Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Peter Leitch was born August 19, 1944 in Montreal, Canada. He has recorded seventeen albums as a leader and was a sideman with Oscar Peterson, Woody Shaw and Dominique Eade. He performed with Kirk Lightsey, Rufus Reid, Al Grey, Jeri Brown, Pepper Adams and Pete Yellin.

During his career he was nominated for a Juno Award for Best Traditional Jazz Album of the Year. He has written an autobiography, Off the Books, giving a real, raw, look at the life of a musician playing creative music. In addition to his music he became a very talented photographer with a number of exhibitions of his work.

Prior to his retirement due to medical issues on July 21, 2015, guitarist Peter Leitch was an educator who taught privately for a number of years.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Cecil Brooks III was born on August 16. 1959 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and started playing drums at age 5, studying with his father Cecil Brooks, Jr., a renowned jazz drummer. His father introduced him to Art Blakey, Max Roach, Philly Joe Jones and the jazz drumming tradition. He would go on professional performances with his father and by the age of 14 he was performing professional gigs on his own.

Awarded a full music scholarship at Mt. Aloysius College and Duquesne University and after receiving his degree, he played around the metropolitan city with visiting heavyweights. Cecil was virtually reviewed in every major music publication and newspaper as well as on Pittsburgh television and radio.

In 1984, Brooks moved to New York City where his first gigs were with Houston Person and Etta Jones. He toured and recorded with the duet for several years. During the same time he also performed with Oliver Lake, Mingus Dynasty/Big Band, Terence Blanchard, David Murray, Terumasa Hino, Greg Osby, Andrew Hill, Michelle Rosewoman, Nat Adderley and many others.

Brooks has released 9 CDs as a leader starting with The Collective to his latest Hot D.O.G. where he holds down with crisp and powerful drumming on the recording. He has performed and/or recorded with Jack McDuff, Andrew Hill, Hannibal Peterson, Groove Holmes, Don Braden, Jack Walrath and many more. He has produced John Hicks, Jimmy Ponder, Hannibal Peterson, Winard Harper, Darrell Grant, Bruce Williams, Radam Schwartz, Leon Lee Dorsey, Akua Dixon Turre, Russell Gunn Jr, Ron Jackson, Nat Simpkins, Eric Johnson, Roseanna Vitro, Arthur Blythe, Chris White, Don Braden, Talib Kibwe, and the list goes on.

For nine years beginning in 2003 he was the proprietor of Cecil’s Jazz Club in West Orange, New Jersey. IHe has had Cecil’s Monday Night Big Band featured ABC’s Nightline, has hosted visiting jazz greats and pros who live in the area. Home to bassist Christian McBride, pianist Geri Allen, saxophonist Don Braden, trombonist Steve Turre, and Herbie Hancock were all were regulars at the club and Bill Cosby launched the grand opening.

He has been the subject of many articles and reviews: Jazziz, DownBeat, Modern Drummer, JazzTimes, Hot House, The New York Times, BET Jazz Central, Time Warner Cable TV 90 minute documentary Cecil Brooks III The Third Generation, and many other major publications worldwide. He has toured throughout Europe, South America, Japan, the United States and Canada. Drummer, composer, arranger, producer and educator Cecil Brooks continues to swing as he performs, records and tours.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Tony Monaco was born on August 14, 1959 in Columbus, Ohio and began his musical journey learning to play the accordion when he was eight years old. At 12 he heard a Jimmy Smith album and instantly knew that jazz organ was his calling. He began playing jazz in nightclubs around his hometown while learning the art of the Hammond B3 organ and gleaning from influences Hank Marr and Don Patterson. This led him to Jimmy McGriff, Richard “Groove” Holmes, Charles Earland, Jack McDuff and Dr. Lonnie Smith.

On his sixteenth birthday Jimmy Smith called him, a friendship was struck and Smith began giving him jazz organ secrets over the phone. Four years later Jimmy invited Tony to come play with him at his club in Los Angeles, California. This would lead to future introductions and study with  Hank Marr, Bobby Pierce and Dr. Lonnie Smith. At the turn of the century he met Joey DeFrancesco when he was playing Columbus and the two of them became instant friends. Recognizing Tony’s’ talents right away, he offered to produce a CD for him and Burnin’ Grooves was born with drummer Byron Landham and guitarist Paul Bollenback. He also recorded a few tracks with Joey, who was on either piano or trumpet.

Into the new millennium Monaco began performing every major festival and outdoor concert in Central Ohio as Burnin’ Grooves gained attention. He went on to release his sophomore project on the Summit Records label titled Master Chops T with his trio and trombonist Sarah Morrow, saxophonist Donny McCaslin and trumpeter Kenny Rampton. This he followed with his third project Live at the 501, began endorsing Hammond/Suzuki Organs and conducting his jazz organ clinic at the 2003 International Association of Jazz Educators in Toronto, Canada.  He has played concerts with Lewis Nash, Red Holloway, Plas Johnson, Sonny Fortune, John Faddis, Mel Lewis, Eric Neymeyer among others.

Organist Tony Monaco has been voted in the Downbeat Magazine Critics and Readers Polls as well as voted by Jazztimes Readers Poll as being in the top 4 organists. He has released a dozen albums and continues to record, tour and perform worldwide.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Jerry Tachoir was born August 7, 1955 in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. A chance meeting with Gary Burton led to him matriculating through Berklee College of Music, studying with Burton and graduating summa cum laude in 1976.

Tachoir has been nominated for a Grammy, released several albums with his band, the Group Tachoir, and as an educator he has taught privately for over a quarter of a century, held clinics and master classes and authored  A Contemporary Mallet Method: An Approach to the Vibraphone and Marimba,

He has released an instructional vibraphone video titled Master Study Series and the Vibraphone Vol. I and II. Vibraphone and marimba player Jerry Tachoir has led his quartet for twenty-five years throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe, and continues to compose, record and tour.

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Daily Dose Of Jazz…

Jemeel Moondoc was born August 5, 1951 in Chicago, Illinois and studied clarinet and piano before settling on saxophone at sixteen. He became interested in jazz largely due to Cecil Taylor and at the University of Wisconsin–Madison became one of his student.

Following graduation he moved to New York City, where he founded Ensemble Muntu with William Parker, Roy Campbell, Jr., and Rashid Bakr. The group had its own Muntu record label for a time but eventually faced financial difficulties. He worked with Parker again on his 1998 album New World Pygmies.

Alto saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc, a proponent of a highly improvisational style, has recorded nineteen albums as a leader, two with the Jus Grew Orchestra, three with Denis Charles and Steve Swell and continues to compose, perform and record.

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