Chu Berry
The history of jazz in the Pittsburgh Region looms large as an important part of the history to know and learn from.
HAPPY 80th BIRTHDAY, ROGER HUMPHRIES!
Reaching his landmark 80th birthday this week - and still active on the Scene - the great drummer and educator Roger Humphries. We share a conversation with Roger and a sampling of his sounds - and where you can hear him this month, too - including Thursday Feb 8 at Alphabet City, and Thursday February 22 at Kingfly Spirits.
Roger’s time on the road with Horace Silver, Stanley Turrentine, Ray Charles and more led to worldwide notice, then he came back to Pittsburgh to lead outstanding groups and teach at CAPA and Pitt.
REGGIE WATKINS and CHU BERRY
Wheeling native Reggie Watkins has become a potent force in the Pittsburgh Jazz firmament - and a while back, he did some discovery about another wheeling native, the iconic saxophonist Chu Berry. That research led to an article that can be found in WEELUNK, a publication about the heritage of Wheeling. Chu Berry was also active in the Pittsburgh scene early in his career - and had strong connections with Pittsburgh’s Little jazz - Trumpeter Roy Eldridge.
Reggie is playing all around Pittsburgh, often - and will be back in Wheeling for a special event for Jazz at the Stifel at Ogelbay on February 10th.
Roger, Reggie and Chu - Thursday night at 6, Friday and Saturday at noon, Sunday at 5 on WZUM.
Young Roger Humphries - Credit Teenie Harris
Reggie Watkins
Roger Humphries at Rudy Van Gelder’s Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, studio during Horace Silver’s Song for My Father session, October 26, 1964. Photo by Francis Wolff and courtesy of Blue Note Records.
Roger Humphries