jimmy cobb

Date: 11.03.2008
Publication: MM Newsletter
Author: Marsalis Music Read more »

Date: 10.27.2008
Publication: Philadelphia Daily News
Author: Shaun Brady

LIKE SO MANY occasions that turn out to be momentous in hindsight, the recording of Miles Davis’ landmark “Kind of Blue” album carried no special aura, no hint of the iconic future in store. “I just figured it was another good Miles Davis record,” shrugged drummer Jimmy Cobb.

“Just one that I happened to be on.”

It hardly needs to be said that Cobb’s impression is a vast understatement. In the 50 years since its release, “Kind of Blue” has come to be regarded as a landmark, the pinnacle not only of Davis’ output but perhaps of jazz itself. It’s almost certainly the best-selling jazz album of all time, and it has a place in the record collection of many a listener who would otherwise profess to a dislike of jazz.
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Date: 10.08.2008
Publication: Village Voice
Author: Rob Trucks

Jimmy Cobb is early. The sole surviving performer on Miles Davis’s 1959 album Kind of Blue is waiting in a sixth-floor conference room just blocks from Columbia’s old 30th Street Studios, the converted (Greek, Russian, or Armenian, depending on whom you ask) Orthodox church where the best-selling, most widely praised jazz album in history was recorded. The drummer and Harlem resident passes the time with his new iPhone—right now, unfortunately, it appears that if Cobb so much as stares at the gadget, it automatically calls his daughter. Thus far, hers is the only number programmed.
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Date: 10.01.2007
Publication: Boston Globe
Author: Kevin Lowenthal

Friday night, at Symphony Hall, the BeanTown Jazz Festival opened with an all-star offering that came within at least shouting distance of its advance billing as “concert of the century.” Titled “A Celebration of Jazz and Joyce,” the concert’s personnel was lovingly assembled by jazz impresario George Wein, the proceeds benefiting the Berklee scholarship fund named in honor of his late wife, Joyce Alexander Wein.

The show opened with rousing quintet versions of Thelonious Monk’s “I Mean You” and Tadd Dameron’s “Hot House.” Bassist Ray Drummond and drummer Jimmy Cobb were a Rolls-Royce of a rhythm section. Saxophonist Lew Tabackin and trumpeter Jon Faddis blended beautifully and soloed commandingly. On the second tune, Cobb traded whirlwind eight-bar solos with the other four.
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Date: 06.04.2007
Publication: Marsalis Music Read more »

Date: 03.26.2006
Publication: All About Jazz
Author: Jim Santella

The jazz drummer is never just a timekeeper. He or she works with the bassist to keep the music driving, but works hard to color every song with various textures that portray appropriate moods. The drummer will solo, and if inclined, may wish to show off a little. A veteran will adapt distinctive techniques to his performance that allows us to recognize him clearly from a distance.

When the drummer is also a leader, everybody benefits from the designs that he employs, and from the strong foundation that he provides. It’s usually democratic. Everybody does his share, and everyone enjoys a certain amount of freedom. This works out especially well when the drummer shares his experience with his band members as a teacher.
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