Kenny Wessel

Welcome back and don't despair- jazz is always in the air. Especially right here, right now!Kenny Wessel is living jazz history. He worked with legendary sax player Ornette Coleman for 12 years and toured the world as a member of Coleman's Prime Time ensemble. He's played with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and with the London Philharmonia. He's a featured soloist on Donald Fagen's solo album, Morph the Cat, and has played with jazz visionaries on all ends of the spectrum, including John Abercrombie, David Liebman, Arthur and Red Prysock and vocalist Johnny Hartmann. He's a master improviser and composer and has played on many, many recordings, including his most recent release, In the Briar Patch.Ok, enough of the bio! Go to https://kenwessel.com for all the mind blowing credits and discography,Kenny also teaches jazz guitar and has become a member of our extended family as Milo's teacher at CCNY. What a cool, real, compassionate cat! We sat down with him over zoom last August and got to know him a little better- his growing up and discovering guitar, his early teeth cutting as a performer, fortune and curiosity taking him where it would, living under the radar and SHOP TALK! Gigs, first meetings, Jerry Garcia, the power of the Hammond organ- the longer we talked, the more colors emerged. He's a musician's musician living in his natural habitat, New York City, living and loving his life, one note at a time, sometimes (it seems) a hundred at a time.Growing Up Naked theme composed, arranged and performed by Isaac DellMusic:Bemsha Swing from the album Thunk! by Stephen Gauci, featuring Stephen Gauci/tenor Sax, Kenny Wessel/guitar, Michael Bisio/bass, Jeremy Carlstedt/drumsIn Due Course from the album Unstrung, composed and performed by Kenny Wessel/guitar with Lisa Parrott/alto, bari and soprano saxophones, Asam Kolker/tenor saxophone, Matt Pavolka/ acoustic bass, Russ Meissner/drumsAnd again, check out more Kenny at https://kenwessel.comcheck us out on Instagram at growingupnaked.For a full list of Ornette Coleman's recordings-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornette_Coleman_discographyAnd check out Ornette playing with The Dead from a 1993 Oakland Coliseum show here- https://relisten.net/grateful-dead/1993/02/23/space?source=2798208