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WJ3 All-Stars

Night Is Alive manages some of the most intriguing and inventive musicians of our time.

They are internationally known, respected and honored.

Buster Williams, Bass

Grammy-award winning sideman Buster Williams has played, recorded and collaborated with more than two-dozen Jazz heavyweights, including Herbie Hancock, through the many changing landscapes of jazz. Best known for his solid, dark tone and highly refined technique on the acoustic bass, Williams learned both the double bass and the drums from his father, but was indeliably influenced by Oscar Pettiford's recordings.  He ultimately decided to concentrate on the bass. Charles Anthony Williams, Jr. (nickname: Buster) was born in Camden, New Jersey.

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Eric Reed, Piano

Through more than a quarter-century as a first-caller on the jazz scene, Reed has articulated this inclusive conception as a leader of numerous ensembles, solo performer, composer, producer, educator and sideman with numerous artists. Whatever the context, whatever the style, he consistently animates the flow with fresh ideas, virtuosic chops, intellectual clarity and an unwavering will to groove.

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Selected Music

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Ralph Moore, Saxophone

Ralph Moore has lived in the U.S. since 1970. He is a fine tenor saxophonist influenced by John Coltrane, but possessing a slightly softer tone. He moved to New York in 1981 and has recorded several fine albums for Landmark, Criss Cross, Savoy, and Mons (with the L.A. Jazz Summit).  He has toured extensively with J.J. Johnson, and since 1995, has been a member of the Tonight Show Orchestra in Los Angeles.

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Selected Music

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Eddie Henderson, Trumpet

Eddie Henderson is an American jazz trumpet and flugelhorn player. He came to prominence in the early 1970s as a member of pianist Herbie Hancock's band, going on to lead his own electric/fusion groups through the decade. Henderson earned his medical degree and worked a parallel career as a psychiatrist and musician, turning back to acoustic jazz by the 1990s.

 

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Selected Music

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Steve Davis, Trombone

Born in Binghamton, New York, Davis was taken with the sounds of bebop which has lead to his distinctive sound on the slide trombone. In addition to leading his own group, he continues to perform with Chick Corea's sextet Origin. "I'm drawn to music which allows for creativity of expression," Davis said during a 2001 interview, "music which challenges the listener (as well as the musicians playing it) to think, to imagine, to feel."

 

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Willie Jones III, Drums

Ever since 1997, when he moved to New York City from Los Angeles, his hometown, Willie Jones III has been one of the jazz capital’s most prominent drummers. Whether functioning as a savvy bandleader or high-profile sideman, Jones applies to every context an abiding musicality and a tonal personality that, as Wynton Marsalis puts it, is “ever tasteful,” marked by what pianist Eric Reed, his frequent collaborator, calls “a West Coast swagger in his swing, with a looseness that isn’t lackadaisical and an edge that isn’t overwhelming.”

“I still follow Billy Higgins’ model,” Jones says. “I’m always trying to support whoever I’m working with to make the music sound as good as possible. I have a good balance. I’ll continue to evolve as a leader, but I’ll always play as a sideman—I still love learning and playing other people’s music.”

 

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Selected Music

 

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