“Bobby is one of the best musicians in the world." McCoy Tyner

Bobby Hutcherson

Joey DeFrancesco

UPDATE: Due to visa problems Biréli Lagrène will not be able to perform and will be replaced at Yoshi's and the Kuumbwa Jazz center by Mimi Foxl. At the Iridium in New York, the "Godfather of jazz fusion', guitarist Larry Coryell will replace Lagrène.

James Moody©Andrea Canter

“An extraordinary improviser, he's assimilated the ascetic, blunt language of 1960's modalism into the slippery, elliptical phrasing of 1940's bebop.”

--Peter Watrous, New York Times 

Improvising on the chord progressions of “I’m in the Mood for Love,” saxman James Moody created his signature tune back in the early 50s, putting a six-decade (so far) career into orbit as one of bop’s favorite living artists. An alum of the great bands of Dizzy Gillespie as well as a current member of the Gillespie Alumni All Stars, 83-year-old Moody will be on stage at Yoshi’s in Oakland, January 17-18. He’ll be backed by a West Coast rhythm section including John Campbell (piano), Tony Dumas (bass) and Paul Kreibich (drums). 

James Moody was raised in Newark, NJ. He recalls being fascinated by the saxophone long before he got one of his own. “There was a music store around the corner called Dorn and Kirchner and in the window there was this saxophone and, boy, I used to go and press my nose up against that window and just look at those horns. I loved the way they looked. I had to play one... My mother's uncle had a trumpet but it was in the closet. He said, ‘Here, play this.’ I didn't want to play that. I wanted a saxophone. Then my Uncle Louis bought me one. He and another one of my uncles contributed together and bought an old, beat-up silver alto.” The gift and the opportunity to hear the great horns of the Count Basie band launched Moody’s interest in jazz as a teenager. Soon he heard Charlie Barnet and particularly Lester Young, “his sound. Oh man, that gives you goosebumps.”  And then he heard Charlie Parker and Dizzy. “When I heard them I said, ‘Uh, uh. No. This is it. This is what I want to do.’” Then there was Coleman Hawkins who made a big impression on the young Moody. “...naturally the thing to do would be to combine Pres and Hawk together. I mean, really get into them. Anyway, that's what I'm still trying to do.”