How Jeff Parker Changed the Sound of Jazz / Pitchfork

In the Spring of 2015 @leroythejazzcat and @itsfreddyhoops created The Jazz Creative. The show aired on several television stations around the country, was self-funded, edited and produced. Airtime was purchased on local stations reaching over 70% of the country as we attempted to showcase many of the local artists that we championed. One of those musicians was guitarist Jeff Parker, aka @jeffparkersounds newly arrived from Chicago. He performed with another AACM inspired artist, Ms Nicole Mitchell, aka @blackearthmuse at another haven for creativity, The Blue Whale. They would perform several more times at our Just Jazz Concert Series @musicheadgallery As our series grew, so did several others, including ETA in Highland Park, in large part because of Jeff Parker and his Monday night residency. That's why, almost 15 years later, it's so refreshing to see and read a great current Pitchfork article titled, "How Jeff Parker Changed the Sound of Jazz". Not only is it a great article, but it details how Jeff has grown over the years while never forgetting his first love of improvised music and his impact on fellow musicians. Parker, “I like to teach, man. I’m from a lineage of teachers. Those guys were impressed by my career in a way that even I wasn’t,” he says. “I made the decision to be an artist, to focus on creating my own body of work. And the path to be a creative musician—it’s hard, man. I’ve decided to lean into that at this point in my career, because it is a career.” Thanks Jeff! Your influence has been felt well beyond the bandstand and studio walls. Hit the link in the bio to read the Pitchfork article.📸 Photo courtesy @jimbrockphoto #jeffparker #ETA #AACM #Pitchfork #justjazztv 🔥🔥🔥🎸

Click the photo below to read the Pitchfork article.