist/proglist2001.htm.
Jim Cullum's world-famous Landing Jazz Club on the Paseo Del Rio (River Walk) in San Antonio, Texas has been in continuous operation since 1963 and serves as the venue where most of the hour-long shows are produced. The core of the Riverwalk shows is the music of the Jim Cullum Jazz Band--hailed by critic Stanley Dance as "the best traditional jazz band in the country--quite possibly in the world." The all-acoustic classic jazz band's repertoire covers ground from 19th century cakewalks to the music of W.C. Handy, Jelly Roll Morton, Bix Beiderbecke, Duke Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael, Louis Armstrong, and George Gershwin, as well as their own original compositions. The JCJB performs live Monday through Saturday at the Landing.
Riverwalk guests have included (among many others): Milt Hinton, Dick Hyman, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Lionel Hampton, Bob Wilber, Savion Glover, Bob Haggart, Doc Cheatham, Clark Terry, Howard Alden, Nicholas Payton, Susannah McCorkle, and Benny Carter and noted actors/performers William Warfield, Eli Wallach, Jerry Stiller, Vernel Bagneris, and Earl Hyman. These elements are combined with anecdotes, interviews, and historical audio clip packages. Profiles and photos of all past guest artists can be found in the Riverwalk Portrait Gallery at http://www.riverwalk.org/profiles/rwgalery.htm
Stay tuned for more of America's classical music--Vintage Jazz. As Jelly Roll Morton once said, "Good music never gets old." Writes San Antonio Express-News music critic Jim Beale:
With the Cullum band, traditional jazz is in no danger of becoming a musty museum exhibit. One listen to the Riverwalk radio programs and you come away convinced that traditional jazz can, if given half a chance, hold its own against the flood of pop saxophones inundating the jazz world.
For more information, go to http://www.riverwalk.org