Cool is a funny thing. You can’t really define it, and the word has no real synonym. Yet you know cool when you see and feel it. If I were taking a stab at a definition, I’d say a jazz artist who made excellence look easy, was understated, wasn’t a follower (or advanced whatever he or she was following), didn’t work hard at hipness, had enormous charisma, and established his or her own artistic vision. [Photo above of Lester Young and Miles Davis]

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Cherry Red is one of my favorite pop labels. Based in England, the record company and its subsidiary imprints strive for fantastic sound, smartly edited collections and seductive packages. I typically feature a collection of my favorite Cherry Red sets twice a year—in June and just before the December holidays. So today, here’s my mid-year report:

Lulu—Independence (Dome). In 1993, long after disco had come and gone, Scottish singer Lulu recorded a superb dance album called Independence. Lulu, of course, is best known in the States as the singer of To Sir With Love, the hit song for the 1967 movie. Independence was her first album since 1982. The title track was a hit in Europe, reaching No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart, and peaked at No. 3 on Billboard’s dance chart. This five CD set features 57 audio tracks plus a DVD with promotional videos. The production and arrangements are superb. To buy (available July 24), go here.

Here’s the title track…

Various—Digging Your Scene: New Pop and All That Jazz, 1982-1987 (Cherry Red). At the tail end of disco, dance melted into a smoother, slick sound peppered with heavy beats and jazz influences. This box captures that fresh, sophisticated era in the U.K. on four discs. It’s a sequel to an earlier box—Heaven Sent: The Rise Of New Pop 1979-1983. All of the tracks are jazzy and sexy. To buy, go here…

Here’s New York Afternoon by Mondo Kane, featuring Dee Lewis, Coral Gordon and guest star Georgie Fame…

The 5th Dimension—Let the Sunshine In, the Soul City & Bell Albums (Strawberry). If sunshine pop had a royal family, it would be the 5th Dimension. Their vocal harmonies and arrangements were sterling and a plush counterbalance to the emerging hard rock movement in the late 1960s and 1970s. The songs chosen for the vocal group suited them perfectly, from Up Up and Away and Working on a Groovy Thing to Wedding Bell Blues and California Soul. This six CD box features all of their best albums plus bonus tracks. The sound is fantastic, and you quickly realize that the hits you know were just the tip of their rich catalog. I cranked up One Less Bell to Answer and was blown away by the warm, sterling fidelity. To buy, go here.

Here’s One Less Bell to Answer from the new set (turn it up)…

Really Into Something: Brit Girl Sounds and Styles, 1962-1970 (Strawberry). I adore the Brit girl sound of the 1960s and have posted about this genre for years. The female U.K. artists who made in the U.S. were limited to a handful. These include Petula Clark, Dusty Springfield, Lulu, Cilla Black, Sandie Shaw, Shirley Bassey and a few others. If you were in London back then (I was, in 1968), you’d be up to speed on Jackie Trent, Carin Kay, Debbie Lee, Cindy Cole, Sandra Gale and dozens of others who never made the leap across the Atlantic to the States with hits. This three CD set features one great pop single after the next, and brings to mind white boots, pink blush, white lipstick, heavy black lashes and colorful mod outfits. To buy, go here.

Here’s Romy Carr singing Can You Feel It, Baby…

What’s It All About? Film and TV Music of Swinging London (Strawberry). What would this roundup be without the brassy drama and high-impact sound of cinematic Brit-rock associated with Mayfair and Carnaby Street in the mid-1960s. This 3-CD set intermingles youthful vocal tracks with more adult-listening orchestration tracks (Sonny Rollins’s Alfie theme is here, too). What they all have in common is the cool, sophisticated, secret agent-y, sports-car scene of London then. Consume with a Pimm’s No. 1 Cup and cucumber. To buy, go here.

Here’s John Barry’s The Ipcress File…

The Lovin’ Spoonful—What a Day for a Daydream: The Complete Recordings 1965-1969 (Strawberry). This 7-CD, 170-track box compiles the complete 1960s recordings by the Lovin’ Spoonful. The box’s mastering is by Grammy-nominated archivist/producer Alec Palao and includes the group’s first four studio albums: Do You Believe In Magic (1965), Daydream (1966), Hums of the Lovin’ Spoonful (1966) and Everything Playing (1967) in both stereo and mono. There also are stereo mixes of their two soundtrack albums—The Lovin’ Spoonful In Woody Allen’s ‘What’s Up Tiger Lily?’ (1966) and You’re A Big Boy Now (1967). And much more. Sophisticated folk music for a simpler time that influenced California folk-rock. To buy, go here.

Here’s You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice…

Leon Russell With Mary Russell—The Paradise Years 1976-1982 (EMD). When I interviewed Leon Russell at home outside of Nashville in 2014, I told him my favorite albums of his were the ones he cut with Mary McCreary, his former wife. Looking at me with his bushy white beard and mustache, and sunglasses, he paused and said, “Thank you. They’re among my favorites, too, though the music was better than the relationship.” Strife notwithstanding, this is 4-CD set is a dream box for anyone who feels the way I do about Leon’s soul sessions for Paradise Records. To buy, go here.

Here’s Daylight…

Various—CBGB: A New York City Soundtrack 1975-1986 (Cherry Red). Starting in 1973, New York’s CBGB club became a hothouse for the development of punk and then new wave. All of the bands on this 4-CD set made a name for themselves playing live, and a handful of artists got record deals. The history of New York punk is here in one place, featuring a cross-section of the primitive music launched by social outcasts and misfits. All of them loved the grit of garage rock and rebelled against glossy arena bands by specializing in driving guitar riffs and raging vocals. To buy, go here.

Here are the Necessaries’ Back to You…

I receive a truck-full of albums each month. They come by snail-mail and email, and most are forgettable. They just don’t move me. This month, nine that stood out and are worth your undivided attention:

Lisa Rich—I Still Rise (Tritone). Jazz vocalist Lisa Rich released three excellent albums starting in 1983 before health issues brought her singing career to an abrupt halt in 1991. Then something amazing happened. She overcame her challenges and released Long As I Live in 2022. Now she’s out with a superb new recording, I Still Rise, backed by Marc Copland (p), Drew Gress (b) and Dave Ballou (tp). Her phrasing is gorgeous and her depth and sensitivity touch hearts. You can’t do much better than this trio. Marc is exceptional. To listen and buy, go here.

Here’s Two Lonely People…

Lolivone de la Rosa—Jewels (Music for Roses). Lolivone is one swinging guitarist. Whether she takes on jazz or Latin tunes, she brings exceptional taste to each and every track on her new album. She’s joined by Ned Goold (ts), Luis Perdomo (p), John Benitez (b) and Jeff “Tain” Watts (d). Special guests include David Suleiman (ts), Rogerio Boccato (perc) and Joel E. Mateo (perc). To listen and buy go here.

Here’s Beautiful Friendship…

Charles Chen—The Long Way Home (Cellar Music). Pianist Charles Chen has a superb touch. For his new album, he brought together Felix Lemerle (g), Bill Crowe (b) and Steve Little (d). It’s a joy to hear Bill up close and personal on the bass, and Charles’s piano is tasteful and impressive. In addition to the 10 tracks of music on the album, there are 26 tracks devoted to audio interviews with Steve and Bill covering lots of jazz ground. The album is joyous to hear and educational. To listen and buy, go here.

Here’s You Turned the Tables on Me…

Gafieira Rio Miami—Beleza Pura (Brazilionaire). If you can’t get down to Miami, this album will provide you with all its explosive excitement. This popular south Florida 11-piece group brings the brass and revamps the samba and hard bossa with sparkling excitement and virtuosity. To listen and buy, go here.

Here’s Só Danço Samba…

Hannah Gill—I Like the Sunrise (Turtle Bay). Hannah’s voice is perfectly suited to the Ellington songbook. It’s strong, in control and includes a dash of sass. Best of all, Hannah and the musicians swing on the up-tempo choices and dig in deep on the ballads. She’s backed by Luis Salcedo (g), Phil Ambuel (b), Adam Ray (d) and Ricky Alexander (ts). To listen and buy, go here.

Here’s So Far, So Good…

Carlos Henriquez—Monk Con Clave. Thelonious Monk tribute albums are a dime a dozen. The Carlos Henriquez big band takes on the composer-pianist with gusto and imagination. On paper, this album shouldn’t work. On your sound system, you’ll be blown away. It’s enormously inventive and injects fresh Latin excitement into Monk’s standards—further proof that great art lasts forever, provided that tributes find a new way to honor the man and his music. To listen, go to YouTube here. To buy, go here.

Here’s ‘Round Midnight…

Tyler Sabbag—Novella. On this one, Emmy-winner Tyler Sabbag created music for an imaginary film or series of films. Here’s how he puts it: “Six pieces and sixteen minutes in length, Novella plays like a half-remembered summer set against the Mediterranean coast, an enchanting dreamscape shaped more by longing than historical fact.” I guess the best way to describe the music is lounge meets general cinema. At once James Bond-y and 1960s love theme, it’s hypnotic and imaginative. For more on Tyler, go here. To listen, go here. To buy, go here.

New York Voices—Sonho Meu, Live in Irvine (Resonance). Recorded in California in 2022, the New York Voices still deliver great harmony. Here, they take on bossa nova standards with aplomb and finesse. Produced by George Klabin, the Voices add a jazzy veneer to music born in Rio de Janeiro. To listen and buy, go here.

Here’s Desafinado…

Terry Waldo—Treasury Vol. 3 (Turtle Bay). No one does early jazz better than pianist Terry Waldo. On his new album, he’s joined by the Gotham City Band. I’m astonished that musicians can play so well in this style, given its speed, complex syncopation and rigorous demands on solos and ensemble interactions. Terry is a master. To listen, go to YouTube. To buy, go here.

Here’s Canal Street Blues…

Before Nate Bargatze, Dave Chappelle, Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, David Letterman, Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, Robin Williams, Andy Kaufman, George Carlin, Redd Foxx, Woody Allen, Flip Wilson, Joan Rivers, Bill Cosby, Bob Newhart and Lenny Bruce, there was Jonathan Winters. [Photo above of Manhattan’s Upper West Side in the early morning hours last week by Marc Myers]

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Gene Simmons, 76, is a bassist and co-founder of the rock band KISS and of Simmons/Hamilton Productions, which recently released the new film “Deep Water.” He is currently on tour as a solo artist. [Photo above of Gene Simmons in 2025 by John Cotter/Sound Exchange]

If you have a WSJ.com subscription, you can read my House Call column with Gene Simmons he…

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Sam Worthington, 49, is an Australian actor known for the “Avatar” film franchise, “Everest” and “Under the Banner of Heaven” miniseries. He stars in the Netflix crime series “I Will Find You.” [Photo of Sam Worthington in Toronto by Ted Belton/Netflix]

If you have a WSJ.com subscription, you can read my House Call column with Sam Worthington here.

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The seven love songs on Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band feature melodramatic storylines, and though the album has a strong dance feel, it defies category and remains a cult classic. Dr. Buzzard climbed to No. 22 on the Billboard 200, helped significantly by the hit single “Cherchez La Femme,” which peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. …

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Dusty Baker, 76, is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager who won two World Series championships and a Gold Glove Award. He is the author of “Crossroads” (Crown), a memoir. [Photo of Dusty Baker by Michael Zagaris]

If you have a WSJ.com subscription, you can read my House Call column with Dusty Baker here.

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Alison Brie, 43, is an actor, producer and writer known for the series “Mad Men” and “GLOW,” the sitcom “Community” and the horror movie “Together.” She co-stars in the film “Masters of the Universe.” [Photo of Alison Brie by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP]

If you have a WSJ.com subscription, you can read my House Call column with Alison Brie here.

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Kerri Kenney-Silver, 56, is an actor and comedian known for the film “A Futile and Stupid Gesture” and TV’s “Reno 911!” and “Love.” She co-stars in “The Four Seasons” series on Netflix. [Photo above of Kerri Kenney-Silver by Ari Michelson]

If you have a WSJ.com subscription, you can read my House Call column with Kerri Kenney-Silver here.

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In his teens, rather than follow the crowd and emulate the styles of star tenor saxophonists of the late 1940s, Sonny Rollins, who died on Monday at age 95, played with a sound that was distinctly his own. A towering influence on jazz’s postwar evolution and a prolific composer of songs that became jazz standards, Mr. Rollins was seldom satisfied with h…

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Convinced Tavares was on a roll as disco surged, Capitol teamed the vocal group of brothers with Freddie Perren, a hit-making producer, songwriter and arranger. Released 50 years ago this month, “Sky High!” peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard 200. Its single “Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel” reached No. 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold a half-million …

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Brazil’s Milton Banana is best known in the U.S. as the drummer on Getz/Gilberto, the first major bossa nova album, released by Verve in 1964. The LP made The Girl From Ipanema a hit and vocalist Astrud Gilberto a superstar. Banana also was on João Gilberto’s groundbreaking record Chega de Saudade. On that 1958 album, Banana established the bossa’s sophisticated beat. [Photo above of Milton Banana]

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Paul Desmond’s finest work was with the Dave Brubeck Quartet, from 1951 to 1967, followed by his quartet albums with guitarist Jim Hall, between 1959 and 1965. Coming in third for me would be the alto saxophonist’s recordings with his Canadian quartet in 1975 and ‘76. [Photo above of Paul Desmond on the CBC, courtesy of YouTube]

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Following my post on Monday on the new Peggy Lee collection Too Marvelous for Words, I received quite a few emails from readers asking me for my favorite Lee periods. As I hinted in my post, I’m a big fan of her early 1960s Capitol recordings. But the era I enjoy most are her many recordings made with husband, guitarist Dave Barbour, in the second half of the 1940s and early ‘50s. [Photo above of Dave Barbour and Peggy Lee]

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In 2014, I flew down to New Orleans to interview Dr. John for The Wall Street Journal. Mac Rebennack (his real name) lived in a place called St. Tammany Parish. To reach that community, you have to cross Lake Pontchartrain. Unfamiliar with the lake? You take the Causeway Bridge from metro New Orleans to Mandeville on the Northshore.

The causeway consists of two parallel spans with two lanes each and runs for 24 miles. Yep, a half hour on a bridge if you drive at 55 mph. The lake is astonishingly massive. About halfway across, you feel as if you’re driving across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe, You can’t see New Orleans behind you and you can’t see Mandeville in front. Just water for 360 degrees. It’s like a Twilight Zone episode, where there’s no end and the people in the car eventually go mad.

I had the good fortune to have Mac’s publicist, Karen Dalton-Beninato, and her husband, Jeff, a musician-photographer, drive me there. Along the way there, I was warned to keep an eye on the woods around Mac’s house in case a gator wandered out.

At Mac’s place, every available shelf was filled with voodoo dolls, gris-gris, candles, and spiritual artifacts. Mac wanted to chat outside (watch for the gators!), so out we went onto his patio. He then began smoking thin, brown cigarillos. Mac knew I wrote on jazz and began talking about his days in West Coast recording studios in the early 1960s. Mac would say, “Yeah, I remember playing with this crazy trombonist.” “Frank Rosolino?,” I said. “Yeah, yeah, him. And this amazing alto saxophonist and flutist.” “Bud Shank?” “Yeah-yeah-yeah.”

This went on for about 15 minutes, with me finishing his sentences. Mac was most impressed and opened up on his life for my piece. After about 40 minutes, he asked if I had what I needed. I did. In his crackly voice, he said, “Great, let’s go inside. I want to play you something.”

Inside, he perched on a piano bench in front of his baby grand with a nice heavy sound. For the next half hour, Mac played me the history of New Orleans piano, explaining what made each style special—multiple boogie-woogie styles, including the butterfly; traditional Crescent City grooves; blues; R&B; stride and more. His sound was dazzling and the impact was like the taste of a great cup of coffee—each sip made you want another and another.

Not until a day later did I learn that Jeff—equally stunned—had the good sense to take some video of me sitting next to Mac as he performed. Here’s the clip:

Over the past seven years, six of Dr. John’s albums have been released thanks to the Estate of Malcolm John Rebennack, Jr. The estate is overseen by his daughter, Karla Rebennack Pratt, who serves as the executrix. The entity actively manages Dr. John’s posthumous album releases, merchandise and authorized usage of his legacy through its official Dr. John site here.

In celebration of Dr. John’s music, here’s a taste of the six releases:

Dr. John—Gris-Gris Gumbo Ya Ya: The Singles 1968-1974 (Omnivore). This double-album release was originally produced for Record Store Day in 2024 on purple vinyl and features 26 tracks culled from five different Dr. John albums. To buy on CD or LP, go here.

Here’s Stack-a-Lee…

Dr. John: The Montreux Years (BMG). This double album features 14 live tracks recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival between 1986 and 2012, and released in 2023. To buy, go here.

Here’s a medley of In a Sentimental Mood, Mississippi Mud and Happy Hard Times…

Dr. John: Solo Piano, Live in New Orleans 1984 (Record Club). If you want the solo experience I encountered, your closest bet is this one, featuring seven tracks. To buy, go here for vinyl and here for digital download.

Here’s Dr. John covering Professor Longhair’s Tipitina, with original lyrics by Roy Byrd…

Dr. John: Live at the Village Gate (Omnivore). Recorded at the famed club in New York’s Greenwich Village on March 5, 1988, the 12-song double album captures Dr. John taking on a range of interesting material and the reactions by a loving audience. To buy, go here.

Here’s Georgia on My Mind…

Dr. John: Live at Rockpalast 1999 (MIG). This live performance took place on the German music TV show Rockpalast that appeared on German television station Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR). It was broadcast during a concert at the Loreley Open-Air Theatre in St. Goarshausen, Germany. The CD/DVD set can be purchased here.

Here’s the full concert…

Dr. John: Things Happen That Way (Rounder). This was the last studio album by Dr. John, recorded between 2017 and 2019, the year of his passing, and then released in 2022. To buy, go here.

Here’s Funny How Time Slips Away…

Before satellite radio of the 2000s, the proliferation of FM in the 1970s and popularity of Top 40 programming in the 1960s, radio stations licensed extended prerecorded discs of music called archival transcriptions to air as specials. [Photo above of Peggy Lee in the 1950s]

When radio first became popular in the 1920s, the music that listeners heard on local stations was provided by live musicians playing in the studio. With the rise of recorded music on phonograph records, radio stations licensed these transcriptions on 16-inch, 33 1/3 rpm vinyl discs for extended play. These discs were produced only for radio air-play, and the music wasn’t sold to the public until decades later.

Among these transcription companies was the World Broadcasting System, founded in 1929. In 1955, WBS recorded 49 masters by singer Peggy Lee backed by a range of West Coast jazz and pop musicians. This Lee material first surfaced on the Audiophile label in October 2017 as a two-CD set entitled World Broadcasting Recordings 1955. Vinyl followed in July 2021 on Org Music as a limited-edition color LP for Record Store Day.

Now, Peggy Lee Associates has released Too Marvelous for Words, a newly restored and remastered digital-only set of the singer’s World Broadcasting transcription tracks recorded in 1955. The 49 songs are a treasure trove of music, featuring Lee singing American songbook standards. Not only does the new release sound warm and clear, but also half of the songs were recorded only once by Lee, including Autumn in New York, What Is This Thing Called Love? and Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’.

More importantly, they feature Lee during a key period in her career—transitioning from eager and demure jazz-pop singer at Decca in the early and mid-1950s to laid-back superstar vocalist and sex symbol at Capitol in the LP and TV era of the late 1950s and early 1960s. You’ll find the new album at Spotify and other digital service providers.

Recorded over four sessions in February and August 1955 for the World Broadcasting System, the dates feature unidentified small groups. The musicians are thought to include Bill Pitman (g), Bob Whitlock or Don Prell (b), poss. Gene DiNovi (p), Stella Castellucci (harp), Larry Bunker or Ray Rivera (d) and Jack Constanzo (bgo). The only drawback are the arrangements, which tend to be wooden compared with her later swinging Capitol recordings.

Intimate ballads feature Lee influenced by Billie Holiday and backed by a wandering trumpet. Mid- and up-tempo songs include a Latin feel with bongos.

By 1957, Lee had re-signed with Capitol and began recording LPs with fresher arrangements. These Capitol albums include The Man I Love, Jump for Joy and Things Are Swingin’.

From the new WBS transcription album, here’s I May Be Wrong (but I Think You’re Wonderful)…

Here’s Mountain Greenery…

And here’s Speak Low…

Bonus: Here’s Lee in 1955 in the film Pete Kelly’s Blues…

Here’s Lee in 1955 recording He’s a Tramp for Lady & the Tramp…

For comparison between 1955 and 1958, here’s Lee in 1958 for Capitol singing Life Is For Livin’, from Things Are Swingin’, arranged and conducted by Jack Marshall…

What makes New York special is that everything big happens here all at once. It’s where exceptionalism comes to leave its mark in food, fashion, finance, the arts, sports, entertainment, architecture, technology and writing. [Photo above and below of New York by Marc Myers]

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Today is a national holiday in the U.S. The day has long been known in the black community as Juneteenth and commemorates the moment in 1865 when slavery officially ended.

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Abdullah Ibrahim, a South African jazz pianist also known as Dollar Brand who brought a distinct and gentle spiritualism to his compositions and improvisation, died on June 15. He was 91. [Photo above of Abdullah Ibrahim, courtesy of the Kurland Agency]

In 2011, I interviewed Abdullah for JazzWax. In tribute to his passing, I’m reprising my interview with him here, along with clips down below:

***

The name Abdullah Ibrahim (also known as Dollar Brand) may or may not be familiar to you. The South African pianist comes to jazz from creative pressures that are different from most American jazz artists.

Ibrahim grew up in the 1940s and ‘50s under the African country’s brutal segregationist system of apartheid, which was in place from 1948 to 1993. His music celebrates American jazz but echoes his own cultural background and hardships in Africa.

As is evident on his latest album, Sotho Blue, Abdullah works from a rich and gentle spiritual tablet.

I was so moved by Abdullah’s album Sotho Blue with his band, Ekaya, that I wanted to reach out to tell him so. From South Africa, Abdullah generously took time out to answer my e-mailed questions.

JazzWax: You started playing professionally in South Africa in 1949 and began recording with the Tuxedo Slickers Orchestra in 1954, yes?
Abdullah Ibrahim: Yes. The Tuxedo Slickers was a big-band based in Cape Town’s District Six—one of the communities that the government later in the 1970s declared for whites only. Sixty-thousand life-long black residents were forcibly removed to townships. Back then, we played concerts and dance shows, with opening acts, vocal groups that were inspired by the Delta Rhythm Boys, and traditional choral music.

JW: What type of music did you play with the Tuxedo Slickers?
AI: We used Tuxedo Junction as our signature tune. We also played Tommy Dorsey’s Song of India, Glenn Miller’s Moonlight Serenade and songs by Joe Liggins, Count Basie and Erskine Hawkins, who co-wrote Tuxedo Junction. Years later, I visited Hawkins’ home in Birmingham, Alabama, to pay my respects. We also played Xhosa and Zulu traditional music, and a keyboard style called Marabi that combined jazz, blues and ragtime with our music. I still play this form today. When the New York members of my band, Ekaya, visit, they call it South African r&b chord changes. Back in the early ‘50s, the Tuxedo Slickers’ arranger Caleb Ndimande wrote original African charts. He also wrote arrangements of jazz songs. I recall a very complex chart of pianist George Wallington’s Lemon Drop. We had heard Dizzy Gillespie’s recording.

JW: Given South Africa’s horrible apartheid policy back in the ‘50s, how did you perform there and record? Did the government try to prevent this?
AI: The apartheid regime was ruthless in controlling our daily movement. You’d need permits to travel anywhere and you always faced imminent arrest. We sneaked out of safe houses to jam with other musicians. We also organized our own community concerts. Then the white-owned recording companies would rip off naive and uninformed musicians and record their music without acknowledgment or compensation.

JW: How did you become familiar with American jazz in South Africa in the 1950s?
AI: We listened to Voice of America jazz programs hosted by Willis Conover. We also listened to local weekly jazz programs on the radio as well as LPs.

JW: Where was one of the most unusual places you heard American jazz in South Africa?
AI: The local ice-cream van blared Louis Jordan and his Tympani Five.

JW: How did you develop your style?
AI: Our local jazz hero, alto saxophonist Kippie Moketsi, was classically trained and played elaborate pieces such as Mozart’s clarinet concerto. On LP, I heard pianists Jimmy Yancey, Albert Ammons and Meade Lux Lewis. They inspired me to woodshed boogie-woogie, developing left-hand independence and synchronizing it with traditional rhythms, leaving my right hand free to fly anywhere.

JW: What is the origin of the name “Dollar Brand?”
AI: My original last name was Brand. I was given my nickname while hanging out in Cape Town Harbor as a teen. I’d befriend African-American sailors, who were manning merchant vessels. They gave me a few dollars and the name stuck. I changed my name in the mid-70s when I converted to Islam.

JW: When you moved to Europe in 1962, did you find audiences there more receptive to your style of jazz? How did you escape South Africa?
AI: In the aftermath of the Sharpville Massacre of March 1960, the regime became even more oppressive. We joined the wave of people, young and old, leaving the country in 1962. European audiences and musicians were very receptive to what I was playing. Some were hostile, especially when I became identified as an avant-garde musician. But it was the feeling of total creative liberation. It was a wonderful feeling to finally present music written in South Africa, without worrying about restrictions, the market and political and social pressures.

JW: Whose music did you relate to most?
AI: Duke Ellington’s. Duke, for us, was always the wise old man of the village. Our link with the African-American community started with our local African Methodist Episcopal church in South Africa, of which my grandmother was a founding member. Missionaries and bishops from Mother Bethel in Philadelphia had been sent there as missionaries. Duke’s music embodied for us our common struggle and experience.

JW: Ellington must have been viewed as more than a great musician, as a cultural hero.
AI: He was. Similarly, we also had celebrated Joe Louis’ victories. I recall listening over and over to King Joe, also known as the Joe Louis Blues, recorded by the Count Basie Orchestra in 1941, with Langston Hughes’ lyrics and Paul Robeson on vocals.

JW: Your new album [in 2011], Sotho Blue, has a beautiful, soulful feel. Where did you compose many of the songs?
AI: We try to be as sincere as possible in our daily lives and in our music. Compositions have no fixed location or time limits.

JW: Do you view the music you create as jazz or as a different form born in South Africa with South African traditions?
AI: In the words of our illustrious poet Rumi, “There is only one sound, everything else is echo.”

Here’s Abdullah Ibrahim playing Blue Bolero, Signal on the Hill and Once Upon a Midnight in 2022 as part of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series…

Here’s the complete Abdullah Ibrahim With Carlos Ward - Live At Sweet Basil Vol. 1. in 1983…

Here’s Abdullah and Max Roach on the full Streams of Consciousness album in 1977…

Here’s African Space in 1974…

Here’s Is Where It’s Happening from Abdullah’s Mannenberg album in 1974…