 Eric Reed
Eric Reed attended Cal State Northridge for one year during which he toured briefly with Wynton Marsalis at age 18. A year later, Eric joined Marsalis’ Septet (1990-91; 1992-95). He spent two years with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra (1996-98), making countless recordings and TV appearances with them. Reed also worked in the bands of Freddie Hubbard and Joe Henderson (1991-92). Eric continues to perform and record with an assorted multitude of masters like Elvin Jones, Benny Carter, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter, Cassandra Wilson, Jimmy Heath, Clark Terry, Dianne Reeves and a host of other diverse performers including Natalie Cole, Patti Labelle, Oleta Adams, Edwin Hawkins, Jessye Norman and Quincy Jones.
Since 1995, Eric has been touring with his own ensembles, making serious waves in the Jazz community. The legendary Ahmad Jamal has called Eric, "one of my very favorite pianists." Eric’s recording Pure Imagination, shot to #1 on the Gavin chart and stayed there for seven weeks, earning him the 1999 Gavin Artist of the Year award. His next recording, Manhattan Melodies was also #1 on Gavin for several weeks. A masterful composer/arranger Reed has scored music for independent films as well as mainstream, including the comedy "Life," featuring Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence.
In addition to leading a quintet that features some of the finest young talent on the scene, Eric presently expands his musical horizons in the area of education, teaching in various situations worldwide. Away from the piano, Eric serves as the artistic director of a concert series called Jazz Composer Portraits at Columbia University’s Miller Theater. Eric’s latest release is Happiness on the Nagel-Heyer label, his first recording of original music in five years.
 Stacy Dillard
Stacy Dillard, from Muskegon Heights, Michigan, attended college at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. Very quickly, Dillard acquired the necessary knowledge that would soon put his name out on the local scene. It was a run-in with Wynton Marsalis in Dayton, Ohio that would turn his attention to the New York Scene. After graduation, Stacy took the act to Cincinnati, where he stayed for a short time and made his first recording appearance with Mike Wade on trumpet, drummer Melvin Broach and pianist William Menefield. Maturation was very rapid, finally leading the way to New York.
Seamus Blake was born in England and raised in Vancouver, Canada. Blake was first asked to record at the age of 21 with drummer Victor Lewis while Blake was still a student at the Berklee College of Music. Following his graduation, Blake moved to New York, where he rapidly established himself on the New York scene. At 30, Blake now has 4 releases on Criss Cross Records, including the 1995 premiere release of the Bloomdaddies band featuring 2 electrified tenors, electric bass, vocals and 2 drums. His latest for them entitled Echonomics, and features Dave Kikoski and Victor Lewis.
 Gerald Gannon
Willie Jones III, son of the accomplished jazz pianist Willie Jones II, co-founded Black Note, which was awarded First Place in the 1991 prestigious John Coltrane Young Artist Competition. Willie Jones III was a semifinalist in the 1992 Thelonious Monk Jazz Drum Competition. By 1994, the band toured Europe and across the U.S., and was the opening act for Wynton Marsalis. From 1998-2005, Jones was a member of and toured with the prominent Roy Hargrove's Quintet, and can be heard on Hargrove's latest album release Nothing Serious and RH Factor's Distractions. Continuing the pursuit of musical artistry, Jones not only made his debut as a bandleader in 2000 with his premier record Vol 1...Straight Swingin' (WJ3), but he also revealed his proficiency as a composer as well as a producer. He released his second acclaimed CD in 2002, Vol II...Don't Knock The Swing. Currently, Jones is touring with Eric Reed, Kurt Elling and Hank Jones.
Catch Eric Reed with Seamus Blake on sax, Stacy Dillard on sax, Gerald Cannon on bass, and Willie Jones III on drums at the Village Vanguard on February 6th-11th.
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Friday, 05 September 2008
