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Easy Jazz Spotlight

Easy Jazz Spotlight

by Easy Jazz FM

Music Commentary Music History Music Interviews

Season 6

The "Sheer Will and Daring" of Jazz Impresario Cory Weeds

Known as the hardest working man in the jazz business, saxophonist and entrepreneur Cory Weeds successfully ran his own jazz club for 14 years. Downbeat Magazine acknowledged that Vancouver's "Cellar Jazz Club" was among the best in North America. But Cory has been far more than a club owner. His jazz recordings have received accolades worldwide, including reaching number one on the JazzWeek charts. Today, the busy artist, producer, educator, book publisher and Grammy Award winner oversees his record label "the Cellar Music Group" while performing and touring with many top jazz artists. Author Chris Wong has said that Weeds has "...realized ambitious jazz dreams, through his talent, sheer will, and daring" all of which becomes apparent in this special interview conducted by our host Kerilie McDowall.

50 Years on the Bass - Rick Kilburn

Rick Kilburn of Vancouver, British Columbia has enjoyed a 50-year career as a jazz bassist. Over the years, Rick has worked with the top names in jazz - including Dave Brubeck, Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan, Paul Desmond, Diana Krall and many more. In this fascinating interview - Rick talks to our host Kerilie McDowall about his early introduction to music and his incredible career.

We're Here for a Good Time (Not a Long Time) - Clayton Hill from Trooper

Clayton Hill is a Canadian rock drummer best known as a long-time member of the iconic Canadian rock band Trooper. In this animated interview - Hill tells our host, Ken Boyd, that he remembers the days he was eating beans out of a can and made very little money in music. But it was a last-minute audition in 2006 that Hill learned 26 songs in short order to join Trooper. He tells Ken how he came to be part of the band and his other ventures in music.

American Jazz Singer / Songwriter Halie Loren

Halie Loren is an international, award-winning jazz singer/songwriter. Her multi-genre and multi-lingual musical blend across her ten albums to-date has earned several national and international awards in multiple genres as well as significant critical and chart success along the way, with her albums consistently reaching #1 on the Billboard Japan, iTunes (Canada and Japan) and Amazon jazz charts. She speaks with our host Stefan Zaichkowski.

Award-winning Canadian Saxophonist, composer and music educator Christine Jensen

Award-winning Canadian Saxophonist, composer and music educator Christine Jensen has led a distinct voice to the creative jazz scene for the last twenty-five years with her large and small ensembles. In this interview with host Kerilie McDowall - Christine reveals what she teaches her students, gives advice on jazz composition, and talks about getting inspiration from paintings.

R&B/Hip-Hop artist Chlo

Introducing "Chlo", an R&B/Hip-Hop artist from New Westminster, British Columbia whose unique tones and bold energy light up every stage she touches. Chlo says she learned, from her musician father, that taking risks can lead to great things. Interviewer Ken Boyd sat down with the new young artist about her life and music.

Canadian Jazz Star Laila Biali

She's one of the biggest jazz stars in Canada who performs worldwide. Multi-award winning Laila Biali is a singer, pianist and host of a national CBC music show (called Saturday Night Jazz). Laila has headlined many jazz festivals and venues - including New York's Carnegie Hall and Beijing's National Centre for the Arts. Our host Stefan Zaichkowski caught up with Laila as she was working in the mountains of Banff - to speak with her about her career and music. The interview starts with a discussion about Laila's 2026 Grammy nominated album "Wintersongs".

KK The Drummer

Kelvin Harrison, known as KK the Drummer, took to the drums like a fish takes to water. In this interview with host Stefan Zaichkowski, KK (who has recorded with a range of major artists) explains his philosophy on drum playing and music in general - emphasizing that it's about creating a "feeling" and having fun. Be sure to listen to KK's song "Dinner and a Move" at the end of the interview.

Season 5

Can't Get a Job as a Jazz Artist? Start a Jazz Club!

Al and Erica Wong had trouble getting jobs as musicians. So they decided to just open up their own jazz club and hire themselves! That's exactly what they did and their new club, called Jazz at 248 in downtown Ottawa Canada is creating a buzz in the city's jazz community. The couple explained to host Stefan Zaichkowski that they wanted a club where jazz artists of all kinds - beginners included - can jam and practice in front of an audience.

Great Jazz with Varying Styles from AFJP

AFJP stands for "Annam's Family Jazz Project" - a Quebec-based jazz band created in 2014 when four passionate musicians met at University. Led by composer Annam Nguyen, the band set out to express jazz using different styles to reach a larger audience. Annam sat down to speak with our host Stefan Zaichkowski. Be sure to hear the band at 59:47 in the interview.

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