About Bill

Bill Carrothers has hardly followed the typical path of a musical prodigy. Growing up on the edge of the Twin Cities metro area, he heard lots of jazz at home, from his father’s recordings of Dixieland and Gerry Mulligan to his mother’s singing and piano playing. He started out with lessons from his church organist at age five—and he initially hated the piano. “My mom made me play… She used to set the oven timer for a half-hour and I'd have to just sit there, even if I didn't play, I had to just sit there and stare at the keys and I just hated it. I wanted to play baseball.” But eventually Carrothers was turned on to jazz by his piano teacher, the late Bobby Peterson, who eschewed the academic exercises; instead “it was all sitting down and listening to records, playing along with them, or turning the stereo off and playing duets.” Peterson also introduced young Bill to Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, and most importantly, Miles Davis. Starting with Davis’ Greatest Hits, he was mesmerized: “I wore it out. I listened to it 100 times. I'd never heard anything like that before.” 

After playing in his high school jazz bands, Carrothers moved on to the jazz program at North Texas State on a scholarship. However, he found the formality of college music studies frustrating. “I decided that the best way to learn it was to start buying every kind of jazz music I could find and start listening to it…” Gradually, Carrothers gained experience playing with visiting artists like James Moody and Billy Higgins, and recorded a well-received CD (A Band in All Hope) in 1986. By 1988, he’d had enough of college studies and headed to New York, where he recorded with Gary Peacock and Bill Stewart, and had gigs at the Village Gate, Birdland and Visiones. But the big city never felt like home, and after five years and leading one recording (The Artful Dodger), Carrothers gave up on the Big Apple, recognizing he preferred a quieter, more rural life than the frenetic pace of most jazz musicians. “The whole schmoozing, going to clubs, being seen and hanging out is not my thing at all.”

After trying upstate New York (Woodstock) for a couple years, he returned to the Midwest, and now makes his home in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. For much of his music, however, he spends his time in Europe, where he finds more work and a more open attitude toward jazz.  Now past 40, Bill Carrothers has had a relatively low profile but has established a strong following, touring throughout the U.S. as well as European venues. As a sideman he has appeared with Joe Beck, Scott Colley, Buddy DeFranco, Dave Douglas, Curtis Fuller, Billy Higgins, Lee Konitz, James Moody, Dewey Redman, Charlie Rouse, and Toots Thielemans, among others; as a leader he has released 16 acclaimed recordings. European honors have included the 2000 French Diapason d'Or de l'Année, and the 2004 Grand Prix de l'Academie Charles Cros, and numerous Top 10 of the Year lists in France.  

Bill’s Birdology recording, 2000’s Duets With Bill (Stewart), was awarded the German Schallplatten Preis. Departing from the acoustic piano, Carrothers played Fender Rhodes on The Electric Bill (Dreyfus, 2002) with Bad Plus partners Reid Anderson and Dave King, a release dubbed by Tom Surowicz (Minneapolis Star Tribune) as one of the best recordings of 2002, “as serious and sensuous and spacey as Miles Davis in his pioneering fusion period.” Noted Jazziz (2002), “Carrothers' playing recalls that of Andrew Hill and Herbie Nichols, pianists both known for their patient improvisations and composerly senses of intrigue.” Carrothers’ 2005 release, I Love Paris (Pirouet), followed a more mainstream direction, focusing on tunes from the 20s-40s.  

Turning sharply again, in late 2005, Carrothers, with Twin Cities’ cohorts Gordon Johnson and Dave King, released Shine Ball (Fresh Sound/New Talent)—mostly spontaneous improvisations. While on the surface there are incongruities—lyrical piano passages in tandem with oddball percussion gadgetry, quirky “preparations” of the keyboard challenged by pure acoustic basslinesit all melds together to produce a unique yet accessible, often playful result, always challenging the listener to find the common threads, to anticipate the next turn. Noted John Kelman (All About Jazz), “Shine Ball is spontaneous composition of the highest order.”  [Click here for a Jazz Police review]  Never one to take a break if there’s a piano nearby, Bill Carrothers released Keep Your Sunny Side Up (Pirouet) in early 2007, featuring bassist Ben Street and drummer Ari Hoenig. [Click here for a Jazz Police review.] 

Of most interest to the upcoming AQ weekend, Bill has taken on several projects reflecting his interest in American history, including his tributes to the Civil War (The Blues and the Greys, Bridge Boy Music, 1997; the live solo CD, Civil War Diaries, Bridge Boy Music, 2005). His 2004 release, Armistice 1918 (Sketch), featuring Bill Stewart on drums, Drew Gress on bass, and additional support from Jay Epstein’s percussion, Mark Henderson’s contrabass clarinet, and wife Peg Carrothers’ vocals, earned rave reviews  and was nominated for the 2005 French “Grammy” equivalent, Les Victoires du Jazz.  

The Band, Armistice 1918

A word about the musicians joining Carrothers at the Artists Quarter: Peg Carrothers followed her musical muse to the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul and the University of Minnesota, studying classical voice. Meeting future husband Bill Carrothers, she was encouraged to listen to Frank Sinatra and Billie Holiday. For the next decade, Peg built her jazz repertoire at local venues, finally releasing Blue Skies in 2001 (Bridgeboy Music). Noted Tom Surowicz (All Music Guide), “she has an agenda, making each tune fresh and revelatory -- not comfy. Her voice is clear and warm, flowing and trumpet-like, light but never wispy.” 

Bassist Gordon Johnson graduated from the Eastman School of Music where he majored in flute. He toured with Maynard Ferguson, Doc Severinsen, and the Paul Winter Consort, has appeared on over 50 recordings, and has kept time for most local and many visiting artists. He has released three albums featuring trios with different combinations of pianists and drummers (Trios, Volumes 1, 2 and 3.0). Veteran drummer Jay Epstein earned his college degree in math and chemistry before turning to jazz. He studied poly-rhythmic concepts with drummer Barry Altschul, a member of Chick Corea's avant-garde quartet, Circle. Epstein has performed with such starts as Barney Kessel, Roseanna Vitro, Manfredo Fest, Sheila Jordan, Terry Gibbs, Greg Abate, Claudio Roditi, JoAnne Brackeen, Ernie Watts, Karrin Allyson, Kenny Werner, Toots Thielemans, Avashai Cohen, and Sarah Vaughan, toured Italy with Giacomo Aula, and plays in numerous ensembles including Red Planet, Main Time, and the Mary Louise Knutson Trio. 

Matt Turner is known internationally as a versatile cellist, comfortable with jazz standards, alternative rock, and experimental music. Earning a Master of Music degree in Third Stream Studies at the New England Conservatory of Music, he studied with Dave Holland, Geri Allen and Joe Maneri. Also a talented pianist, Turner has been hailed by Strings Magazine as a musician who “dazzles with his own improvisational excursions and displays his expansive cello vocabulary..." while Jazziz describes his cello playing as "rich-toned and inventive."

Jean-Marc Foltz is considered a pioneer of new music for clarinet in his native France. Introduced to piano and Ellington by his father, he began clarinet studies at age 7 but turned early to improvised music when he found classical repertoire “boring.” Although he did not appear on the Armistice recording, Foltz has performed the masterwork with Carrothers’ septet throughout Europe. A native of Antwerp, Belgium, drummer Dré Pallemaerts began studying music at age 11, and a few years later he discovered the jazz charts of Basie and Ellington. At 17, he met bassist John Clayton who connected him with Jeff Hamilton for further studies in the U.S.  His resume includes performing and/or recording with such luminaries as Toots Thielmans, Junior Cook, Teddy Edwards, Mal Waldron, Norma Winstone, Red Holloway, Archie Shepp, John Scofield and Joe Lovano.

The Music: Armistice 1918

As Pamela Espeland noted in her recent MinnPost preview, Armistice 1918 is “the musical equivalent of a great war movie: moments of tender nostalgia, horror, irony, loss and regret, exhaustion and grief.” Jazziz (January 2005) reported that “Carrothers' two-disc tone poem to WWI, inspired by the work of Great War poets and partially funded by a war museum in the Somme region of France, is by turns jubilant and haunting. ... It evokes a depth of feeling and reflection worthy of the event that inspired it.” And noted the Jazz Society of Oregon, “This is serious material to be listened to closely. It has clout, poignancy, and a strong message for our country at this very moment.”  

Does music based on the melodies and agonies of World War I have relevance today? Noted composer Bill in an interview with MinnPost.com,  “I think if people studied history a bit more, we wouldn't be so shocked by the events of today, and might be able to have a bit more perspective about our modern problems." 

Heady stuff from one of the genre’s most cerebral and unpredictably creative performers. Don’t miss this very special weekend. Plan to stay for two full sets. 

For a Jazz Police review of Armistice 1918, click here. Read Pamela Espeland’s interview with Bil Carrothers on www.minnpost.com. The Artists Quarter is located at 408 St. Peter Street in downtown St. Paul. For this weekend only, Bill Carrothers and his ensemble will play the full composition across two sets—so plan to arrive for the 9 pm start, on Friday January 4th  and again on Saturday, January 5th. More information at www.artistsquarter.com. Bill’s website is at www.bridgeboymusic.com