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My son Bernie sings his 2007 hit “If I Don’t Know What To Do” in glorious Dolby (TM) sound!

Jason Crane interviews percussionist, bandleader, composer and educator Bobby Sanabria. Sanabria is a living link to the great Afro-Cuban jazz tradition. He’s played with just about everyone, including Dizzy Gillespie, Tito Puente, Paquito D’Rivera, Charles McPherson, Mongo Santamaria, Chico O’Farrill and Mario Bauza. He’s also a Grammy-nominated solo artist and a powerful force in bringing the Afro-Cuban tradition into the 21st century. This interview features a sneak peek at his new album, Big Band Urban Folktales (Jazzheads, 2007), which hits stores in June.

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Brilliant!

My most recent article for The Guide on Hilton Head Island is about singer Marlene Ver Planck, who performs there this weekend. Enjoy!

Today is the birthday of Bertrand Russell, the philosopher who wrote the extremely influential book Why I Am Not A Christian. If you’ve ever received an e-mail message from me, you’ve seen this Bertrand Russell quote at the bottom:

“The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge.”

Hard to go wrong with a philosphy like that.

I’ve mentioned my colleague Jack Bradigan Spula before. He writes the wonderful blog The Rochester Dissident.

I think the thing I like most about Jack is that he sees an entirely different side our of city from what most people see. Jack rides his bike everywhere, and his years on two wheels have caused his eye for detail to strengthen. Reading Jack’s blog is always revealing. He forces me to think about the world around me in ways that I often forget in my daily life.

For example, check out today’s post on a new college development project.

On the new episode of The Jazz Session, Jason Crane interviews drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts. You might know him from his years with Wynton Marsalis, or his years with Branford Marsalis, or his stint as the drummer on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, or from his many, many recordings as a leader and sideman. Tain’s new album is Folk’s Songs (Dark Key Music, 2007). It features his band The Ebonix with Marcus Strickland on saxophone, David Kikoski on piano and Christian McBride on bass.

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A group of visionary artists and community leaders are trying to build a New Globe Theater on Governor’s Island off Manhattan. Learn more about this amazing project at newglobe.org.

On the new episode of my weekly interview podcast The Jazz Session, my guest is saxophonist and composer Christine Jensen. Based in Montreal, Jensen has recorded three albums. Her most recent project is Look Left (Effendi, 2006), the result of a half-year spent studying and writing in Paris. The Globe and Mail called Jensen “one of the most important Canadian composers of her generation.”

Check out the show at TheJazzSession.com.